Dufour 325, Beneteau oc. 323, Jeanneau 32i vs blue-water?

[GTom]

I started thinking on first boat candidates, and the decision seems even more complicated then choosing a family car.

I want to start with a ~10year old production boat for a family of 3 (hopefully 4 in the future), primarily for coastal cruising in the Mediterranean. However, I was thinking on moving the boat every 3-4 years to new areas, e.g. Seychelles, Maldives.

How these small production boats handle occasional blue-water passages if the weather goes violent?

I am aware of fuel, water, etc requirements for a longer passage, I am more interested in stability and reliability in a storm.

Forgot: longer passages would most likely be done with a crew of 2-3 friends, I wouldn't push kids and not-too-seaworthy wife on a 2week long blue.

[GTom]

One addition: just realized that I have to look for deep keel versions to be in "CE category A", important to keep in mind, I see the market is full of shallow-draft cruising boats.