Which boat layout is best for liveaboard couple?

[akprb]

Budget?

Under 100k center cockpit like Morgan 41 or CSY 44 walk through. Not saying those specific boats but I do like them and have cruised both. Lived aboard a Hughes 40 in 90s (and a J24 as well as a Catalina 30). Center cockpit layout again but would not be my first choice to own again.

Over 200k a Cat, no question at all. Lived aboard 50' cat for 5 years with two daughters. Heaven.

All the best and enjoy all of it!


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[jsquared]

we were looking at a Bavaria. very roomy and nice looking

[Greenhand]

Originally Posted by jsquared

we were looking at a Bavaria. very roomy and nice looking

LOVE the layout of their new Vision series, but when we finally got aboard one, it turned out that I couldn't reach the handholds because there was THAT MUCH HEADROOM!

[Julie Mor]

Personal choices (in no particular order):
Comfortable aft cabin
w/ Connecting head with separate shower
Center cockpit
In-boom furling
Maintenance friendly (easy access)
Keel stepped mast
Cockpit design that allows easy flow of crew (no knees pinched between the wheel and seat, no low dodgers where you can hit your head, easily get to forward deck quickly when needed - things like that)
Galley conducive to working in any sea state
Cockpit that allows one crew to sleep while the other is on watch
- or -
Sleeping quarters below that is in sight of person at helm
Easy sail handling layout - cockpit accessible for most work
Good air flow through the cabins
No shrouds blocking your path forward, requiring you to step on the deckhouse to get around them
Moveable staysail stay
Draft 6' or less, preferably 5'6" or less - no wings
Skeg hung rudder
Reasonably fast - doesn't need to be a speed demon, just not a slug.
Good amount of wood below w/good joinery - it doesn't feel like a sailboat w/o that rich wood feel below
Bimini that can be easily stowed out of the way
Retractable hatch screens - no-see-um proof!
Separate refrigerator & freezer
Good handholds, particularly through the often traveled areas (companionway, galley, to the heads)
Cockpit coaming high enough to support the lower back but not so high it's a task getting up and over
Electric winch for at least main furling, primary winches would be next

I'm sure there's more...

[svfraidknot]

i looked at many mono hulls much cheaper than the cat i eventually bought. the day i decide on a cat i was on 33 footer in the balboa yacht club considering making an offer on the boat when a huge container ship came through the canal . i was topside and i had to hold on to the mast to keep from being thrown over the side . i realized then i could never sleep on board her. my cat a solaris 42 has served me well but i must sell her soon ,, my last boat i will ever own " i have swallowed the anchor " any offer or trade will serve me well soon ,,

[ALAIN97133]

Originally Posted by leftbrainstuff

We went through a similar exercise. We looked at more than 125 boats across the globe. After 18 months we found a Liberty 458 in great condition and well equipped that we have been living aboard for nearly 18 months now. We sail regularly and also work from the boat. We are cruisers not racers. Some of the key attributes were:
1) comfortable, well lit and well ventilated interior
...
20) a good dodger / bimini
The only thing we didn't get was a washer drier. I'm currently designing and building a custom 12v solution. Laundromats are expensive and a pain in the butt. Sent from my SM-N900T using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

Do you take showers sitting on the head ? But I agree with you about the aft cabin with the queen size bed

[Eleuthera 2014]

Hello Julie,

An Amel is still your best bet... but you don't want one.

How about this?

1984 Hallberg Rassy 49 Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

or this

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1992...s#.VPScIkKwyD4

[svfraidknot]

one of the reason i chose my solaris 42 it came with a huge sunken tub and i can stand in it , my wife can shower with me and i installed a salt water wash down as well as fresh water very convenient ,, had to add an electric flush toilet my wife hated the hand pump ..had 1500 invested by the time i added salt water system and pumps etc.

[Steadman Uhlich]

Originally Posted by Vagekennis

Hi,

Success
Walter
SY vage kennis

Walter,
I noticed this is your first post to the forum and you are new here.

Welcome!
Great post!

I enjoyed reading your detailed comments.

