How much money would you have to invest in total to buy a yacht, all the associated gear and cover other expenses (unknown to me, but sure there are many) to start sailing the world? What would be a reasonable monthly budget for ongoing costs? Maybe leasing a yacht for a couple of years is possible?

I am a surfer with only a small amount of sailing experience. However when I start to think about what to do in my retirement, I often wonder if I could afford to live on a yacht and check out the South Pacific.

I would be looking at doing it safely and sensibly and getting a lot of experience and training before attempting such an adventure.

I terms of vessel, I would not embark on a macho mission on a marginal yacht. Not looking at a super yacht either. Something that you could sail solo if you had to and would house 4 people and do open ocean cruising in comfort and safety.

I would worry about hitting stuff. Zipping past suddenly surfacing whales at high speed while a passenger on an inter island speed boat in Indonesia was quite sobering. Maybe steel mono hulls or cats are safer for this reason?

Just dreaming.