What does it cost to go cruising?
These are the actual expense for S/V Freedom and Jim and Deb Faughn
We hope to accurately represent what it costs for us to cruise.

October 15 - 31, 2006

Everyone is different. They have different tastes, different boats, different weather and different expectations. We decided to layout everything for you to see. The budget was one of the largest questions we had before we started to cruise. In every article I've ever seen, there are disclaimers and we have a few of our own to start with.

The first is that we stocked the boat and outfitted the boat the best we could before we started. Those expenses are not included because they will be different for everyone. We didn't add a water maker, solar panels or some other items that we will do before we head into the Caribbean and hopefully further. You will see those as we do them and I figure we didn't put on about $10,000 worth of equipment we would need to actually have a true cruising boat. However, I would rather do it once and do it right so we decided to do it as we go after learning from other cruisers as to what works. Also, our food costs will be low during this first month because we stocked up our Engle and set it on freeze for the trip down the Tenn-Tom. The reality is it was probably 2 weeks worth of fish before we get to the south.

The categories we chose to report our budget under are:
Dockage - Fees associated with marinas, mooring balls or other fees to dock the boat.
Fuel and Pump out - This is diesel, gas for our Honda Generator and dingy along with pump out fees.
Clothes and Laundry - You have to wash what you wear and now we pay for each load.
Groceries - This is what we buy at the grocery store.
Entertainment - These are the expenses to go out to dinner, happy hours or other expenses such as entry fees to museums or if we decide to - rent a car or other transportation.
Insurance/Taxes - Most sites I see don't include these. We decided we had to have medical insurance (HSA with Golden Rule), we upgraded my (Jim's) life insurance, and the taxes we are paying along the boat excluding income taxes.
Boat - These are all the expenses for the boat.
Misc - This will be our cell phone, Internet fees, and anything else that doesn't fit the categories above.

So, here is the first half month.

Dockage - 170.00
Fuel and Pump out - 276.82
Clothes and Laundry - 19.00
Groceries - 199.04
Entertainment - 183.38
Insurance/Taxes - 1565.87 Note: This includes the cost to change our cruising area and the property taxes for our boat. The taxes will end after this year since we are now residents of Florida. The boat insurance is actually low because we already had paid for a policy which covered inland waterways and this amount is in addition to the current amount.
Boat - 286.30
Misc - 78.80

November 2006

We have discovered many cruisers on a budget choose not to insure their boats and many who are cruising either have insurance because of a buyout, retirement or are simply don't purchase it and hope they don't get ill. So, we decided that we would separate our boat and health insurance from the grand total. Overall, we have a budget of $10,000 per year to cover our health insurance, fund our HSA and to cover boat insurance. Right now that looks like it will be a bit higher than we need. On the rest of the budget we are working to do it on 3,000 per month. If you compare this to what is covered in the magazines, you need to compare our 3,000 per month rather than the total because they haven't included insurance in any of the articles we see. Also, final disclaimer, we have a reserve fund for a major boat repair if needed such as engine or outdrive. We expect to cover the remainder of the boat expenses with our monthly budget.

So here is our first full month of expenditures.

Location and dockage fee 406.27 - We spent a week in Pensacola to see my father and then two days to secure for tornado's
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel 242.38
Clothes & laundry 40.13
Groceries 648.91
Entertainment 707.25
Medical - Drugs, doctors 0 - Since we have an HSA, it seems to be covering everything which is in the Insurance line. Also, we are getting healthier cruising. We have both lost weight.
Misc. Phone, Internet 461.63 - Extra this month - Florida Drivers Licence's and fishing tackle
Boat parts 389.22 - We needed tethers and harnesses before the crossing.
Sub Total 2895.79
Insurance and taxes 1809 - This paid for both Deb and Jim for a quarter along with funding our HSA.
Grand Total 4704.79

December 2006

Ok, I messed up and didn't keep this page up-to-date and lost the detail in our computer disc failure the end of February.

In December we spent an extra 600 or so on a new anchor, chain and rode. That put us a bit over our budget for the month.

Monthly expense $3,100 for our normal expenses.

