Living on a Yacht: Pros and Cons

Like almost everything about yacht life, living on board is amazing, but you’ll probably find a reason to complain a little, too. It’s one of the best first world problems to have. However, the truth is that living on a boat is not for everyone.

Living on a yacht is a big lifestyle change, and there is no denying that. Yacht Management shares the pros and cons of this type of living.

Pros

Home is Where You Lay Your Head: Living on a yacht is your ticket to see the world, and if you aren’t planning on travelling from port to port, then you’re missing out on an opportunity of a lifetime. You are free to travel the world! Sailing La Vagabonde is a great YouTube channel that documents the experiences of a couple traveling the world on their sailboat La Vagabonde.

The Cost of Living: The highest cost of living on a yacht is the mooring and the maintenance. After that, you’ll be saving money on water, electricity, and mortgage or rent. The cost of living on a yacht will also significantly decrease your cost of life in other, indirect ways too.
Because space is so important, you will have less tolerance for accumulating clutter, and you’re likely to spend less money. You’ll also waste less food on board, choosing rather to cook and eat everything you bring aboard because again, less space means you pay more attention to what you buy.

Nothing Will Be the Same: There is truly no other living situation that comes even close to achieving the same level of solitude, freedom, and sense of self sufficiency that you experience living on a yacht. Once you’ve lived on a yacht, you have truly done something amazing that not many people have ever had the privilege of experiencing.

Cons

Errands: When living on your boat, leaving the comfort of your water home to run errands is a challenge all on its own.

Groceries: Carrying groceries from the car to the house is not too bad, even for those of us who like to grab every bag in the trunk and painfully crab walk to the front door. Trying to do the same from the parking lot, down the steps on to the dock, across the swaying waters, and up onto the deck of your yacht is a great challenge.

Laundry: Carrying laundry from the yacht to the car and vice versa has the same set of challenges as the groceries we mentioned before. Unless you have a washing machine on board, laundry can get difficult at times.

No Sleep on Stormy Nights: If you ask almost anyone if they like sleeping when it’s raining, chances are they’ll say yes. There’s just something about sitting cozy in a sturdy house while the heavens stir around you. Not in a boat, no sir. When the sea is upset, you’ll know, and you won’t get much sleep because of it. Large yachts tend to rock less, and with the right kind of mooring you can avoid some sleepless nights, but when it’s storming out, chances are you’ll have a tough time sleeping.