A luxury floating house-yacht that can move on land. Why not buy a yacht instead of a house or apartment abroad? Personal experience: How to move to live on a yacht and not screw it up
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Personal experience: How to move to live on a yacht and not screw it up
Former editor-in-chief of the online newspaper The Village St. Petersburg, Anna Balagurova, gave up her career and office job a little less than a year ago to travel with her husband across the Atlantic. She writes a detailed blog about her adventures on the Snob magazine website, and told us about how she got used to life on a ship while crossing the ocean.
I was on a sailboat for the first time a year and a half ago. By some absurd accident, in Helsinki, during the Flow festival. My friend somewhere picked up some guys from St. Petersburg who came there to race. Naturally, we were invited to join, but only as openers - we were not suitable for anything else. It seems that my friend was then assigned to “mine the spinnaker in the kitty.” It was funny to me, but she was practically buried under the sail.
Then, by another accident, I met my future husband, a yachting instructor. We drank a lot and talked about how we wanted to live and travel. In general, we were extremely romantic and agreed that a sailboat was an ideal option for both of us. This is at the same time a transport that moves by the forces of nature (that is, free of charge), a home anywhere in the world (also inexpensive), and even an opportunity to earn money by teaching or simply giving rides to people. It sounded like a good plan and we decided to go ahead with it.
All that remained was to choose and buy a boat. There were several requirements - a reliable yacht for the oceans (the so-called blue water cruiser), in the Mediterranean Sea (so that you could get to the Canaries without entering the evil Biscay and the English Channel), costing up to 60,000 euros (so that there was a little left for an upgrade) and, of course in good condition. Using the Internet, we found several almost ideal options in Sweden for half the price we planned. But all these northern seas... in general, we became lazy, because it was June, and in November we were going to start on the transatlantic. We bought our 1985 Westerly in Greece. A reputable English shipyard, pedantic owners, a beer opener on the step, again. I immediately felt sympathy for this neat and solid boat, for its funny plump owners, who without hesitation declared that they did not like strong wind, and also that they will take away the grill, because without the grill their summer will be ruined.
A little paperwork with registering the boat and insuring it - and already in July we began to slowly move towards Gibraltar with stops in pleasant coastal towns, from mossy Sicilian resorts to magnificent Syracuse and Palma de Mallorca. Thus began my life on a boat.
The first thing we had to get used to was the roll and pitching. How to live when your world is tilted 30 degrees? How to sleep when you are tossed from side to side? Okay, let’s say you’re not in a passage, but in an anchorage, but damn it, you’re still rocking, it’s water! When you step onto the ground, you sway as usual. After crossing the ocean, I almost stopped paying attention to it. Firstly, I felt zen from the realization that in open water I'll have to hang around for at least three weeks. Secondly, I wanted pancakes and fried potatoes even in a five-meter wave, so I had to get out of it. Remember - sometimes at anchorages it rocks almost like in the middle of the Atlantic. So if you want to live on a yacht, train your vestibular apparatus. At least on the carousels.
Learn to use water sparingly. If you are not overly rich and cannot afford an extra 400-500 euros per month for comfortable marinas, get used to spending 10 liters of water on thoroughly washing yourself (in the ocean, 2-3 was enough for my body and hair, but this is too Spartan ). About washing dishes or doing laundry fresh water, there is no question - everyone living on the yacht has seawater taps installed (although we do laundry in laundries and increasingly use paper plates). There is one controversial point here - all waste products are thrown out of the yacht straight into the sea. So-called gray water (from dishes and showers) can be drained almost anywhere in the world. In many countries, black water (from the toilet) is required to be stored in collector tanks on a boat and pumped out in specially designated areas. Taken together, this all sounds terribly crazy. Shit diluted in water is much more harmless than fairies or alkaline shampoos. On a yacht, I try to use environmentally friendly household chemicals and cosmetics, but rather for self-soothing. Because on the scale of the world's oceans, this is simply ridiculous.