 January 2007

Same disclaimer on the computer problem. We did remember the totals because we were getting pretty excited about the fact things were working out.

Monthly expense $2,650

February 2007 

OK, this is the month we had the computer problem and that meant I went out and bought a new computer only to find out that many of our old programs won't run under the new VISTA operation system. I'm still debating having the new computer changed back to XP but right now I'm still running VISTA. I decided to go ahead and have the old computers disc replaced and that added to our expenses. The total for computer and repairs was right at $1,240 so absent that we did ok but we can't think of it that way because there seems to always be something.

Location and dockage fee - 122 - Includes dinghy dock and now we are on a private mooring
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 99.32
Clothes & laundry - 31
Groceries - 673.24
Entertainment - 649.52
Medical - Drugs, doctors - The only thing we put here was non-prescription drugs so we dropped this classification since our prescription medicine and doctors are covered under our HSA so we would be reporting it twice.
Misc. Phone, Internet - 1,482.1 - That darn computer repair stuff.
Boat parts - 689.97
Sub Total - 3,757.15
Insurance and taxes - 653.50
Grand Total - 4,410.65

We still think that we will have the right budget and once things stop breaking and we quit adding to the boat we will be right in line. With that said, March already has an unexpected expense since I have to replace the motor mounts. Great way to start the month, a half of a boat unit at the very start of the month.

 March 2007

This month we were still replacing items on the boat. We replaced the motor mounts, the handheld radio, and we purchased a used solar panel. In addition, on the insurance and taxes side, we also paid to have our taxes completed. Overall we were much closer to our budget going over by less than $100. We expect the next month to be along the same lines as we move and meet close friends in Titusville.

Location and dockage fee - 212 - Includes dinghy dock in Key West and mooring fees in Ft. Lauderdale.
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 203.39
Clothes & laundry - 28.75
Groceries - 863.85
Entertainment - 529.32
Misc. Phone, Internet - 306.93 - That darn computer repair stuff.
Boat parts - 926.93
Sub Total - 3,071.36
Insurance and taxes - 1092.5
Grand Total - 4,163.86

 April 2007

Location and dockage fee - 480.82 - This includes 12 days on a mooring in Stuart, FL, a week in Titusville and a week of dinghy dock at St. Augustine
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 80.76
Clothes & laundry - 53.21
Groceries - 798.62
Entertainment - 680.21
Misc. Phone, Internet - 437.86
Boat Parts - 522.58
- We stocked up on oil, fuel and oil filters when we found some at a good price.
Sub Total - 3054.06
Insurance and taxes - 3562.88 This includes our annual boat insurance payment. 29xx bucks. We will get a refund when we get to the Chesapeake.
Grand Total - 6616.94

 May 2007

Location and dockage fee - 451.29 - Included days at a dock in Beaufort, SC waiting for a gail which never came.
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 220.08 - You can tell we are moving.
Clothes & laundry - 22
Groceries - 696.81
Entertainment - 896.8 - You can tell we had fun in Charleston with Bill and Christy, John and Amie and then in North Myrtle Beach with Gary and Shirlene.
Misc. Phone, Internet - 146.39
Boat Parts -
311.25 - New grill and parts
Sub Total - 2754.62 - Hooray, under our budget.
Insurance and taxes - 652.88
Grand Total -
3407.5

Hopefully we have fixed the items that need fixing and we are cruising now - knock on wood. (Of course we have to haul out and redo the bottom in July which means more $$$$.) I believe the budget of 3000 per month is a good budget (if you average ours for the last 3 months we made it with a little to spare) and you could cruise for 2,500 a month if you don't "play" as much as we do. Of course you also need a contingency fund when things break. I personally believe the days of cruising for under 20,000 per year are long past because of the expenses involved with dockage, fuel and other expenses you encounter cruising. I'm sure someone could do it but I also know we wouldn't be happy cruising (or should I say sitting) in that manner. Perhaps when we get to Mexico or ???? Also, you have to consider the insurance question which we report but many don't or they have it through a buyout package or some other retirement option. Then again, there are those (many we have met) who go without health or boat insurance.

