Captain Falafel’s Log: Where to Live Aboard aside from Marinas?

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Ahoy, mates! How’s it going? It’s been months since I last gave an update on my voyage, eh? And boy, how quick time sure flies. After all the thrilling experience at sea, here I am again ready to give some useful tips on surviving the live aboard lifestyle. This time, we’ll be talking about one important question before you venture at to sea: where should you dock your boats?


When it comes to home ports, marinas are the most common choice to dock a boat. They offer secured and often well-maintained areas and amenities. If you have a keen eye, you can also spot a marina with television, telephone, and Wi-Fi connection (bless the Internet). A unique community also welcomes you, with people having the same interest in living aboard. All these await you if you know the things to consider when choosing live aboard marinas.


However, not all marinas allow liveaboards. There are existing government laws that regulate and/or limit the use of marinas around the world. If this is a concern in your area, you have to look for other options on where to dock your boat. Here are some of them:

• Mooring Fields. Instead of anchoring on docks, you can hook up your boat in a mooring field. Mooring fields are cheaper, often requiring less than half of what you pay for marinas. A good mooring field has water taxis that bring you back and forth your boat, as well as a place to take a bath, do your laundry, and store your dinghy.

• If you enjoy tranquility like I do, mooring fields also offer more privacy than docking. However, the weather can give you a hard time if you are mooring, and you have to consider specific things like the use of fresh water.

• Private docks. Some homes and condos with private docks also offer a place for liveaboards. Sure, they come in handy, but you have to take note that private owners can be hard to find. Add to this the fact that although private docks are an option, local and/or neighborhood regulations may still limit the use of it.

• Free Anchorage. Why moor in one place when you can travel the open sea? There are two kinds of liveaboards: the ones with home ports and the ones who go cruising. If you’re the latter kind, looking for a place to dock should not really be an issue since you won’t be staying for long. You enjoy the ultimate freedom of the live aboard lifestyle, however, you also face the true challenges of living at sea (e.g. energy issues, weather problems, running out of supply, etc.)

Marinas are a great place to stay for liveaboards, mates, and I can attest to that. But if they are not an option, there are alternatives that should suffice if you are planning to brave the sea. Be it in a mooring field, private docks, or free anchorage, you should secure a place to dock your boat before starting your live aboard adventure.