In addition to water, you will have to save electricity. We travel in sunny regions, so for our needs (refrigerator, charging phones and laptops, light, autopilot) two are almost always enough solar panels. Many people install windmills and water turbines on boats - universal, but incredibly expensive. We also have a desalination plant installed - an incredibly useful thing that gives complete autonomy from the shore. True, distilled water should not be drunk for too long due to the complete absence of useful substances contained in ordinary water. We fill our tanks full whenever possible. 350 liters of water is enough for the two of us for more than 2 weeks.
Those who live on the water need to periodically get ashore - they can’t all sit at home. For this purpose, they usually use a small inflatable boat with a motor or oars (although in the Canaries I saw two girls who ignored the oars and rowed with fins). It is almost impossible to leave this enterprise with a dry bottom. So, imagine: early Saturday morning, you stumble out of the bar. What's next? That's right, you get into a taxi to go home to sleep. And I wander along the beach or embankment in search of my run-down boat, which overnight turned into an inflatable pool, and enter into an unequal battle with waves, jellyfish, and a motor even more sluggish than me. In general, one wrong move and the boat is on your head. Recently we forgot to take oars with us, for the first time in our lives. Of course, on the way back our engine died, also for the first time in our lives. We were stuck on our inflatable hernia in the middle of a bay in the very center of Bridgetown, where at that time they were celebrating the 50th anniversary of Barbados' independence. Amid the hooting of the crowds from the embankment, we paddled with our hands and within 40 minutes we were on the yacht (the journey under the motor takes about three minutes). The ridiculous situations you find yourself in while living at anchor are innumerable.
Captains School
Anyone can become a captain of a sailing ship - all you need is desire and a good instructor. “The Power of the Wind” will teach you everything you need to know and be able to do, and after passing the exam will issue you an international class license. We conduct theoretical courses in the center of Moscow, and practice courses in the Mediterranean Sea and the Canary Islands. Come to class!
Otherwise, everything is like at home, or rather at the dacha. A bedroom with a large bed, a living room with a large table, internet (we have an antenna amplifier to steal Wi-Fi from coastal cafes), even an oven (for storing frying pans). There is a TV in the salon - exclusively for watching films and TV series. There are speakers in the cockpit so you can dance on the deck or just have a party. As for drinking parties, yachtsmen are not fools to drink. One of the terms that came into my use after moving to the boat is sundowner - meaning “a glass of alcohol drunk at sunset.” Another term was coined by my husband - “Polish yachting”. This is when you rent a boat for a week and never leave the marina because you drink all day long. From the name it is clear that it is mainly the Poles who do this, not us.
Any racer would spit in my face if they saw what my boat turns into at anchorages. A hammock hangs on the spinnaker boom, a bucket is tied to the jib furling sheet (well, so as not to drop it), and underpants are dried on the rails. There are books and clothes lying around everywhere, the kitchen is overgrown with a bunch of little things - this happens to everyone who hangs out in one place for more than a few days. After a couple of weeks at anchor, it’s difficult to force yourself to go out to sea. Too lazy to collect everything, secure it, put it in cabinets. I don’t want to bother with the anchor and then with the sails. It’s good if you have to walk for a short time and with good wind. Transitions of more than a day in our case turn into epileptic yachting. Long hours of procrastination on deck, and then - a sudden change in the wind, a gust, a torn sheet, running around under the heartbreaking screams of the captain. At first, I was taken aback by the fact that the captain was actually my husband. I still don’t understand why he’s yelling like that! They say that almost all skippers behave in a similar way, no matter how nice people they are in everyday life. In the USA there is a yachting school for women, with female owners and teachers. So, their slogan is “No shout”. I think this is very cool and correct.