June 2007

Location and dockage fee - $196 - We spent a week on a mooring ball in Annapolis.
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - $223.35
Clothes & laundry - $29.99
Groceries - $536.26
Entertainment - $991.99 - We are going out a bunch here in the Chesapeake but having a great time of it.
Misc. Phone, Internet - $256.48
Boat Parts -
$483.04 - I stocked up on oil but the big purchase was the new Wi-fi Antenna.
Sub Total - $2,714.11 - Another month under budget.
Insurance and taxes - -$1,203.12 - We received a refund from Boat US because we are in the Chesapeake.
Grand Total - $1,513.99 - The refund helps out but we will pay again later!

It is easy to see that even though we continue to fix and up-grade things on the boat that you could easily do this for between $2,200 and $2,500 and still have a great time. Splitting lunches when going out has been one of our best way to both save money and loose weight. (Lost a total of 35 pounds between us.) Also, if you just went out 2-3 times per week, you could get by in that price range easily. We happen to go out to lunch every day when we are in a port and spend about $12-14 for the meal and tip so the budget could be cut back by going in less. Fortunately, we are on our budget and cut back when we have a "major" expense. Currently, we are looking forward at the expenses for the boat hauling and are "saving" some for those expenses. August will be a big month when we pay for the boat hauling, bottom job and storage.

July 2007

Location and dockage fee - $152.8 - This is the fee we paid in Cape Charles at a marina to escape from the heat. Overall, the marina charge was too high but it is what we paid.
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - $174.16 - This includes both fuel for the boat and for the car we are using in the Midwest.
Clothes & laundry - $16
Groceries - $510.16
Entertainment - $846.28
Misc. Phone, Internet - $1133.78 - This is way up because of the trip back to the Midwest. We had one night at a hotel, paid for our dental bills, too much shopping and of course we needed haircuts to look a bit more presentable. Ok, mine was only 12 bucks but I did get one. In addition, I picked up another camera at a Pawn Shop while mine was in being fixed.
Boat Parts - $345.16 - Primarily AC repair - Service of A/C and a new raw water pump. I also paid for the haul out of the boat.
Sub Total - $3178.34 - I didn't think this was too bad since we are off in the Midwest.
Insurance and taxes - &717.68 Again, primarily this is for health insurance, it also covers the checks to re-license our boat and dinghy.
Grand Total - $3896.02



We are off in the Midwest as of the middle of July. We have had expenses that we don't normally have although we are fairly close to our budget. I did receive notice that starting next month our health insurance was going up $75 per month. Pretty good hit since we didn't even get close to our deductible this year so we received no benefits except the comfort of having it. Hopefully this next year the only thing we use is the comfort again of having it.

August 2007

July entry - We will definitely be over budget for this month. The hauling and painting of our bottom will take us over by quite a bit. We didn't plan on painting this year but you've probably already read about our problems with the Interlux paint. However, thanks to Interlux for stepping up and providing the paint to do it again. Still, it will cost us about 900 bucks extra to do it this year over what we planned on spending on hauling and storage alone. Of course we shouldn't have to paint next year as a result of the work.

August Actual's
Location and dockage fee - $112.00 - Dockage for 3 nights while we reprovisioned in Norfolk.
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - $323.36 - Fuel for the car we used in the midwest and fuel for boat.
Clothes & laundry - $14
Groceries - $681.77
Entertainment - $456.55
Misc. P
hone, Internet - $452.41
Boat Parts - $1824.99 - all but 200 of this is for the boat bottom job. Overall, I didn't think it was too bad since we stored in on the hard for entire time we were gone, and this includes all labor to paint the bottom too.
Sub Total - $3865.08 - I actually thought we would be more over budget than we are so given the complete bottom job, this isn't too bad.
Insurance and taxes -$892.46 - This is up because we received our annual health insurance increase which raised our payments by $75 per month. In addition, I paid on two life insurance policies this month too.
Grand Total - $
4757.54

 September 2007 Location and dockage fee - $275 - This includes the dinghy dock fees for the Capital Yacht Club
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 145.52
Clothes & laundry - $18
Groceries - $938.79
Entertainment - $906.34 (We are in the home town of every U.S. Citizen after all.)
Misc. Phone, Internet - $179.85
Boat Parts - $658.82 Note: This includes a bill for 380 dollars worth of 60 feet, 1/4 inch high test chain and fittings to reduce my lower back stress while keeping the strength of a good chain.
Sub Total - $3122.42
Insurance and taxes - $724.46
Grand Total -
$3846.88
 October 2007

Talk about a killer month. Of course a new transmission doesn't help!

