Is living on a boat or houseboat weird or cool?

I think it would be very cool to stay on a houseboat for a vacation. However, I don’t think I could live there…unless it was a really big boat! I need my space : )

If it’s a boat like, you know, the ones you see in Montecarlo Bay, I guess I would not complain, but a boat like the ones that go fishing in the Bering Sea, no way… (you can always leave everything behind and become a crab catcher :s)

The houseboat that the ‘Ladies Man’ lived in was sweet. I’d live in that any day.

When my boyfriend and I first started dating he lived on a houseboat. We loved it. It was really big and old and we could walk out back and fish and I could lay out on the top deck and read all day while he was at work at the marina. I miss it so much. My other friend lived in a houseboat on the beach and every summer we would throw a big party and watch the Blue Angels fly over and dive off their top deck. The attraction is feeling like you are on vacation every day when you get off work. When a hurricane comes you just drive it up to the river and tie it up and evacuate and you are good to go. During Hurricane Ivan we just tied up my BF’s house at the marina and it was fine. Almost every other boat sank so we were very lucky.

Also, if you ever go on vacation in South Florida you can rent houseboats to stay in instead of renting hotel rooms.

I live in Seattle and almost lived on a houseboat. After getting over the romance of it, I started to see the practicalities and pulled out of it at the last minute.

First: Just because you’re on a houseboat doesn’t necessarily guarantee a water view. Many are set up in rows, along docks, which lessens the benefit of living on the water.

Second: You know when you’re walking around your house, carrying groceries, running back and forth, etc. Now imagine that wherever there’s grass, there’s 50 feet of water instead. Trip? Drop something? Come home tipsy? Scary.

Third: Water rats. Period. You can’t keep any food outside, at all- including bird seed.

Fourth: All of your furniture needs to be balanced. This was kind of a hard challenge for the previous tenants. If you move things around, it throws your whole house off-kilter.

Fifth: They’re on the water, which can make things really bone-chilly in the winter. They’re also not the most efficient to heat, and can be expensive.

I really, really wanted to make it work because I think they’re cool, but there were just too many negatives of it as a permanent residence, when I thought through it. Maybe someone else has an anecdotal experience that’s the opposite of mine, though – and I’d definitely consider staying in one on vacation.

Not just cool- it’s awesome! Boats are the international mobile home, without the stigma of “treller” living.

Always a little cramped, though, and not kid-friendly.

Did it. Loved it. Recommends it.

If someone gave me one, I’d totally live in it!!!

It seems cool, but if you think about it, isn’t it just a trailer (without the theoretical wheels)? And trailers (or mobile homes, if you prefer) are definitely not cool. Plus, they attract tornadoes. Do houseboats attract natural disasters? ‘Cause that would definitely influence my answer.

Must I choose between “weird” and “cool?” Can it not be both, simultaneously?

Most things that I think are cool are weird.

If it was tricked out and had a lot of booze on it, for sure. Also, racing stripes are a must.

I think living on a houseboat in San Francisco sounds both cool and very cold!!

Yes.

I lived on a cruising sailboat based in Miami for 5 years. We were part of an ever-changing community of others who did the same, including several families who home-schooled before home-schooling was cool. I loved it very much and when I want to reminisce I re-read the Travis McGee books.

You never run out of things to do (gotta watch those through-hulls, you know) or places to go or folks to chat with. And if you don’t like the view you could always go sailing to somewhere else. The only problem is the American penchant for attracting “stuff.” You need to either have on-shore storage or the ability to let material goods flow through your life.

I have to admit, though, that Miami has a wonderful climate for live-aboards. I can see it would get a bit chilly in San Francisco. I remember seeing all the houseboats when I was a kid learning to sail there. You really didn’t want to go overboard in the bay, at least not without a wet-suit.

Now what I thought was weird was what a friend of mine did. He retired from the Navy after spending 20 years in subs. He bought a houseboat to live in and moored it on the Miami River. The first thing he did after moving aboard was to cover up all of the windows with plywood. That made him feel happy and at home but it made the rest of us feel a touch claustrophobic.

We had a simialr discussion on this some time ago, so I thought I’d show you the link to get some ideas. Here ya go!!