Novice

[Greenmaster]

Hi I have retired at 62 and am seriously thinking of getting a yacht I am a complete novice but you have to start somewhere I would like options on what size yacht would be a good size to start with and I will be living on it By the way solo sailer as well thanks

[chubby]

Originally Posted by Greenmaster

Hi I have retired at 62 and am seriously thinking of getting a yacht I am a complete novice but you have to start somewhere I would like options on what size yacht would be a good size to start with and I will be living on it By the way solo sailer as well thanks

well....
stock answer is the smallest that you'd be comfortable living on..
but..




i need about tree fiddy.

[Chotu]

Tree fiddy?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tuh8Hip_B3w

[Chotu]

The customized answer is to find out how you plan to use the boat, who is going along, where you are sailing, buying a boat for a purpose.

[Bobby Lex]

Originally Posted by Greenmaster

Hi I have retired at 62 and am seriously thinking of getting a yacht I am a complete novice but you have to start somewhere I would like options on what size yacht would be a good size to start with and I will be living on it By the way solo sailer as well thanks

At this point, you don't know what you don't know. So, I would recommend that you start with baby steps. Perhaps you could take a captained sailing charter vacation to test the waters so to speak.

Sailing is great. But it's not for everyone. So before you make a rather large investment of time, effort and of course $$money$$, starting off with a little trial run might be a better approach. Don't assume that it's going to be like every Youtube sailing channel you may have seen. There is a lot of "behind the scenes" stuff going on that is rarely shown and that non-sailors have no clue about .

If after a couple of actual sailing experiences you still feel that this is something you'd like to do more of, c'mon back and ask your question again. I'm sure the helpful folks here would be more than happy to try to steer you in the right direction.

Bob

[Tin Tin]

A couple of options, as above charter a boat for a week in say the Abacos - relatively safe waters, if you are a complete boating novice then get a captained boat. Alternatively join a yacht club, do the learn to sail program then volunteer to crew on a few social races on keel boats, volunteering for rescue boat duty is also a good way to learn stuff.

[Sailor Sailor]

I love books and reading. I will pass along a recommendation from this forum - Half Off Sail by Robert Fuller. It describes circumstances similar to your own, with a funny approach and a happy ending.

The author started his sailing career with a MacGregor Venture 22, and ended up sailing to and around the Bahamas, after multiple hijinks and misadventures.

The questionable advice you will receive on this forum is posters advising you to buy a 50 foot yacht or spend thousands of dollars on sailing lessons. That would be idiotic and some posters might have a financial interest in giving you that particular advice. You should test your own interests before spending a lot of money on something you may never continue.

By the way, the first family sailboat my Dad bought was a new, trailerable MacGregor Venture 24. We had a great time on it for a couple of years, before he bought a bigger keelboat. Be smart, start small and learn how to sail on your own.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Greenmaster

Hi I have retired at 62 and am seriously thinking of getting a yacht I am a complete novice but you have to start somewhere I would like options on what size yacht would be a good size to start with and I will be living on it By the way solo sailer as well thanks

To many unknowns here.. acceptable standard of life and minimum space required.. my 1st liveaboard was a 23ft Virgo with outboard motor and 6ft headroom.. served me well for a couple of years and took me the 80nm across to France and back several times and along the UK S Coast.
Met a guy living aboard a 27ftr during my time in Oriental who was happy enough.. met another guy in the Caribe who did nothing but bitch about his 37ft live aboard.
Don't give up the house till your sure..

[NormanMartin]

I am a retired sailing instructor of many decades so my advice is: Sailing school cruising courses in a variety of locations on a variety of boats both mono and multi hull. Way way cheaper than buying the wrong boat!
Advice based on experience of listening to others on this subject.
Norm

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by chubby

well....
stock answer is the smallest that you'd be comfortable living on..
but..




i need about tree fiddy.

You're killing me today!

A mind numbing day at the helm going in circles in the Georgia ICW.

Then this comes up

[JPA Cate]

Greenmaster,

Welcome aboard CF!

Thinking about getting a yacht is kinda fun, huh? But to give you reasonably good advice, both you and we need to know more.

What would the intended use of the boat be? and where would this take place?

Generally, where are you located? (Local climate may change recommendations, and locale may affect where lessons are available, or if it is practical to teach yourself to sail.)

You can teach yourself to sail in an 8 ft. sailing dinghy, if you're the kind of person who has the will to do it, all you need is a bit of gear, a lake, and a light breeze. You will know better than we how you learn best. If a mentor situation is it, you'll probably want some instruction.

Ann

[Adelie]

Welcome to CruisersForum!

I would suggest updating your profile with your general location and your boat make & model or “Looking” in the "Boat" category. This info shows up under your UserName in every post in the web view. Many questions are boat and/or location dependent and having these tidbits under your UserName saves answering those questions repeatedly. If you need help setting up your profile then click on this link: https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...ml#post3308797

I would happily help more if the link above is not enough.