Location and dockage fee - 252 - This included a months fee to stay at a marina for our transmission replacement. That was cheaper than the daily rate.
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 315.58 - Once done with the transmission, we were moving.
Clothes & laundry - 8 - I guess we didn't get too dirty or buy any clothes. Oh yea, the marina we were at had cheap laundry services.
Groceries - 652.04
Entertainment - 363.16
Misc. Phone, Internet - 215.2
Boat Parts - 6873.21 - Ok, this one is the big one. In addition to the transmission, we bought a spare starter and put it on to save the old one as a spare. We bought many fuel filters, we had to replace some hoses and of course I bought a ham radio over Ebay so I can receive weather forecasts. I can also transmit but it is a QRP which means 5 watt transmitter so conditions better be right if you want to hear us. After all of that, we hope things go better in the future but we think we are ready for the Bahamas.
Sub Total - 8679.19
Insurance and taxes - 2770.6 This included increasing our insurance for Boat US, a survey so we can change insurance and the expenses associated with the survey. Ultimately, we should save about 1,400 a year as a result of the new insurance and we have coverage in a larger cruising area.
Grand Total - 11,449.79   Ouch.

 November 2007

Another month of being over budget. This time it is again stuff getting ready to go to the Bahamas. We have to get out of here!

Location and dockage fee - 314.95 - We stayed on a mooring in Vero Beach (the only option) and also for a few days in Stuart.
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 296.36
Clothes & laundry - 12
Groceries - 1180.59
Entertainment - 663.11
Misc. Phone, Internet - 513.85  - Standard plus pet import permit fees. We have also applied for the Cites passport for our bird Jimmy Buffett.
Boat Parts - 1202.9  - More spares, a spare autohelm control unit, 150 dollars worth of impellers, pole spear for hunting and gathering fish, $100 worth of oil so we have enough for the 4 month trip to the Bahamas, alternator rebuild, $75 of primary filters, $160 for FCC licenses for our boat radio, new pull starter assembly for dinghy - you get the idea.
Sub Total - 4183.76
Insurance and taxes - 4194.46 -I paid for my new boat insurance but I haven't been able to cancel my Boat US insurance yet and get the refund. I have to wait until I have the binder in hand and with our mailing service and cruising, it hasn't caught up yet. Also, I had to pay for my life insurance policy. We should have a low month next month for this category because the, apx 500 buck refund will come in then and I shouldn't have any other insurance payments.
Grand Total - 8378.22

We will probably have a slightly over budget month next month as we stock up everything for our trip over. I still have to buy the new anchor I ordered - $500 plus need $200 worth of charts and one more guidebook. We are also shipping our bikes and other things we won't need in the Bahamas to my friends Steve and Linda. This will provide needed space and weight loss for the things we are going to take aboard. Here's hoping we don't sink the boat! Pictures as we stock up the boat.

 December 2007

 We are starting to provision the canned goods & paper products. In addition, we upgraded some more of the boat to get ready.

Location and dockage fee - 268.75 - This is the mooring fee at Marathon.
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 156.46
Clothes & laundry - 19.29
Groceries - 2007.71 - We stocked all the canned goods we can get on the boat plus wine for the Bahamas.
Entertainment - 727.69 - We play too much
Misc. Phone, Internet - 698.95 - We purchased a Soda Machine, tackle, plus other stuff we didn't thing we should go without.
Boat Parts - 1198.69 - Three major expenses. Rocna Anchor, 40 amp Battery Charger, & Relief Band which addes up to a little over $1,000.
Sub Total - 5077.54
Insurance and taxes - -573.52 - Refund from my old boat insurance covered all these expenses plus more.
Grand Total - 4504.02

April 2008 update - I decided to do an analysis of the categories just for fun. I was sick so I did a little formula work on our spreadsheet where we keep all of this data. Here is how it all worked out.

