When meeting new people, I often wisely stay quiet about my living situation and our plans to sail around the world. Otherwise, there's a loooot of explaining to do. When people get the sense that we actually live on a sailboat, and "no it's not a houseboat", much of the same questions arise. I've bundled them below so I don't have to answer them again and again. It's a bit of a piecemeal, but I'll definitely go into more detail in separate blogs in the future. For now, comment any additional questions below!
#1 Isn't it cold to live on a sailboat in the Netherlands?
Let's get that out of the way: it is NOT cold on board! Thanks to our lovely heat pump we always make sure that it's around 18 to 21 degrees Celcius inside. Plus, we are able to use it as airconditioning as well for those extremely hot days! Hugo had to put a huge and ugly unit on deck (if you're technical and want to know how he did that, click here), and I'm not able to put up nice picture-frames - as the inside unit takes up half the wall - but the constant heat is definitely worth it. We only use electricity for heating and our marina only uses green energy so it is also the most environmentally friendly way to heat our boat. Plus, our energy costs are only around €400 per year. In comparison, our neighbor has an electrical space heater onboard which costs €1300, just for the winter. 🤯 And according to Nibud, an average household of 2 starters uses around €1700 a year for gas and electricity. This being said, I believe our investment of €750 euros in the heat pump is already recouped. 🎈
#2 Can you even shower on your boat? And wash your clothes?
Yes, and yes. Next to the heat pumps, we have almost all of the necessities of a normal house present! ✅ We even have two toilets, an oven, and a hood! However, there is a range in their practicality in use. The shower is quite small so I prefer to walk to the sanitary building in our harbor every morning. Gives a bit of a #campinglife feeling, but I don't mind as it is a very luxurious harbor and the little walk wakes me up. And now we're talking practicalities - we don't have a dryer so we do have to get creative when drying our clothes, as you can see in the pictures. So yes, we had to settle our standards a bit, but these weren't that high. We were both used to live in small student houses, for people with big family homes it would probably be a bigger commitment.
#3 How long have you been together?
We've been dating since September 2017 and officially got together in October that year, haha. 🚀 But what most people actually mean: aren't you afraid to plan so far ahead? The answer, obviously, is no. Since the beginning, we spent a lot of time together (and not only because we were in the same student committee). I already joined Hugo's family's skiing trip in December that year. It just felt right and it still does!! We are very good at spending lots of time together, even though we're doing our own thing (proven during the Corona crisis). As we're both not afraid of trying out new things or making big plans, it feels very natural to just go for it.
#4 How expensive is a sailboat?
Our boat (a 41 feet Jeanneau) costs around 36.000 euros, and we've invested around 10.000 euros for upgrades so far. 💸 And no, we were not able to put this money on the table at once. We borrowed money from our family and are paying it back with interest. Some boats at our dock cost hundreds of thousands of euros, but there are also smaller boats around 5000 euros which are seaworthy. It's a consideration based on your comfort, demands, and the depth of your pockets.
#5 How are you able to finance the boat and a trip around the world?
A very logical question as just graduated in 2021, and Hugo has only been working since 2018. In essence, Hugo is quite financially savvy, and co-created an online course to teach others how to deal with finances, which is based on the FIRE theory that you may know, which is the method that we use for our saving plan. You can find the course here if you're interested. A quick summary would be: cut costs and invest. We were able to make big cuts by living onboard, as you already saw in our energy costs. You could also notice in that picture, that I can't put up picture frames. Or pretty posters. Or actually about any other 'normal' decoration. 😢 We didn't have to invest in new furniture and renovations like other couples that move in together. Sometimes I think that sucks, but it also prevents me from buying new (useless) stuff every season, which is a huge cost saver. On the other hand, refitting the boat can get very costly. We put a huge chunk of income from our (side)jobs aside to do so. That doesn't mean we don't go out for dinners, visit festivals or go on holidays: we're just more aware of what we spent and what we save. It's also the reason we're sailing away in 2022 and not tomorrow. 🌚 Of course, there's a lot more to tell about our financials, but for now, this is it. Cut costs and invest.
#6 What are your career plans before/after/during the trip?
We would like to save up enough money (+-200.000 euros) by 2022 so that we do not have to work. Next to all the work of planning trips, being self-sufficient, and doing maintenance during the trip, we do however think about conducting possible volunteering activities. This way we could give back to local communities and not only be selfish while living our dream. But... before we can do all that, we plan on working for 2 years to get the money together. 💰 For me, that means working as a freelance marketeer. And Hugo is currently full-time daytrading. What will happen after the trip is something we're not afraid of, as we're not climbing up the regular career ladder anyways. I see work as something that should follow from your natural interests and I believe there will always be activities that you can commercialize if you want.
#7 Where are you heading on your sail trip?
I often say everywhere, haha - but that's just because we plan to go away for 5+ years, which gives us all the time to explore all the beautiful spots of the world. But basically we're planning to do the "standard" route that Europeans take: first staying in the Mediterranean, exploring Croatia, Greece, Portugal, Malta, etc. Then via the Azores onto the big crossing over the Atlantic Ocean, towards the Carib. This is the standard route, as it gives you the opportunity to wait for the right wind window. From there we'll explore the Bahamas, Suriname, Cuba, Puerto Rico.. enough to see, which we do not want to plan out too much. After these dreamy islands, we also have lots of other places on our wishlist. But again, we'll see where the wind goes. Beautiful hikes in New Sealand, great food in India, kitesurfing in Mauritius, fishing in Tahiti: for now I have enough #wanderlust to come up with a great list, which I will definitely write a blog post about someday.
#8 How often do you sail?
On average, about every other week. But of course, when the winds are good we go way more often. 🌞 The best sails are those in summer, after a day of work or lectures. Having dinner on the lake during workweeks is one of the privileges of living aboard. Specifically after being in Amsterdam all day, having a toast in a quiet place with the skyline in the background is super chill. 🥂 And next to that, we plan bigger trips during holidays, such as an IJsselmeer trip in 2020 (of course due to #Corona) and a trip to Denmark in the summer of 2021.
#9 What is your maritime history?
We bought our first boat together in February 2019 and since then we have had the sailing schedule as explained in the previous question. Before that, Hugo went flotilla sailing with his family every summer and handled some 51 feet boats. His father also took him on some sail trips, as he participated in the Ronde of Texel every year. I, Carolien, only went on summer sailing camps where I learned the basics of keelboat sailing, but not very thorough. When my father told me about his sailing trips I was not specifically interested. I was only sold when Hugo and I went on a flotilla together in 2018, and I loved anchoring on private beaches and setting out sailing routes. To develop my skills, I went on a course with the Zeezeilers van Marken in 2020, and for the rest I'm sure the first year on the Mediterranean will provide enough experience to cross the ocean with confidence.
#10 Aren't you afraid of pirates?
Haha, no. People often ask this, but we'll dodge the high-risk areas and bring cigarettes to bribe them if needed. 🙃 I am more afraid to get in a big fight with Hugo in the middle of the ocean and not be able to get away, which is more likely to happen if we'd look at stats.