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Old 09-06-2020, 20:31   #16
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

I'm reminded of a British family we met some years ago in NZ. Youngish couple with two teen age kids on board... quite experienced yotties with a 50+footer back in old Bilghty. They got a super deal on a 95 foot ketch rigged mega yacht and were cruising as a family with the aid of two tutors for the kids. The skipper was a ME by training and a pretty switched on chap, planned to do all the maintenance himself.

HAH!

After a while, they fired the tutors and hired a full time engineer to run the boat. As it was, Dad had no time to enjoy life or cruising or his family, and he wasn't having a good time at all despite his high degree of experience and competence coming into the adventure. (too bad for the tutors... they were nice too, and had a dream gig going)

A very nice bunch of folks who were working out how to do their plan in a useful manner. Lost track of them in Tonga, often wondered how they fared in the long run...

My point, if you have managed to hang on this long, is that running a big boat is a BIG job, one to occupy a full time pro, and will overcome your families lack of experience in short order. And this level of experience, or competence if that term better suits you, ain't gonna be developed with a few lessons or in an affordable period of time.

So, IMO you will be looking at supporting a Captain/instructor AND a full time engineering type to look after the workings of a large and complex vessel. If you can manage that, you should have a wonderful time of it.

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Old 09-06-2020, 23:26   #17
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

We've met several cruising families over the years. One family had at least 4 children, and Dad swore that he was keeping them on the boat until they went to university. They had a St. Francis 50, and it worked well for them.

Good luck!

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Old 09-06-2020, 23:46   #18
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

Not easy but can be done. As mentioned above, I would think hard about your teenage kids (they need peers) and that you may get tired of the sailing experience rather quickly, then you will be stuck with the boat.

I would also consider a motor yacht 80-120 ft, there are plenty of examples available and it is easier to buy one or sell one. If you prefer a sailboat... here is my understanding of the market. The sweet spot is 40-55 ft monohulls, typically with 2-4 people on board. These boats are easy to manage, easy and inexpensive to dock and fairly flexible. Once you get above 60 ft, most people hire professional help. It does not have to be full time (you can have an engineer to support you at the marina) and a handy captain to support you on passages. But you will need help, at least initially and it is also safer to do so until you start feeling comfortable (six months at least).

Boats above 60 ft are typically specialized. For example, the traditional cruisers (Halberg Rassy 64, Hylas 70) have few cabins (2-3 max) but lots of storage and amenities to support full time cruising. Classical big boats (Swan, Oyster) would qualify as luxury day sailers and they are outfitted so but of course, they make excellent passage makers with a little bit of creativity. Large cats have lots of room and may be the best fit for you. The trouble with large cats is that docking can get so expensive that you might as well charter one unless you plan to be cruising all the time. I believe you really need to hire a broker for this project.

Still, I would consider the following yachts in addition to the 77:

Catamarans, check out Lagoon 77 and below, Priviledge and Sunreef.

Monohulls, check out Swan 100, Oyster 82, may be a custom Hallberg-Rassy.
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/200...2019--3002416/

Another way is to buy a charter vessel, for example this https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/199...ustom-2057660/. It is easier to buy a boat for half a million that has been in the charter trade, cruise for a year, then sell it or put it back into charter vs. spending $3-4 million on a new catamaran that you may need to unload for half the price a few years later.

Custom Far 85 (this one is not luxury but it is close to you, so you can just check it out)
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/202...salon-3586687/

Good luck,
SV Pizzazz
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Old 10-06-2020, 06:18   #19
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

A Lagoon 77 equipped costs more than your house, and may have to wait 2 years to get a new one.
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Old 10-06-2020, 07:54   #20
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

There are a couple of big problems with catamarans larger than 50'. First it's really hard to find a place to haul you. Second it's hard to find marina slips when you need one.

Maje
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Old 10-06-2020, 08:25   #21
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

How about a houseboat. Saw several in Victoria, BC. Not sure how they get around. Can still post live aboard videos on FB and YouTube
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Old 10-06-2020, 08:44   #22
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

We chartered a Leopard 52' power cat with family a few years ago that might work. They might make a sail version with the same layout.