Location and dockage fee - 5.8% - We have really cut down staying at marinas so I hope this percentage stays about the same. Moorings, where you must take them, are going up.
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 5.1% - I'm hoping this won't go up as I've learned more about sailing.
Clothes & laundry - .4% - We really haven't had to replace clothes yet. Picking up a 4 tee shirts in Key West for 10 bucks and throwing away 4 tee shirts is what we've really done. It will be years before this goes up.
Groceries - 21.8%
Entertainment - 16% - Deb and I really like going out to lunch and listening to good music. If you were on a budget you could really cut here.
Misc. Phone, Internet - 13.6% - our communications cell phone, internet site, mail forwarding makes up about 4.5% so what did we spend the rest on? Things like fishing licenses, bird fees, rental cars and some other stuff. You really have to look back at the months.
Boat Parts - 37.2%  As you can see, this is the winner. We take very good care of our boat but if you owned a new boat, you would have less money expended in this category.

January 2008

 We finished the provisioning which included turning our Engle into a freezer again and filling it with meats. We also took care of the bird and were off for the adventure. I did a quick analysis of how much we spent after we left the states and it was $1,200. Hopefully everything keeps working and we can make up from the last few months of fixing and adding to the boat.

Location and dockage fee - 43.9 - mooring at Marathon
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 527.85 - Mainly fuel to get ready and more fuel when we got to Nassau.
Clothes & laundry - 6
Groceries - 789.21 - In addition to the frozen food we were taking with us, more general food.
Entertainment - 811
Misc. Phone, Internet - 808.17 - This includes the wasted expenses of a Vet visit for our bird and rental car for the bird to go to Miami and then Key West. LONG story, see the website. It also includes some shipping expenses to send our bikes to our great friend in Omaha, renewal of our website name and finally, we also have the Bahamas check-in fee.
Boat Parts - 137.55
Sub Total - 3123.68
Insurance and taxes - 724.46
Grand Total - 3848.14

February 2008

 First and foremost, you can easily tell that we haven't been out buying groceries this month! We have tons of stuff still on the boat and will have leftovers when we get back to the states at the end of March or first of April. The list was probably correct for being gone for 4 -4.5 months but really gives us a bunch of stores since we will only be gone 3 months. Second, the expenses for fuel show we had to motor/motorsail a bunch and of course the cost of laundry down here is 3 times what it is in the states. We also had to purchase new virus software in addition to our communication expenses in our Misc category and finally, we had to buy a fuel water separator for the dinghy because of fuel problems which cost double what it would in the states. Otherwise, a good month. It made up for our month of December in 2007.

Location and dockage fee - 0
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 268
Clothes & laundry - 48.5
Groceries - 88.78
Entertainment - 430
Misc. Phone, Internet - 232.99
Boat Parts - 85.35
Sub Total - 1153.62
Insurance and taxes - 724.46
Grand Total - 1878.08

March 2008

 I really don't know if anyone reads this but here is what happened this month. We bought a new Mercury 8 hp engine for 1550 including a spare impeller in Nassau. On top of that, we paid about 500 bucks for the Jimmy Buffett/bird boarding in Key West plus the car to go get him. We also had to get our fishing licesnes renewed so that was another $166 for a 5 year license. So the bottom line is about $2,200 of non-reoccuring expenses.

Location and dockage fee - 230.55 - Mooring ball in Marathon and dinghy dock in Key West
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 245.15 - Diesel and gas to cross from Nassau and fuel up to go to Key West
Clothes & laundry - 33 - darn those dirty clothes
Groceries - 276.95 - Veggies - We still have lots left from stocking up for the Bahamas
Entertainment - 607.98 - Ok, I give up - we like having fun.
Misc. Phone, Internet - 991.22 - 500 bucks of this is Bird boarding plus car to get him. Don't make me tell that story again. $166 for 5 yr fishing license.
Boat Parts - 1517.06 - This is mainly the new engine for the dinghy but I took a credit for the 200 bucks I sold the old one for in this category. Cheating??????
Sub Total - 3901.91
Insurance and taxes - 859.46 - Health Insurance plus our unlimited towing insurance.
Grand Total - $4761.37

April 2008

 We are having a blast in Key West and had two big expenses with regards to our web hosting and our broken chair and lens. In addition, I've got some more expenses with regards to a new storage place I'm building after finding some unused space. It is interesting that the boat is still our biggest category expense in cruising. I don't have a problem with that because I want EVERYTHING working and maintained.