I read in many yachting blogs that after living on a yacht it is difficult to return to cities, because the boat gives a feeling of freedom and all that, but the city subjugates it, leaving only the illusion of choice. It seems to me that in many ways this is deceit. To balance between the inexpensive gypsy life on a yacht and maintaining the boat in a condition suitable for serious passages, you need money, quite a lot at the current exchange rate. This means that it is still impossible to exclude oneself from the circle of capitalist relations. To some extent, you become a slave to your own boat. If you want to radically change the situation, you need money not only for yourself, but also for mooring the yacht. The apartment can be locked and forgotten, but only a rather careless owner can leave the yacht dangling at anchor and just dump it. The most painless scenario, in my opinion, is this: six months while in Europe good weather, travel, stopping at anchor, and for the winter put the boat in an inexpensive marina (if you look, you can spend 600-700 euros in 6 months) and go home to work. With more exotic places It won’t work like that - flying away is expensive, leaving the boat is even more expensive. If you're tired of everything, you're in a hopeless situation.
A big bonus of owning a yacht in Europe is the opportunity to stay abroad almost endlessly without worrying about a visa. Without further details, put a stamp on exit to any EU country. This is done either at the local police station or at the passenger port. Both there and there there are more important things to do than you with your visa, so they put stamps without looking. Upon arrival in the next country, you can “accidentally forget” about the entry stamp until you need to fly home. Such an unexpected loophole still boggles my mind, because we are all accustomed to serious control at airports and land borders. The Caribbean, on the contrary, turned out to be a rather bureaucratic place. On almost every Antilles island where we are spending this winter, we need to obtain entry and exit documents. In Barbados, among other things, we were sent to the medical office, where we had to fill out a questionnaire with questions like “has anyone died on board” and “is the crew experiencing diarrhea?” But there is no control other than on paper. For more than six months, our yacht has never received any inspections, although we have already crossed half the world. At least transport slaves, at least enriched uranium. In this sense, having your own boat really gives you a certain freedom. This is probably why same-sex couples and all those who, for ideological or any other reasons, are no longer happy with life in modern cities travel quite often on yachts.
My experience of traveling on yachts is 6 years, of which 3 years as a captain. As a yacht captain, I have sailed over 5,000 nautical miles - in Thailand, Norway, Canary Islands and to the Mediterranean Sea in Turkey, Greece, Montenegro, Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, France and Spain. I've been organizing all over the world for the last four years! In this essay I wanted to tell you about how wonderful it is to arrange your life in the space of a sailing yacht!
At small area The space of the yacht is organized so that it is as comfortable as possible! The renter or owner of the yacht will have a bedroom at his disposal - a comfortable cabin with a large bed, wardrobes and shelves. Bathroom with hot water shower, mirror and lots of shelves. And, of course, a kitchen with a table, refrigerator, stove, and dishes.
Bedroom (cabin) Bathroom (latrine) Kitchen (galley)
It will be convenient to work at the chart table, and in order to sit down with the whole company, there is a wardroom, a cozy living room and a dining room at the same time.
Navigation table The wardroom on a yacht The wardroom on a catamaran
For breakfasts and romantic dinners in the fresh air, the so-called cockpit on the deck, equipped with sofas and a folding table, is perfect. The bow of the yacht, especially the net between the floats on the catamaran, is nothing more than a personal beach.
Veranda (cockpit) Sun deck Net on a catamaran
So you can stay as comfortable on a modern yacht as in a hotel. But at the same time, your hotel has excellent mobility! Thanks to the fuel reserves, the yacht can sail freely for many days even in the absence of wind, in addition, the yacht can be loaded with such reserves of water that you do not have to worry about replenishing them throughout the trip. The yacht covers distances of 150-200 kilometers per day, but your captain will take care to exclude passages longer than 4-6 hours a day. Every day you can admire wonderful views, get acquainted with new cities, swim, sunbathe, and if you’re lucky, snark surrounded by colorful fish and swim in a race with dolphins.
Traveling on a yacht means not only free sailing, but also freedom of anchorage. You can always moor near an island or village that catches your fancy, in order to stroll through the ruins of an ancient fortress, lie on snow-white beach, or plunge into the social life of the city you need. Or you can moor right next to the rock, as we did earlier, and immediately go fishing to catch your lunch.
