What owning a yacht is really like

We’d all love to have a toast with Leonardo DiCaprio on a yacht.“The Wolf of Wall Street”/Paramount Pictures

• Owning a yacht certainly sounds like a dream come true. And if you have a nice chunk of change burning a hole in your pocket, you might want to make that dream a reality.
• But you should know first that there are several hidden expenses, headaches, and disappointments that come with yacht ownership. 
• As Business Insider’s Hillary Hoffower writes, “really, yachts are just floating money.” Here’s what you’re really in store for if you buy one.

Picture it: It’s a beautiful summer day and you’re laying out in the sun, a cold drink by your side, your favorite music playing softly in the background, and you’re slightly rocking to the motion of the waves.

Someone comes to refill your ice bucket and tells you lunch is almost ready.

That’s the dream, isn’t it? Spending the weekend on a yacht of your very own. Cruising around the Mediterranean just because you can.

But hold on a minute.

Before you get there — you know, to all the relaxation — there’s a lot that needs to happen first, like actually buying the yacht, hiring the staff, making sure everything is being cleaned and fixed when necessary, and being prepared for a lot less isolation than you’ve been imagining.

So as you contemplate buying yourself a yacht, keep in mind that it’s not always the dream it’s cracked up to be.