Location and dockage fee - 72 - dinghy dock fee in Key West
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 228.52 - we are actually starting to feel the effects of higher fuel costs.
Clothes & laundry - 63.61
Groceries - 635.16 - We haven't had to restock much because we are going out too much and are still eating things we took for the Bahamas.
Entertainment - 839.81 - most of this is going out to lunch or happy hours. Some of it is fees for entrance to places.
Misc. Phone, Internet - 608.34 - The big thing here is a 300 dollar fee for the new web host for our web site. I paid for 5 years up front because of the savings.
Boat Parts -870.31 - Besides normal maintenance things, the big deal here was the 350 that we paid for the new chair and the lens that broke in the storm.
Sub Total - $3,317.75
Insurance and taxes - 650.41 - We typically have a bit higher amount because of our HSA payment that covers our health insurance and our savings account. However, since I charged this category for our estimated taxes and I actually got a refund, I gave us a credit to offset the payment. We received more as a refund but that doesn't count. 
Grand Total - 3968.16

May 2008

 Overall, a good month even though we replaced the water heater and picked up an swr meter so I could test my radio system and others along the way.

Location and dockage fee - 160.13 - dinghy dock fees and moorings in Marathon and Ft. Myers Beach
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 422.47 - You can tell we are moving and we don't have much wind. also, prices for diesel are up another buck or so a gallon.
Clothes & laundry - 10.5 - our new washing machine is paying off
Groceries - 516.42
Entertainment - 833.24
Misc. Phone, Internet - 298.25 - We bought some more misc this month.
Boat Parts - 496.29 - The big deal this month was replacing the propane water heater.
Sub Total - 2737.3 - Under this month but we will probably be over next month with two times (5 nights) at a marina to see my father.
Insurance and taxes - 724.46
Grand Total - 3461.76

June 2008

I thought this was going to be a worse month but given the lavish expenditures - guitar amp, strings and dockage, we did ok.

Location and dockage fee - 289.57 - This is higher for us however, it will get worse for the next few months as we stay at a dock for the second half of July and all of August and September.
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel - 527.02 - This is the biggest bill ever. Can you tell we are moving and fuel prices are up!
Clothes & laundry - 110 - We actually bought some shoes and a pair of shorts.
Groceries - 897.04
Entertainment - 584.57 - We are traveling more than playing. This is as high as it is because we were taking my father to lunch for 4 different days.
Misc. Phone, Internet - 624.67 - Lavish expenditure. I bought a new guitar amp and a number of sets of strings that are coated. Cool strings and cool amp too.
Boat Parts - 205.34 - This is a new inverter, which has failed twice by the way and needs to be taken back again, plus the wire, fuse holder, fuse and connectors to install the inverter.
Sub Total - 3238.21 - I really expected it to be higher.
Insurance and taxes - 724.46 - We received a notice, our health insurance is going up next month.
Grand Total -3962.67

July 2008

 

Location and dockage fee - 
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel -
Clothes & laundry -
Groceries -
Entertainment -
Misc. Phone, Internet -
Boat Parts -
Sub Total -
Insurance and taxes - 
Grand Total -

August 2008

 

Location and dockage fee - 
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel -
Clothes & laundry -
Groceries -
Entertainment -
Misc. Phone, Internet -
Boat Parts -
Sub Total -
Insurance and taxes - 
Grand Total -

September 2008

 

Location and dockage fee - 
Fuel-pump-outs,gas, diesel -
Clothes & laundry -
Groceries -
Entertainment -
Misc. Phone, Internet -
Boat Parts -
Sub Total -
Insurance and taxes - 
Grand Total -

   
   
   

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