Basically two cabins and two heads in each hull BUT there was also a crew cabin in the forepeak of each hull plus large settees in the main cabin that could sleep a few more.
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Old 10-06-2020, 08:55   #23
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

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Anything is possible. Before you spent a 1mil on a large cat I'd find a large cat to charter for 3weeks to month. You can probably find a lagoon 62. Have a captain onboard that can teach the family. It will cost a bit but a lot less than the real estate commission of selling your house.

Also if things don't work out large boats can often take a long time to sell.
At this point I think we’re planning on this:
-Take some sailing classes near us, to learn the pure basics (although on a much smaller boat)

-Charter a cat for a few weeks, to get used to living on a boat and learn more about the systems.

-Move onto whatever boat we end up with, but hire a captain/skipper for a few months, to learn the specifics of our boat.

-Hopefully manage the boat by ourselves, but probably hire a captain or crew for our first few passages.

Does that sound more realistic? We really want to do whatever’s necessary to make this work, so we’re probably considering more of a 60 foot boat. (Maybe the Sunseeker 60?)

Thanks for all the feedback!
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Old 10-06-2020, 09:00   #24
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

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It seems fairly adventurous and brave so I would really consider doing some chartering to see just how the gang works together on a boat. Lovely people often turn into little monsters at sea. Some little monsters become semi human.
Best of luck.
It’ll definitely be interesting to see how we function on a boat. We have done a few 2/3 month RV trips, and we work pretty well stuffed into a small space, but that’s definitely a bit different than a boat. Fingers crossed!
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Old 10-06-2020, 11:06   #25
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

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Hi! I’m new to this so I’m not totally sure of the etiquette for this sort of post, so please feel free to let me know how this works.

Me and my husband currently live in LA and have 7 kids (2 in college). We’ve been interested in leaving our lives behind and traveling the world via boat full time. I’m currently a full time mom, my husband would have to mostly leave his work behind. Our kids are mostly onboard with the idea, and I really think it’s a good option for us. My husband is relatively handy (his dad owns a sailboat, so he’s spent some time on the water, but he’s not an expert). We’d probably start with sailing lessons and go from there.

As far as finding boats, I’m a little stuck. I’m thinking a sailing catamaran makes the most sense for us. We definitely need five bedrooms (but we can be creative) and ideally some couch space for our two college kids if they ever end up on the boat. Our house would probably sell for 4.5 mil, so put our budget somewhere around there. The Lagoon Seventy 7 is sort of a dream boat for us... I love how spacious it is and the whole bonus room would be perfect for my kids. I just don’t know if it’s plausible for passages. If anyone has knowledge on wether it’s possible to maneuver one of these without a crew, that’d be great.

I’m not really sure what size is recommended for family liveaboard boats, so any recommended models or brands (in the luxury side of things) would be super helpful. This is definitely a step we want to take, we just aren’t sure how, so anything helps!

Thanks!

Emily (Mom)
Nate (Dad)
Caroline (22)
Mason (18)
James (14)
Alana (12)
Ashlynn (9)
Margot/Will (5)
First off, there's no way I'd budget 4.5 million for your first boat (or even your last one for that matter). Check out the Knysna 500 SE for a fraction of that cost. Comes with four cabins and heads and a lot of extras for just less than 1 million. Since these boats are semi custom built (they do about 4 a year) it'll take awhile to get but you can customize the interior to your hearts' desire. Note you'll need to take delivery in Knysna, southeast South Africa.

Finding a nice cat in Los Angeles will be difficult as there aren't that many cats out here - mostly due to the lack/cost of marina space.
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Old 10-06-2020, 11:12   #26
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

With that experience level and the size of boat you’re needing for room..

As much as I love sailing, you should consider a good diesel trawler with bow and stern thrusters and a steel hull. Probably can do that south of a mil.


A sail boat that big is a bit beyond taking some sailing 101 course.

