Free: Boat Sitter

[wilson eavis]

Yes, FREE boat sitting.

Doesn't matter if your boat is on the hook, tied alongside or on a mooring; leave your boat knowing she'll be well taken care of and in very good hands.

I've been a boat owner for 30+ years and am quite knowledgeable about engines, electrical, and so on.
Of the many deliveries I've done, I've always left the boat in better condition that I found her.

I'm looking for an escape from this cold Canadian winter.
Would enjoy boat sitting for you in any warmer climate than here.

I can provide professional references upon request.

May even consider helping you top up your cruising kitty for the right boat in the right location.

[RobField]

Hello. My wife and I are also interested in doing some boat sitting and I was wondering how you have made out if you don't mind telling us.
Thanks
Rob

[Mike OReilly]

Interesting ... I've been house sitting for the past four winters up here in the frozen north. I'd love to do a boat sit, but I've not seen any come up anywhere.

[dfelsent]

My friend ended up boat sitting for 6 months in Marsh Harbor. For my Dad. Win win. Win.
My dad needed to go north for work.
Not so uncommon.
Best of luck!

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Interesting ... I've been house sitting for the past four winters up here in the frozen north. I'd love to do a boat sit, but I've not seen any come up anywhere.

Ive thought of this too recently. My wife & sometimes house sit, its a great way to integrate into a community for a while. Did a house sitting gig in New Zealand for 2 months last year.

We also use house sitters...other people have now lived in our home in Panama way more than we have!

Why not boat sitting too?

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by dfelsent

My friend ended up boat sitting for 6 months in Marsh Harbor. For my Dad. Win win. Win.
My dad needed to go north for work.
Not so uncommon.
Best of luck!

Is there any organized way of learning about these boat sit opportunities dfelsent? Or is it still pretty much local-knowledge/word-of-mouth?

The house sit world has become quite well organized, with a 1/2 dozen or so excellent match-making websites now operating. We've been doing it for four years now, with great success.

Originally Posted by belizesailor

Ive thought of this too recently. My wife & sometimes house sit, its a great way to integrate into a community for a while. Did a house sitting gig in New Zealand for 2 months last year.

We also use house sitters...other people have now lived in our home in Panama way more than we have!

Why not boat sitting too?

Our longest sit has been five months so far. This winter we're booked into four different places, including one hobby farm. So far we've stuck to our home country (Canada), but have criss-crossed this vast nation a few times, exploring different areas. As you say, it's a great way to not just visit, but get to know an area.

And living for free is a nice bonus (no rent). It really helps us frugal cruisers.

There seems to be a growing demand for house sitters, at least in my little Canadian world. We've actually had to turn down more offers than we've been able to accept this year. And people are already booking us for the coming winter.

I'd love to branch out into boat sitting though. Just haven't seen any postings.

[Bill O]

Who knew you could become a couch cruiser for both land and by sea. Something to look into for later in life.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Is there any organized way of learning about these boat sit opportunities dfelsent? Or is it still pretty much local-knowledge/word-of-mouth?

The house sit world has become quite well organized, with a 1/2 dozen or so excellent match-making websites now operating. We've been doing it for four years now, with great success.



Our longest sit has been five months so far. This winter we're booked into four different places, including one hobby farm. So far we've stuck to our home country (Canada), but have criss-crossed this vast nation a few times, exploring different areas. As you say, it's a great way to not just visit, but get to know an area.

And living for free is a nice bonus (no rent). It really helps us frugal cruisers.

There seems to be a growing demand for house sitters, at least in my little Canadian world. We've actually had to turn down more offers than we've been able to accept this year. And people are already booking us for the coming winter.

I'd love to branch out into boat sitting though. Just haven't seen any postings.

We use several house sitting sites. Both to find gigs and find house sitters. House sitting is a big thing now, but nothing to my knowledge for boats. Maybe something as simple as a thread on CF and a FB page would be good starting point?

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Bill O

Who knew you could become a couch cruiser for both land and by sea. Something to look into for later in life.

And they are synergistic activities. We made friends in the local sailing community in NZ because of the fact we were house sitting. This resulted in crewing in a few races out of Picton.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by belizesailor

We use several house sitting sites. Both to find gigs and find house sitters. House sitting is a big thing now, but nothing to my knowledge for boats. Maybe something as simple as a thread on CF and a FB page would be good starting point?

Good idea (about CF ... I hate FB). How to get the word out though.

I wonder if there is a viable business model here. The house sitting sites are generating revenue from us sitters. The platforms are already there. I wonder what it would cost to set one up (license fee probably), and if it could be worth it financially.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Good idea (about CF ... I hate FB). How to get the word out though.

I wonder if there is a viable business model here. The house sitting sites are generating revenue from us sitters. The platforms are already there. I wonder what it would cost to set one up (license fee probably), and if it could be worth it financially.

Another idea for making money while cruising!

Adding to an existing house sitter site would be easiest, but dont know whether they would go for that.