Recommendations on 25-30' Power Catamarans for Gulf Stream

[polo_offshore]

Hello All!

I'm new to this boating forum, hope to be a new and active member!

Looking for recommendations for year/brand on smaller power catamarans 25-30'. I've been seeing mostly World Cat, PowerKat, etc.

I live in Miami / Miami Beach area and really hoping to find something that is nice for cruising around town, efficient on gas, and able to cross the gulf stream to make it to Bimini. Will also be taking it to the keys, Tampa, and similar areas.

- Any brands / range of years on brands I should stray away from (hull-quality and craftsmanship wise)? My budget is looking around $60-70k and $15k for initial buy maintenance.

- I hear tunnel height mentioned a lot on small cat forums. Does anybody have an example of a cat with good tunnel height vs a bad one?

- Anyone made the cross from Miami (or similar) to Bimini in this length catamaran? Since I live in the area I'd only go in the summer months with a good southern wind window, and can afford to wait if the weather doesn't look good. Would you do it in an open bow cat or just a closed bow?


Any advice or recommendations is welcomed, thanks in advance