New member - boat shopping

[jamesp]

Hi all -

Just joined the forum and spending time reading through old posts. I'm recently retired (I think) and newly empty nester in the Seattle area. From 2015-2019 we owned a Nordhavn 55 but gave it up to focus on the horse riding interests of our daughter. With that now behind us, I'm back in the market for a boat and eager to get back on the water. We're considering another Nordhavn but also want to look at alternatives. We're unlikely to cross an ocean on our boat's bottom. More likely at the limit to do Alaska -> Panama -> Caribbean -> East Coast.

Eager to learn from all of you.

James.

 

[Comodave]

Welcome aboard.

 

[mvweebles]

Welcome. Can't go wrong with a Nordhavn. Good friends are full time liveaboards on a N55 that has has a recent refit and is in stunning condition. They're in Costa Rica right now. Another couple who are more acquaintances are part time cruisers of a fairly new N63 and are in Panama. I have to say, I like the N63 layout a lot. Very comfortable boat. I attended a super bowl party with about 12-people on that boat and it was plenty spacious, but definitely manageable by a couple.

A lot depends on your budget. Nordhavn is expensive going in but resale is pretty strong so total cost of ownership isn't bad. But still. Having >$2m tied up in a single asset is a bit steep for many folks.

And of course a lot depends on your space needs.

There are a lot of boats that can make the Alaska to Maine run. I also met a couple on a Horizon 65-ish motor yacht in Costa Rica who are now also in Panama. Very nice boat - sort of the Italian style look.

Welcome to TF. And welcome back to boat ownership. Will be interested to get your thinking on which hobby can do more damage to your bank account - boats or horses.

Peter

 

[Sababa]

We’ve toured the recently launched North Pacific 590 Skylounge a couple of times now and it is definitely at the head of our list of efficient part time liveaboard boats for when we retire some day. The skylounge helm frees up a huge, sunny dine-in kitchen where the down pilot station would be. It’s just to die for. They just showed it at the boats afloat show. Contact Trevor at North Pacific Yachts for a showing if it’s still in the area. (I think the owner lets them show it when he is not cruising in exchange for having gotten a deal on the purchase price). I’m told time on construction is about eighteen months to two years right now. Significantly less expensive than a Nordhavn but with top quality craftsmanship throughout. It really has everything you need and then some for long range cruising this side of crossing an ocean.

NPY - North Pacific Yachts

North Pacific Yachts description. TODO

northpacificyachts.com

 

[jamesp]

We’ve toured the recently launched North Pacific 590 Skylounge a couple of times now and it is definitely at the head of our list of efficient part time liveaboard boats for when we retire some day.

Wow - what an incredibly beautiful boat. Love all the space and how light and bright it is. Far more "open" feeling than the Nordhavn 55. That's one of the things I didn't care for with the N55 -- felt a bit dark and confining. Not horrible, but I imagine "built like a tank to survive anything the Southern Ocean can throw at you" and "airy, open and bright feeling inside" are oppositional at that size.

 

[jamesp]

Welcome. Can't go wrong with a Nordhavn. Good friends are full time liveaboards on a N55 that has has a recent refit and is in stunning condition. They're in Costa Rica right now. Another couple who are more acquaintances are part time cruisers of a fairly new N63 and are in Panama. I have to say, I like the N63 layout a lot. Very comfortable boat. I attended a super bowl party with about 12-people on that boat and it was plenty spacious, but definitely manageable by a couple.

A lot depends on your budget. Nordhavn is expensive going in but resale is pretty strong so total cost of ownership isn't bad. But still. Having >$2m tied up in a single asset is a bit steep for many folks.

And of course a lot depends on your space needs.

There are a lot of boats that can make the Alaska to Maine run. I also met a couple on a Horizon 65-ish motor yacht in Costa Rica who are now also in Panama. Very nice boat - sort of the Italian style look.

Welcome to TF. And welcome back to boat ownership. Will be interested to get your thinking on which hobby can do more damage to your bank account - boats or horses.

Peter

Thanks so much, Peter.

We're going to try to get on as many different boats as we can. We ended up reselling our 55 for more than we bought it for - so the "holding value" thing is one of the very strong selling points for me with Nordhavn. The incredible owner community and resources is another.

Potential downside with the Nordhavn (at least my experience with the 55) is a bit of a feeling that you're in a darkened tank versus a boat that feels more open/connected to the environment in which we'll be cruising and anchoring out (which will be our primary mode of use - a couple to a few weeks at a time and mostly on the hook). That is perhaps at least in part due to the need to ensure safe open ocean operations? Not sure we need to make that tradeoff.

We don't need more space than the 55 provided - it was about perfect for our needs.

Unfortunately (or fortunately I suppose) there is about a 0% chance that boats will do more damage to the bank account than horses did. : / We lost our minds on that one though.

James.