Also how’s your mechanical abilities?
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Old 10-06-2020, 11:46   #27
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

Sounds like you’ve been very successful in life but you don’t mention if you have funds outside of selling the house to pay for the ongoing expenses. If you own a successful business and have people to operate it while you are gone that’s ideal. That being said:

1) unless you are a trained electrician and mechanic, the running costs for the boat will be $300-$400,000/year. That is before you step off the boat or do any provisioning.
2) Boats like this depreciation is a killer, how long do you plan to be gone for? Factor in 8-10% depreciation the first couple years then 5% or so down the road assuming you keep the boat in Bristol condition.
3) what’s your plan for when the trip is done? Will you be okay with your $4.5M purchase only netting you $2.5 after a 5 year trip? I am assuming you have another $10M-$20M in the bank to even be considering this purchase, which is awesome if you do, life’s short and you can’t take it with you. If you only have a the paid for house you are selling and maybe $1-$5M in the bank, unless someone is terminally ill and this is a last hurrah type trip, you can’t afford that type of boat.
4) remember you’ll pay a broker 10% to sell the boat when you are done and it could take a couple years. Boats I looked at 4 years ago I still see for sale today, so keep in mind you’ll still be spending hundreds of thousands a year to maintain it once the shiny newness has worn off.
5) It will be a life changing experience, but definitely go charter a bunch. Understand what it’s like to be in 5 meter seas with no help and trying to come into a new narrow passage of some island you’ve never been to when the rain is coming down sideways and the wind is making you crab your way in. It’s actually fun and a great feeling once you get anchored!
6) I would suggest looking at a Nordhavn. It’s still on our list since we plan on higher latitudes on the agenda. Other boats we like are the Privilège, Garcia, Outremer, Oyster, Seawind, and Leopard.
7) go to Cannes yacht festival to go check them all out, the south of France is fun and looking at boats never gets old.
8) when you are very wealthy it sort of changes your options, you’d be much better off financially chartering multiple times per year and flying to the boats and being able to throw the keys back when you are done.
9) Definitely consider buying used from someone who had the same plan you have now but for some reason it didn’t work out.

Good luck and let us know how your journey progresses!
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Old 11-06-2020, 18:22   #28
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

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First off, there's no way I'd budget 4.5 million for your first boat (or even your last one for that matter). Check out the Knysna 500 SE for a fraction of that cost. Comes with four cabins and heads and a lot of extras for just less than 1 million. Since these boats are semi custom built (they do about 4 a year) it'll take awhile to get but you can customize the interior to your hearts' desire. Note you'll need to take delivery in Knysna, southeast South Africa.

Finding a nice cat in Los Angeles will be difficult as there aren't that many cats out here - mostly due to the lack/cost of marina space.
As an addendum to my last post; don't get too hung up on the individual cabins - nobody is going to be hanging out there except to sleep. What you'll need is a big salon and even bigger cockpit. Your 14 year old might need to sleep in the salon as long as you have a captain on board. A good captain will run you about $500 a day and teach you a lot about the boat. Your husband and your 14 year old should be the only crew he needs. By the time you reach the Caribbean (Grenada) you won't need the captain anymore. Given there's not much else to do on a boat, everybody should be allowed to get involved so you'll have plenty of crew going forward. Your early boat maintenance won't be much since we're talking about a new boat here. If it were me, I'd order the 500SE with the Ocean Volt electric engines and beef up the solar with 6, 425 watt hard solar panels parallel wired to their own controller (note these engines also feature a regen function which adds to your electricity while under sail) And electric engines require no maintenance except for a bearing change out at 50,000 hours (which is about a hundred years for most cruisers) No oil and filter changes, no impellers and no diesel to carry. This eliminates a big chunk of your maintenance on a cruising boat. You still need to clean the bottom and decks but it sounds like you have plenty of help.
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Old 11-06-2020, 18:36   #29
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

Sounds dream this idea is a bust
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Old 12-06-2020, 04:45   #30
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Re: Getting into liveaboard w a family of 7

The most beautiful catamaran ever built, the 75-foot cat Ppalu is for sale in Ft Lauderdale. Looks like new. 6 cabins and under $300,000. She is a fine sailing small catamaran for her length. Ketch rigged built by Peter Spronk. Hire a Captain for your first year.
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