Cities and islands, quiet harbors and noisy embankments, majestic mountains and the azure sea, (as well as " ") ancient castles and temples, sailing and great fishing, undersea world and indescribably beautiful sunsets, unity with the outside world and incredible freedom - all this can only be given by a vacation on a yacht.
We will be glad to open yachting for you during our yacht tours. Nearest
It would be difficult to find a person who would not like to relax near the water. How about living near water? A bold project in this regard was presented by designer and architect Maxim Zhivov.
People don't often remember that almost 71 percent of our planet's surface is covered in water. With an ever-growing population, the day is not far off when it may be necessary to truly live on the water. There is almost no serious research on this topic, however, the field of “overwater” architecture is developing at the expense of enthusiasts. Most recently, they introduced a new luxury housing concept on the water, which was modestly called HydroHouse. This project was developed by the architect Maxim Zhivov together with the Baikal Yachts Group team.
We must admit that it is not often that architects create something truly creative when it comes to houses on the water. In our case, the house turned out to be really interesting, for several reasons. First of all, the HydroHouse concept offers a sufficient level of comfort for people living in such a house.
What really surprises HydroHouse is that it moves not only on water, like a ferry, but also on land. Of course not on your own. You can transport a floating house from place to place using a truck with a trailer. This adds several points to the mobility and versatility of the home. Once on the water, the house can drift, or it can become moored.
With all this, the home itself is a pier! You can moor not only boats, boats and yachts, but even an airplane that can land on the water. Of course, not everyone can afford such luxury, but what is more important is that the innovative HydroHouse demonstrates all the possibilities that can be realized when it comes to building floating housing.
The World or World is the first passenger ship, which is also a private home. Residents live on board the ship, and the ship itself moves around globe. Owners of cabins do not rent them for cruise days, but are full owners. Today the World came to London.
The huge ship, 196.35 meters long, is constantly on a non-stop cruise, visiting all continents.
The ship has now arrived in London, after which it will head to France and then Spain.
Great view! Cabin owners can live on the yacht all the time, or can only occasionally appear in their apartments. On average, owners of yacht apartments live in them from 3 to 6 months.
The ship has 6 restaurants, as well as grocery stores, boutiques and salons. There is also a fitness center, billiards room and golf simulator.
Created in 2002, this yacht has 165 luxury apartments ranging from $2.7 million to $9.1 million for a top suite. About 130 families around the world own apartments.
In four years, the ship can visit more than 900 ports in more than 140 countries if it sails at a maximum speed of 18.5 knots (34 km/h).
World all year round is at sea. However, its passengers do not have to stay in their apartments all the time.
Today the World arrived in London. Last time he visited English capital in 2013.
The ship has three-room apartments and six-bedroom penthouses.
The cost of an apartment on a ship is calculated depending on the square footage. In addition to three-room apartments, there are two-room apartments and studios. In total, the ship has about 40 studios.
All apartment owners have access to a full-size tennis court, spa, fitness center, swimming pool, as well as 12,000 bottles of expensive wine.
The ship's routes are planned two to three years in advance through public voting.
If suddenly this idea comes to mind, it’s obviously not on its own; I saw and heard somewhere that people live on yachts, travel and enjoy life. Ok, it happens... Then you start to try on yourself, what if it’s true, instead of buying a house or apartment in Thailand, Cyprus, etc. buy a yacht?
Pros:
- since in none of the countries South-East Asia It’s practically impossible to obtain permanent residence, so why buy something here? It’s not clear what will happen there later and what to do with this house? And in general, along the docks, your only house, and the land on which it stands for rent doesn’t really warm your soul either.
Many are happy to buy something, but cannot decide on the country, city, or region. Well, really, how do I know where I want to live in 5 years and I don’t really want to be tied “forever” to some place.
