During the pandemic, sailboat builders have been hard at work building their lines and developing new designs to meet the unusual demands of this age of Covid-19. Lots of people decided in the last two years it was time to buy a boat. Here’s a look at 17 new boats that caught our attention.
Balance 482
Phil Berman of the Multihull Company and his co-designer Antoine du Toit have done it again, they have introduced a couple’s sized cruising cat that offers all the performance of the large Balance cats combined with the cruising comforts modern families need. Balance is the theme. The boat has cored hulls and deck, fine hulls, optional daggerboards and a powerful rig for performance. Plus, it has elegant and comfortable accommodations. This is a couple’s go anywhere blue water, performance cruiser. Click here for more information.
Bavaria C38
The new C38 from Bavaria offers a huge mid-range cruiser from Cosseti Design and the Bavaria Team. With a lot of beam carried aft, hard chines and full sections forward, the C38 has tons of volume inside for living space. It comes with a two or three cabin version. But the C38 is also a mean sailing machine that will please even the most competitive cruisers. Plus, the C38 offers great value. Click here for more information.
Beneteau Oceanis 34.1
The latest addition to the Oceanis line is the interesting O 34.1. This little sloop packs a lot of qualities and value in a modest package. Note the full length chines that provide added stability and increased interior volume. Three keel options are available, deep, shoal and folding for shallow water exploring. The rig has swept-back spreaders and no backstay, to the stern and cockpit are unobstructed. Below, the 34.1 has ample accommodations and storage for extended cruising. This is a nifty little cruiser. Click here for more information.
Beneteau Oceanis Yacht 54
A true, modern performance cruiser, the Beneteau Oceanis Yacht 54 combines a high-tech hull and rig with all the amenities and creature comforts we have come to expect from the Oceanis Yacht line. The plumb bow, square folding stern and long waterline add up to a lot of speed under sail and power. The large cockpit with the arch over it creates a space where you can sail and lounge at the same time. While the new 54 has all of the DNA of the Oceanis line, it pushes the performance threshold to a new limit. Click here for more information.
Bluewater 56
Bluewater is a new brand in the U.S. sailing market, founded by an experienced team, and it’s first offering is a true blue water cruising boat designed by German Frers. A center cockpit, raised deck saloon design, the 56 is a classic family cruiser. The roller furling sloop rig will be easy to control from the cockpit and the long water line will give it high average speeds. Below, the 56 has a master stateroom aft and two guest cabins forward. And it is finished in true yacht style by Xiamen Hansheng Yacht Building in China. Click here for more information.
Dufour 470
The new Dufour 470 may be the closest thing to a Swiss Army Knife of a cruising boat as you can get because it comes with so many unique options. The 470 is offered in three versions, Easy for those who want simplicity, Ocean for those who want to sail offshore and Performance for sailors who want to race. In each, there are four layouts possible for crews of six, eight and even 10. The Dufour fit and finish is modern and stylish while the 470’s sailing performance will excite even the most finicky sailors. Click here for more information.
Elan GT6
The 50-foot Elan GT6, designed by Rob Humphries, was conceived as a cruising boat for couples and small crews who want to undertake medium range cruises. It is a very stylish looking sloop with a big mainsail, 100% jib and a large reacher or asymmetrical spinnaker. It comes in either a two cabin, two head version or a three cabin, two head version. The interior is wide open and full of natural light so it feels larger than it’s 50 feet. Not well known in North America, Elan has a new U.S. dealer and should be high on any cruiser’s list of new boats to consider. Click here for more information.
Fountaine Pajot Samana 59
FP’s new flagship is distinctive in many ways, not the least being the huge flying bridge that has the helm and sail controls at its forward end and a full lounge complete with mini galley aft. In good weather, the whole family will spend a lot of time up here. But there are other areas for relaxing, such as the forward cockpit, the after cockpit, the huge saloon and the amazingly large sleeping cabins. For a family that wants a lot of space in a yacht that is a world cruiser, the FP Samana 59 has it all. Click here for more information.
