Best 40ft for full time liveaboard in SE Florida?

[Net]

I'm very early in my research to choose a 40ft cat for living aboard full time (one person) in the Miami/Ft Lauderdale area. I still don't know if to buy new or used and exactly how much my budget will be. I am assuming I will be able to afford a 40ft, used or new, with a budget between 250 and 450k USD.

Considering the equipment and space necessary for living aboard full time at a full service marina somewhere in SE Florida, with weekend sailing and occasional vacations to the Bahamas and the VI, I should be researching owner version condomarans, right? It should be very easy to sail single handed.

These are the ones I'm looking at:

• Lagoon 400 S2
• Lagoon 39
• Fountaine Pajot Lucia 40 Maestro
• Fountaine Pajot Lipari 41 Maestro
• Bali 4.0 Lounge
• Leopard 40

But which one is the best for a full time noob sailor to live aboard in the subtropics and why?

[JPA Cate]

Sorry if I do you wrong, but this sounds like a troll to me!

A.

[Net]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Sorry if I do you wrong, but this sounds like a troll to me!

A.

Why would I be a troll? I am new to sailing and this forum. Are people in these forums too passionate about models that they can't give an opinion without fighting? Or are there too many trolls around that these types of comparisons are only reserved for magazines???

[Cotemar]

Originally Posted by Net

These are the ones I'm looking at:

• Lagoon 400 S2
• Lagoon 39
• Fountaine Pajot Lucia 40 Maestro
• Fountaine Pajot Lipari 41 Maestro
• Bali 4.0 Lounge
• Leopard 40

But which one is the best for a full time noob sailor to live aboard in the subtropics and why?

Net,

These are all good choices for a 40 foot cat. You will have to get on them to see which one FITS you.

[Net]

Originally Posted by Cotemar

Net,

These are all good choices for a 40 foot cat. You will have to get on them to see which one FITS you.

I know. I'm curious about the strengths of each one of them for the specific purpose I stated above and which one would be the one that put that boat on top of the rest. There is one right catamaran for everyone... I know.

Based on my initial reading in these forums and around the web (builder's websites and Youtube walk thrus), there is one thing that each of these appeal to me in particular but none stands out above the rest. Maybe it's because I'm too noob to identify the characteristic that will really matter. It will be very difficult to me pick one to go after if budget is not an issue. These are the ones that caught my attention.

- Lagoon 400 S2: I like the wide beams and it looks to have a great amount of storage space.

- Lagoon 39: I like the wide beams yet it seems easier to sail single handed vs a 400.

- Fountaine Pajot Lucia 40 Maestro: I like the layout of the cockpit and the island berths + separate head.

- Fountaine Pajot Lipari 41 Maestro: I like that the design is not "squary" like the newer FP. Seems safer for when sailing alone. Seems like a good option for a used cat.

- Bali 4.0 Lounge: I like the huge fridge/freezer and the front lounging area for when living at a marina.

- Leopard 40: the new one looks so good. I like to able to move from the cockpit to the front of the boat through the salon = more safety when sailing alone.

Like I said... I'm freaking out. I don't know yet which one should I double click on. Maybe I just need to get aboard all of them and stop watching Youtube videos...

[ur2slo]

YouTube make experts out of all, did you not know that?...

Me? 40' K40 Kettenburg, equipped for KISS sailing.

To each their own.......There's a boat made for every sailor.

[HighTemp]

My suggestion would be to sit back and relax for a bit. I suspect that many, if not most, of these boats will be at the Miami International Boat Show in February. You can then take your time, go aboard each of them and evaluate the fit, finish, layout and storage for yourself and very likely shorten your list substantially.

I know that this is what we will be doing, even though my short list is down to only 3 boats.

[Cotemar]

Originally Posted by Net

I know. I'm curious about the strengths of each one of them for the specific purpose I stated above and which one would be the one that put that boat on top of the rest. There is one right catamaran for everyone... I know.

Net,

That is all part of the fun in boat shopping.

