Is Sailing For The Rich?
Many people assume that sailing is for the rich. I know I did before I moved aboard a cheap, old sailboat and set off around the world. But is sailing really an expensive hobby?
I had always dreamed of learning to sail, but the cost of courses alone had kept me at arm’s length. Even if I passed a sailing qualification I had no way of practicing my new skills, because I wasn’t a millionaire that could spare the money for my own yacht.
As with everything in life though, where there’s a will, there’s a way. We’ve been living on our sailboat in the Mediterranean for three years now, and can honestly answer whether sailing is an expensive sport to get into.
In fact, we’ve even broken down our average costs over the three years to explain exactly how much money we spend, what we spend it on, and where we could save even more money if we were determined enough.
So is sailing for the rich? Here’s what we’ve found out!
Is Sailing For The Rich? The Things To Consider
- The cost of learning to sail
- Getting sailing experience
- Buying or renting a sailboat
- Sailboat equipment and gear
- Storing a sailboat
- Sailboat insurance
- Sailboat maintenance
A Breakdown Of The Cost Of Sailing As A Hobby
The cost of living aboard a sailboat is slightly different from the actual cost of sailing as a sport or hobby. Obviously when you live aboard your sailboat is your car and your home, so you save money on the cost of rent or a mortgage.
When you’re sailing as a hobby you have a few things to take into consideration.
How Expensive Is It To Learn To Sail?
Learning to sail can be as expensive or as cheap as you like, as long as you’re determined enough. It’s actually totally possible to learn to sail for free!
If you want to go down the traditional route of taking courses then you’ll find sailing is more expensive. You can expect to pay around £1000 for an RYA Day Skipper sailing course. You’ll get 5 days of tuition and you’ll live onboard for the duration.
Although the skipper qualification is all you need to get out on the water, most of the time you’ll be expected to also take the competent crew course beforehand. And if you want to take your qualifications a little more seriously then it’s even more money for the more advanced courses.
All of this tuition can really add up, so if you take the ‘normal’ sailing route then you’ll want to budget some savings!
If this is making you think sailing is for the rich then make sure you take a look at all the ways you can learn to sail for free!
Do You Need To Be Rich To Buy Sailing Gear?
Unfortunately, sailing gear essentials can be quite expensive, and if you have bought a sailboat that needs a lot of upgrades then you will have to shell out on some expensive sailing gear.
That being said, if you’re clever you can find second-hand gear and even free gear. Many marinas and boatyards have giveaway stations where people donate old gear for you to pick up for free. You can also use sites like Ebay or sailing Facebook groups to pick up bargains on people’s second-hand sailing gear.
We got all our charts for free, our stern line was donated to us, we were given second-hand sailing jackets and numerous other bits of expensive equipment. You just have to be prepared to accept gear that isn’t shiny and new if you’re on a budget!
The only exception you should make here is when buying safety gear or essentials like lithium marine batteries. Try to get things like life jackets from a reputable store like West Marine to ensure you’re not buying something that’s damaged.
To get an idea of some more expensive replacements you might have to budget for, check out how much new sails cost.
Are Charter Holidays Expensive?
Once your sailing skills are up to scratch you’re going to want to get out on the water as much as possible. If you don’t live near the coast or a lake then owning your own boat probably doesn’t make sense.
Instead, look at doing charter holidays or sailing holidays to gain experience on the water.
Charter holidays certainly aren’t cheap, especially if you don’t have any qualifications and need to hire a skipper to accompany you. You can expect to pay around £5000 to hire a 40ft sailboat for a week in Greece. If this doesn’t support the fact that sailing is for the rich then I don’t know what does!
BUT, you don’t have to fork out that kind of cash if you want to experience life on a sailboat. There are plenty of crewing opportunities where you can join someone else’s boat for a week or two (or longer!) as long as you’re prepared to help out on board and chip in for food and drink.
Not only is this a super cheap way to gain sailing experience and knowledge of life on board but you’ll also have the chance to meet interesting people and learn from those who are out there doing it.
Is gaining experience sailing for the rich? It all depends on whether you’re prepared to sacrifice your own space!
How Much Do Sailboats Cost?
I wish there was a simple answer to how much do sailboats cost, as it’s probably the question we get asked the most. Do you need to have some money to own and run a sailboat? Absolutely! Do you need to be rich to buy a sailboat? Absolutely not!
There are sailboats out there you can buy for £1, and plenty of people have. The problem with doing this is that you’ll have to put in time and money to get the boat to a state where it can safely float!
If you’re on a limited budget then a more sensible approach would be to buy the best boat you can afford, and work to earn the money to upgrade and repair it.
If you take this approach then you need to be prepared to put in a lot of hard work and do most of the jobs yourself. Paying for experienced workmen to do jobs on your boat is the sort of thing rich sailboat owners do! Instead, watch YouTube, scout for secondhand buys, and trade favours with other experienced boaters.
A few more great ways to save some money on buying a sailboat is to look for smaller boats than you think you want, and older boats too. These tend to be much cheaper!
Alongside paying for the actual sailboat you’ll also want to consider the cost of insurance (we pay around £400 a year) and where you’re going to keep your boat, which I’ve explored for you below.
Spending Money On Marinas And Boatyards
Another big expense that makes people think of sailing as a rich person’s hobby is marinas. When you go on holiday and you walk along the pontoons checking out your dream superyacht, it’s easy to imagine a lavish lifestyle where you hang out in beautiful marinas every evening.
If you have the money for that, then by all means spend the money on expensive places to park your boat! If you don’t have very much money then it’s possible to anchor out nearly all season, especially somewhere like Greece that has many free town quays you can moor up to over the winter months for protection from most of the bad weather.
We spent the whole summer anchored out, and for about 4 or 5 months over winter, we buy a winter contract with a boatyard or marina.
Every liveaboard marina is a little differently priced, but we have paid around £350 a month. That’s a lot less than our rent used to be back in the UK!
Do You Need To Be Rich To Sail The World?
Many people dream of sailing off into the sunset, seeing the world as they go. But most people don’t think they’re rich enough to sail the world. If that’s you then I’ve got some good news for you!
I would say sailing around the world is far less expensive than other types of sailing hobbies. If you only sail at the weekends then you have to consider where you’ll store the boat during the week, you’ll have the expense of getting to your boat, and you’ll still have to pay for your house, household bills, and car or transport.
If you set off on a circumnavigation then (chances are) you won’t need any of these things for at least a year. That is unless you’re Gabart who sailed solo around the world in 42 days, 16 hours, 40 minutes and 35 seconds!
As you’ll be on your boat full time you won’t need to spend anywhere near as much money on marinas or boatyards, and you’ll be living aboard so you’ll be able to stay on top of maintenance and fix things as and when they break.
We have met many circumnavigators who are living on very limited budgets, and having a whale of a time! There is definitely no need to be rich to sail the world.
In Summary, Is Sailing For The Rich?
In my opinion, sailing is a sport that can be enjoyed on almost any budget, by almost anybody. The great thing about sailing is that it can be enjoyed in so many different ways.
You can get into race sailing, or dinghy sailing. You can enjoy sailing as a form of transport or for the things it opens up to you, like the ability to get into the water more or enjoy fishing and freediving.
Sailing can be done in tiny boats or huge boats, and you can sail with groups of people or completely alone (you can even sail with a cat!) Your sailboat can be your home or you can rent one for the holidays.
But the best thing is, you don’t have to be rich to enjoy sailing! So start exploring how you’re going to get out on the water today!
