liveaboards in Europe

[hans stroomberg]

Hi all
i am thinking there most be a lot of live aboard,s in Europe ?? but where are they , it is not on this forum??.
i am looking for a place to stay next winter 2008 and i am open for suggestions so please respond
regards Hans

[philip van praag]

they are here but you wont find many as most europians dont speek english as there first language
im in the uk

Yachting and Boating World forums: Viewing forum: Liveaboard Link

[hans stroomberg]

hi Philip
but where are al the people from the USA and Australian

[philip van praag]

they can only stay for a short time because of visa restrictions and the import VAT that would be levied on there boat

[henryk]

Hans! there are lots of cruisers in the Med , but not that many want to spend the winter there , too cold . I'm thinking of spending one winter in southern Spain in the future , but only because I would like my kids to attend a Spanish school for a while . Other than that ,I would rather fly there and tour Europe by car, camping and side seeing .

[swagman]

Hi Hans,
We've met many US and Austrailan cruisers and it's true most keep their boats in the Med for as long as they can, but often travel home for winter months.
We kept our yacht in Turkey for one year - and guess of the cruising / livaboards the split was approximately British 50% - Dutch 15% - German 15% - American 10% -
Others 10%. And we do know it is possible to travel by inland waterways from Holland to Turkey via the Black Sea as we've met several Dutch cruisers who've enjoyed that trip.
Sail safe
JOHN

[Jim Thomsen]

Hi Hans,

We are Americans and have lived aboard the past 2 years in Europe. In 2006 we were in the Netherlands (and really enjoyed sailing through Haarlem!) but returned to San Diego for the winter. In 2007 we followed the coasts of Belgium, France, Spain and Portugal and thi winter we are in Almerimar, Spain. There is a fairly large live aboard community here (only 1 other USA boat).

Enjoy your trip!!

Jim

[s/v Breakaway]

Hi Hans,
Check with the Seven Seas Cruising Association @ Welcome to the Seven Seas Cruising Association. They have lots of info on their website, and for a modest membership fee you have access to their monthly Bulletin which is full of articles from members cruising around the world: reports on marinas, repair people, etc. A good read from "thems thats doing it" as we prepare to go!

[jstevens]

I second Breakaway's recommendation to join SSCA. You can purchase a CD of past bulletins which is searchable so you can find what you are looking for.
I lived aboard in Portugal the last two winters. One winter in Cascais, where there were few other cruisers except short stay transients. The next winter I stayed in Lagos where there is a large and very active live aboard cruising community. Cascais was great for quick access to Lisboa and Portuguese Riviera, but expensive. Lagos wasn't inexpensive, but less so than Cascais. Lagos was by far the more friendly location.
Staying in Europe for the winter does require at least one trip out of the Schengen Treaty countries for a short time to renew your 90 day tourist visa. I used the UK for that purpose.
Again if you join the SSCA you will have access of reports from dozens of members currently cruising Europe. There many great places to stay for the winter and tour Europe by car or just hang out.

John

[rebel heart]

You can stay in the EU for up to a year (or 18 months; I forget) without paying an vat. Then you need to leave (no minimum time), and return. As long as you have a departure and clearance from a non-EU nation, you can come back and start the clock again.

[Agility]

We liked: Real Club Náutico de Palma

[shadow]

I was always told that buying a boat in the MED was never a problem, it was just finding a mooring for it?! It's good to hear that there are options for transient liveaboards as that is where we plan to go when we get our boat.

I'm glad to hear from the real world cruisers that it isn't impossible to be on the hook there. Am I right?

Cheers!

[Jim Thomsen]

Dear Shadow,

A fun website to visit is Rod Heikell's: TELL-TALES | Rod Heikell's very informal site on sailing around bits of the world and an eclectic collection of things nautical or nearly so.
Rod is the author of many of the cruising pilots to the Med and has spent the past 30 year sailing around the Med. When you are in a good boat store look through one of his pilots and you will see the number of anchorages and marinas there are as well as estimated costs (I would recommend you don't buy any pilots until you are going, since new editions come out often).
Jim