[ALAIN97133]

Originally Posted by JulieMac

... I'd like to ask real liveaboard couples for their input, given this criteria:
* cruising couple in 50's/60's, very occasional guests.
* cruising grounds will initially be 60% U.S. coastal, 40% Caribbean. Will plan on Central and South America, possibly Med someday.
* budget $150-250 USD.
We'd like your thoughts on boat age, length, keel depth, furling main, pilot salon versus flush deck, center versus aft cockpit, berth and galley layout, storage, tankage etc. Also, any creature comforts or features you feel important. We have our ideas, but want to hear from those who live the life now.

1) Central cockpit cutter rig centerboard sailboat (4' to 7 or 8' draft)
2) Aft cabin with central queen size bed
3) Walk through head with shower (I don't want to sit on the head to shower) accessible from aft cabin AND main cabin (Under the cockpit seat).
4) Walk through galley (Opposite the head, under the other cockpit seat)
5) Cabinet above the sinks that drain into the sinks
6) Top opening fridge(s)
7) Diesel generator
8) Electric windlass
9) Spinnaker boom stored along the mast
10) Dinghy stored in the opening transom with outboard engine still installed (Under the queen size bed)
etc, etc, etc...

[TheThunderbird]

No spinnaker, and no genoa either, for a short-handed (2) crew.

In mast/boom furling is, to me, a potential trouble i want to avoid.

A luxury, is to have no gas (electric cooking with genny) and no petrol on board. I mean, electric outboard engine.
Many requirements are hard to accomodate in any 40' boat....thus I would consider the 45-48' range as a basic, and something up to 52' as a luxury, and a physical challenge.

Please do consider having 2+1 electric winches a necessity.

[goat]

Originally Posted by TheThunderbird

No spinnaker, and no genoa either, for a short-handed (2) crew.

In mast/boom furling is, to me, a potential trouble i want to avoid.

A luxury, is to have no gas (electric cooking with genny) and no petrol on board. I mean, electric outboard engine.
Many requirements are hard to accomodate in any 40' boat....thus I would consider the 45-48' range as a basic, and something up to 52' as a luxury, and a physical challenge.

Please do consider having 2+1 electric winches a necessity.

What do you power your gennie with?



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[Hudson Force]

Expectations of what is needed for space within both boats and houses seems to have changed over the past five decades. I notice that nobody builds any houses less than about 2,400 sq.ft. any more and that's considered small. My parent's house seemed average in the fifties at about 1,200 sq.ft. I've never lived in a house as an adult, but my wife & I and two children lived on a 33' boat until our son and daughter were 7 and 9. We're still on the 41' boat that we moved to in 1985 until they left for college and adulthood. Our two teenagers moved out almost twenty years ago and we still have empty lockers!

If we were shopping for another boat as a couple, we'd probably be looking for something around 35', but I won't give up my 41'. Afterall, I can sleep a couple of guests and still keep my two folding bikes stowed below when underway.

I think it's a matter of "non-ownership". My wife and I are about to take a two month land cruise in Europe,- we're each taking a "carry-on". I noticed that my daughter, who will be traveling with us has a bag with electronics,- computer, ipads, smart phones, cables, dongles & adaptors that almost matches our own entire luggage that contains nothing with an electrical connection.

I'll soon stop posting here until May when we return from travelling. Our children think we are "daredevils" to walk to the grocery store without a cell phone! ....go figure.

[Jon Eisberg]

Originally Posted by TheThunderbird

No spinnaker, and no genoa either, for a short-handed (2) crew.

One of the many reasons I'd favor a smaller, more manageable boat...

Seems a pity to miss out on the sailing enjoyment that free flying sails can offer, not to mention how often sails like a chute or Code 0 can make the difference between being able to keep moving thru the light stuff under sail, or having to fire up the engine...

[JulieMac]

Originally Posted by Eleuthera 2014

Hello Julie,

An Amel is still your best bet... but you don't want one.

How about this?

1984 Hallberg Rassy 49 Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

or this

1992 Hallberg Rassy 49 Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

Ha, I do appreciate you trying to sell us on the best boat out there! You are the best thing that ever happened to Amel! Maybe I'll catch the religion yet.

We saw those Rassy's-very nice rides, but too much boat for us. Probably 42-44' is about right for us two, depending upon length at the water line. We are downsizing from a large house, so we're still adjusting to our new potential home.