Sometimes I want to travel, but with a bunch of children it is not only expensive, but also quite difficult and tiring. There is an opinion that if a family has children, then that’s it, life has stopped. You are tied to school, kindergarten, housing... We don’t want to put up with this :)))
yacht: everything is yours! wanted to live in Thailand, wanted to live in Cambodia, wanted to live in the Philippines, etc. your home is always with you, but the impressions around you can change. You can just as well live in Hua Hin or Samui, Phuket, do business or do the same thing we do, but live on a yacht and when you want to travel around the islands. This is akin to the Turtle, who always carries his home with him.
a few more benefits from olegradul
“At sea, it’s as if you find yourself in a parallel universe, living according to different laws. I’m still in awe of the world I found myself in when I started sailing.
The sea is not as crowded as most others beautiful places planets accessible by land. You can go to the most beautiful corners of any popular resorts, and are surprised to discover that you are alone here.
Even the central embankments, always full of tourists, are always open and free from the sea. You can come here and stand, in fact, in the very center of the city, while remaining at home. Tourists will walk along the embankment and take pictures of your yacht, and you can sit inside and drink tea. Or go for a walk with them."
A yacht is a kind of transport to a parallel reality. Even after going ashore, you still remain in a slightly different world than those who move on land.
Having lived on a yacht, you understand in what strict framework we all live on land, being under constant control by the state. For example, at sea there is something like traffic rules (called COLREG). These rules are needed to prevent ships from colliding with each other. But no one catches violators by hiding in the bushes. No cameras, no posts, no radars. Or here, the permissible number of ppm in the blood of a helmsman. Zero three? Zero eight? Yes, as much as you like! If the captain decides to put someone on watch, then he has every right to do so. All the rules and regulations in force on land are replaced at sea by just one concept - the responsibility of the captain. On each boat, the captain sets his own rules, but if anything happens, he will have to answer. Such a simple law. Freedom and responsibility.
So you arrive, say, in another country. Or come. One way or another, you go to the window, hand over your passport, the stern uncle looks at your photo, then at you, then finds a visa, examines it and stamps it. Only after this you can enter the country. Things are completely different at sea. I had the opportunity to cross borders on a yacht five times. In all cases, passport control issues on the ship are completely entrusted to the captain. That is, no customs office checks how many people you have on board, who all these people are. The captain himself goes to the port and provides information for the entire crew at once. Either the passports need to be stamped, or more often just a list of people on a piece of paper (crew list), even without passports. At first, of course, the brain says: how can this be? You sail to the territory of another state, no one checks you. You go ashore, no one cares. You run around the city, looking for the services you need (port duty officer, customs), while neither you nor your team has ever looked at a single document! So, for example, when I came to Italy, I spent half a day running around trying to get stamps to enter Schengen. I went to the police, and to the coast guard, and even to tourist office looked in. He went around the whole city in circles. As a result, one policeman told me “wait”, got into the car, drove me somewhere to get a stamp, brought me and stamped all the passports that he had with him. And all this, again, was done in absentia - neither the people nor the yacht had to be presented.
A week later I got into a conversation with an old acquaintance and it turned out that he, the cunning one, did not register in Italy at all! He just comes on a yacht from Montenegro and hangs out in Schengen to his heart’s content, and then back as if nothing had happened. This, of course, is beyond good and evil, but nevertheless very well illustrates the degree of control at sea.
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OK, everything is cool, we decided to live on a yacht, but we don’t dream of circumnavigating the world at a frantic pace, we are a family with four children who just want to live on a yacht, like in an ordinary house, and sometimes explore the coast of the Asian region and maybe change countries.
We began to study the yacht market and discovered that there were simply no yachts that met our requirements!
These are either yachts for athletes, lonely sea wolves, little space, a lot of speed, almost no living conditions, a washing machine is a dream! Or charter yachts for week-long trips. A little more comfort, but for the price it’s already a yacht for Abramovich.
And our requirements are simple - a yacht-house, light, moderately spacious, with surrounding space designed for long-term living, with shelves, cabinets, etc.
you'll have to build it yourself! :)