Boat shows are the best place to start.
Go for a few days, so you can get on every Cat you think you may like.

Eventually you will keep gravitating to a few Cats that stand out.

By the end of the boat show you will find THE ONE.

We fell in love with our boat back in 2013 at the Annapolis USA boat show , but we had to sell our current 36 foot cat and save a bit more to buy our new 44 foot cat.

Its a fun process that goes much better when not in a rush.

[Celestialsailor]

Originally Posted by Net

Why would I be a troll? I am new to sailing and this forum. Are people in these forums too passionate about models that they can't give an opinion without fighting? Or are there too many trolls around that these types of comparisons are only reserved for magazines???

Welcome to the forum. Seems like you have an honest inquiry from my stand point. Please don't be too turned off if someone mistakens you as a troll. This forum gets a lot of them (trolls) and perhaps some are a little too quick to point it out.
As far as Cats go... I understand them like I understand women., So I'll stay out of that mix. There are a lot of folks here however that own Cats and have an abundance of knowledge regarding them. Good luck with your results.

[S/V Reveille]

Narrow down your choices to the top 2 or so, and go for a sail. Or better yet, charter for a long weekend. No way would I "decide" to spend that much money without actually Living Aboard, for at least a week!

[sailingfarmer]

problem of doing a live-aboard on a Cat is dockage... normally you will be at the end of a T-Dock which can be troublesome ... and expensive ...

[akprb]

My two cents? Buy as much waterline as you can afford. With a 250-450 budget you have a lot of alternatives. What struck me, even at the 44' range, was the tightness of saloons. Anyway, that was the advice we received years ago and I have no regrets following it.

My other thought, if desiring to live aboard with the occasional hop to the Bahamas (the VIs is not a hop), is to consider a large trawler. The cost and maintenance of a rig is significant in terms of dollars and interior volume. If desiring to sail carry a small boat on deck.

Good problems to have :-)

[SV Bacchus]

You probably wouldn't buy a $100 pair of shoes without trying them on, would you?

I imagine you wouldn't spend $300K to $400K on a yacht without trying it on.

There was good advice about the Miami boat show, we went last year and what we thought we wanted, from watching many, many YouTube videos, turned out to be a definite No-Go.

Another that was considered, but not very seriously, turned out to be more of what we were looking for.

Once you narrow it down that way, the cheap way, THEN spend the bucks to "try them on" by chartering for a week, each one.

Heck, I won't even buy a new car without renting it from Hertz or Avis for a week. That little spin around the block the dealership gives you tells you very, very little about the car. The boat show will give you about the same amount of info.

Big dollars need big and careful consideration, IMHO.

[JasonS]

You are looking at all great boats. I'd add the Manta 40 and Manta 42 to your list. We own one for the last 4 years and love it. It's set up extremely well for single handed sailing and has plenty of room.

Get on as many of your current choices as you can. The Miami boat show is a great place to look at new ones - Bali, Leopard, FP, Lagoon...they'll all be there.

There are several Manta's currently for sale. One of the things I like most about the Manta's is the owner's forum and involvement. Most of the roughly 128 boats that were built are still sailing - including several currently doing circumnavigations. We're still working and weekend/weeklong sailing, but we've had multiple other Manta owners stop by, get together for drinks, and HELP us with issues. Has saved us thousands and lots of aggravation.

Feel free to ask any questions. Happy to answer. We're in South Florida in Lighthouse Point.

Jason
Breathe
Manta #49

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by HighTemp

My suggestion would be to sit back and relax for a bit. I suspect that many, if not most, of these boats will be at the Miami International Boat Show in February. You can then take your time, go aboard each of them and evaluate the fit, finish, layout and storage for yourself and very likely shorten your list substantially.

I know that this is what we will be doing, even though my short list is down to only 3 boats.

An Excellent suggestion. Once you get a feel for your preference hunt the used boat market. Fla. has loads of boats for sale, or at your budget else where. New is nice but expensive depreciation wise so don't let a fast talking broker talk you into something. Get a business card, the today only price is BS.

Best of luck.