Sara Rice, 41, and her husband, Lee, 45, had always dreamed of travelling on a boat full time, and now, they are living their best lives on the water with their two children
A family has spent the past nine years living and travelling on a 53ft sailboat, even catching their own fish for meals.
Sara Rice, 41, and her husband Lee, 45, had always harboured dreams of full-time boat living. After each experiencing the loss of a parent, they decided that “life is too short to wait for retirement” and set out to find a boat to turn their dream into reality. The Australian couple purchased a $15k AUD (£7,200) 45ft boat 11 years ago and embarked on a six-month journey along Australia’s east coast with their two children – Taj, 20, and Bella, 18 – as a trial run.
After falling in love with the lifestyle, they took their kids out of school and spent the next five years exploring South East Asia. Three years ago, they upgraded to a $40k (£19,000) 53ft sailboat and have now resumed their seafaring life around Mexico and Costa Rica.
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The family catch their own food by spearfishing and use a smaller dinghy to reach land for supplies. Sara, a content creator from Gold Coast, Australia, said: “Being able to go surfing and waking up every morning is amazing. We catch our own food and spear fish.
“We have that sense of freedom. Our kids see that as a reality – they can live simply. You don’t need all the external things – buying a house and car loans. If I think of going back to land life it stresses me out a bit. People’s lives are so busy – they can’t fit you in.”
Their main goal was to create additional room to accommodate their children’s needs as they grew. As fun as life at sea is, the family do have their difficulties. “We definitely argue. Our answer to anything is to jump in the ocean.”
Both Sara and Lee grew up surfing and living by the beach and always wanted to live on a boat. She added: “We both lost a parent. It made us realise life is too short. We wanted to see the world with our kids and not wait until we retired.”
In 2014, they took the plunge and purchased a 45ft boat, venturing down Australia’s east coast to test the waters of living aboard as a family. They were smitten by the lifestyle and in May 2016, they streamlined their existence into a few boxes, sold their cars, and set sail.
Their odyssey took them around Australia, then to Indonesia, and they spent the following five years weaving through South East Asia. Sara enthused: “It was incredible.”
The children’s classroom was the world itself, as they were homeschooled amidst diverse cultures.
Sara shared: “We’ve always talked about it with them [their dream to sail] – it was a normal thing for them. How we raised our kids was such a dream. They have such amazing life experiences already. It’s such a unique way to grow up. It’s a beautiful way to take everything in and have a different perspective.”
Their journey saw them meandering through a fraction of South East Asia’s 17,000 islands, often finding themselves in secluded spots.
Days were blissfully filled with diving and surfing adventures. “I’m so happy we’re able to have these moments as a family. We’ve sailed to eight countries. We’re sailing around the world one island at a time,” Sara added.
Despite the occasional “high stress” moments during storms, Sara feels less “overwhelmed” than their previous landlocked life. She reflected: “The highs are really high and the lows are really low.”
The family took a significant step in their seafaring lifestyle by trading in their old boat for a more spacious 53ft vessel in 2022. After acquiring it, they dedicated two long years to revamping their new home on the waves in San Diego, California.
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Fuelled by aspirations beyond their maritime bounds, Sara hopes their journey can motivate others to pursue their ambitions. With a sense of purpose, she declared: “I always wanted to show people you can do this.”
Despite being just an ordinary family who started without a substantial bankroll, she wants her story to resonate with those harboring their aspirations: “We’re quite normal. We didn’t have a lot of money. I wanted to inspire others to chase their dream.”