With America’s largest in-the-water sailboat show starting today, we are pleased to offer a quick look at 10 of the new cruising boats that will debut there.
The show, which takes over the Annapolis waterfront for four days, is a true happening of sailing, with scores of boats on display and hundreds of vendors plying their goods and services. For many die-hard sailors, the annual trip to the Annapolis sailboat show is almost a pilgrimage. We’ll see you there.
Allures 51.9
The new Allures 51.9 from the French builder follows in the wake of the successful 51 and 52. With an aluminum hull, a centerboard and twin rudders, the 51.9 is a blue water cruiser capable of exploring world’s oceans in safety and style. Note the double-headsail rig, the in-mast furling mainsail and the hard dodger at the front of the cockpit. Blue water sailors will feel right at home aboard her.
Bali 5.8
We had a first look at the brand-new Bali 5.8 at the Cannes boat show in early September and came away impressed by just how enormous the new cat is. From the huge flybridge and upper lounge to the cockpit-saloon living areas to the spacious lounge and sunning area on the fore deck, everything appears over-sized. The 5.8 is a giant playpen for fun and casual cruising.
Dufour 44
Here’s our full review of the new 44-foot from the famous French builder that we published in Cruising Compass last week.
Over the last four years, the French builder Dufour, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary, has reinvented their brand with interesting and roomy new designs from the wizards at Felci Yachts.
The new 37 and 41 were given hulls with hefty beams, very full sections forward and a hard chine that runs all the way aft. This combination results in interior spaces the likes of which Dufour has never offered before.
The all new 44, which was introduced earlier this year, takes that theme and runs with it. The 44, which measures out to 45 feet with the bowsprit, has a 40-foot waterline and 14 feet, six inches of maximum beam. The ample volume forward makes room for either twin double cabins in the fore peak or a massive master stateroom. Read more.
https://www.bwsailing.com/cc/2024/09/dufour-launches-new-44-family-cruiser/
Garcia Exploration 52
The new Garcia Exploration 52 from the French builder of aluminum voyaging yachts, is a large and capable 50-footer. With an unpainted hull you can see just how sweetly and solidly the Garcia craftsmen have constructed the hull. It’s impressive and you would feel comfortable sailing her anywhere from the ice of the high latitudes or to the reefs of the south Pacific. Built by and for blue water sailors the new Exploration 52 will be worth studying to see how this kind of voyaging excellence is built.
HH 44
The new HH 44, built in China by the entrepreneur Hudson Wang, takes all of the design and build qualities of the large, luxurious HH cats and condenses them down into a smaller and more affordable package. You too could own an HH cat. A performance cruiser, the 44 will get you where you want to go at speed and will be a ton of fun to sail. And, she’s large enough for a family to live aboard for long periods of time.
Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 350
It is hard to believe that it was 12 years ago when I took the then brand new Sun Odyssey 349 out for a test sail on Biscayne Bay in a pleasant trade wind easterly and had my jaw drop at the little pocket cruiser’s sailing performance. Plus, with square ends and chines, the 349 had the interior volume of a modern 37 footer.
Now, 2500 hulls later, that incredibly successful Jeanneau is being retired and in its place an all-new SO 350 has been introduced for 2024. Designed by Marc Lombard, the 350 has a reversed bow, an angled stern and a flat or even slightly convex sheer line. The hull is the widest in this class of cruisers at 11’9” and, with the chines, interior volume has been maximized. Read more.
https://www.bwsailing.com/cc/2024/08/jeanneau-introduces-new-sun-odyssey-350/
Leopard 46
With its American Premiere at the Annapolis show, the new Leopard 46 is a handsome addition to the Leopard fleet. Built in South Africa for the Moorings and Sunsail charter fleets and for the private-owner Leopard fleet, the 46 embodies all that the builder and the extensive team behind each boat have learned over the course of 20 plus years and thousands of boats launched and used. This is a cruising cat that instills great confidence and you know it will look after you in bad weather and good.
Solaris 40
This Italian racer-cruiser does just about everything well and it does it with true Mediterranean style. The lines are sleek, the deck and cockpit low and streamlined and the rig designed for fast, weatherly sailing. When you climb aboard a Solaris, you are struck immediately by the quality and integrity of their boats. Everything fits a sailor’s eye and brain. If you’ve got that need for speed, the new 40 will be of real interest.
Winelo 54
Making its North America debut, the new Widelo 54 is the big sister to the 50 that was introduced a couple of years ago. The concept behind the Windelo designs is to produce a blue water capable cruising catamaran that can be almost entirely sustainable, both coastal cruising and when heading far off the beaten track. Large solar arrays provide the power and careful engineering creates a package that will keep your carbon footprint as small as possible in a cat that will make a fine floating home.
Xquisite 60 Solar
The South African-based catamaran builder never ceases to innovate and surprise. The new 60 Solar is a true breath of future fresh air. It is first of all a spacious and beautifully built family cruising boat, which is large enough to sail around the world. Plus, it is set up as a couple’s boat, so it is easy to sail. But, the commitment to electric power and the advanced technical systems puts the new 60 on a different plane. You have to meet the builder, Tamas Hamor, and have him walk you through the details. You’ll be fascinated.