Hallberg Rassy 400
Year after year for tthree generations, Hallberg Rassy has evolved their basic concept of building true offshore bluewater-capable cruising boats that are meant to stand up to everything the seas have to offer. The new 400 is the latest iteration of that concept. It is a Frers design with an aft cockpit, twin wheels and rudders and a powerful but sensible sloop rig, with a self-tacking headsail as an option. It comes in either a two or three cabin layout and is finished below decks with the Swedish care you’d expect from this premium builder. Click for more information here.
Hanse 460
For many cruising couples, 45 feet or so is the sweet spot for a live-aboard, ocean capable cruising boat, so the new Hanse 460 is staking out a deserved claim to be the new standard by which this sweet spot will be judged. The design is thoroughly modern, with a voluminous hull that has soft chines running its full length. The standard layout has a master suite forward, twin quarter cabins aft and a large saloon with a full dinette and in-line galley. Of course, there are a good number of layout options so new owners can configure the 460 to their family’s needs. The master suite forward is the best we’ve seen in many a year. Click here for more information.
HH 44
The HH brand has become synonymous with luxury performance cruising catamarans built to a very high-tech level. Now HH is adding a new wrinkle, a high tech cat that is also super energy efficient and designed to be sailed by a couple or family. The HH 44 is billed as “the future” since it was designed from the ground up to have hybrid propulsion systems that combine the reliability of diesel engines with the energy efficiency of battery powered electric engines. Add this to the carbon hulls, the powerful rig and the foil-like daggerboards and you have something special and unique. Click here for more information.
J/Boats J45
The new J/45 coming out in 2022 is the first new offshore cruising boat J/Boats has launched in years but it is worth the wait. The 45 combines the sailing performance J is known for with the offshore qualities that made the J/40, J/44, the J/60 and many other offshore J/boats such standouts in the cruising fleet. Built by J/Composites in France, the new boat is built using the SCRIMP method, resulting in a light but massively strong hull worthy of world cruising. The fit and finish promises to be world class. Click here for more information.
Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 380
This new Marc Lombard design joins the latest generation of SOs and offers a huge amount of space in a package that is also a stellar sailing performer. With twin rudders, a broad beam, very flat sections aft, full-length chines and full bow sections, the 380 is right at the leading edge of modern cruising boat design. Plus, it has ample accommodations for a family leading the cruising life. The 380 has the walk-around-deck found on her sisters that took the world by storm a few years ago. Click here for more information.
Jeanneau YACHT 60
Few boats can claim to be all things for all people, but the new Jeanneau Yachts 60 comes mighty close. The Philippe Briand and Andrew Wunch design comes with 19 optional interior layouts and a slew of gear, equipment and rigging options. Make a detailed list of what you need in a cruising boat and the new 60 can probably accommodate you. Like all of the boats in the Yacht series, the 60 will have a fine, modern finish and well-thought out and proven systems. Whether you are summer coastal crusing or heading out for parts unknown, the new 60 can take you there is style. Click here for more information.
NEEL 43
Following the success of the NEEL 47 two years ago, the French builder is introducing a little sister in the form of a 43-foot cruising trimaran. But the 43 is not so little since it has two large cabins at deck level and three more small cabins in the bows of the three hulls. There are two large dining tables, one inside and one in the cockpit and the raised helm has a three-person bench seat. The 43 promises to be fast and fun to sail and a great platform for family cruising. Click here for more information.
Oyster 495
With the introduction of the Rob Humphries-designed 495, Oyster is going back to its roots in a couple’s cruising boat designed to explore the world in comfort, safety and style. This is a family cruiser with a large center cockpit, a simple-to-sail rig and boat handling systems that make solo watch keeping easy. The signature aft master cabin is huge for a boat of this size and has three large ports on both sides that fill the cabin with natural light. If you are headed to the blue water or world cruising, the Oyster 495 will take you there. Click here for more information.
X Yachts 56
The new 56-foot racer-cruiser from X- Yachts in Denmark is a stylish and high performing sloop that will make ardent sailors grin with pleasure. The hull is infused epoxy and cooked in an autoclave for 24 hours, making it the lightest and stiffest hull a production builder can produce. The rig is powerful, but easily handled by a couple from the cockpit where all control lines lead. Down below, the fit and finish is Scandinavian-modern and very pleasing to the eye. Sleek, fast and handy, the new 56 is a true sailor’s cruising boat. Click here for more information.