Several months after visiting the Vision 444 at the Annapolis Boat Show with my colleagues on the Boat of the Year judging team, three things still stick out when I think about this South African-built entry that we named Best Cruising Catamaran Under 50 Feet.

First, unlike any other production ­catamaran that I can think of, the Vision has a full-size, forward-facing navigation desk to starboard, just inside the sliding glass door that separates the cockpit and salon. The desk is a few steps removed from the raised helm station in the cockpit, and about the same distance from the owner’s stateroom below it in the after portion of the starboard hull. In other words, it’s immediately accessible from both key locations. At the desk, the skipper is surrounded by instruments and electrical switches to control the boat’s systems, and there is a clear view forward for being inside to stand watch, work out waypoints or update the log.

Second is the workshop, which has a workbench, vice, shelves, and bins for tools and gear. It’s located in the forepeak of the starboard hull, forward of the owner’s head and shower. After seeing it, all I could think was, What cruising sailor wouldn’t want one of these?

And third: The Vision is a cat that can sail. Jubilee, Hull No. 8, was picked up at the Vision yard in Knysna by her owner, David Stein, in 2022. With a hired captain aboard to help him learn about the boat, he and his daughter set out on a shakedown cruise to Mozambique before returning to South Africa. From there, Jubilee set sail for Grenada, via Saint Helena, and averaged 7.6 knots during the crossing. By the time they arrived in the Caribbean, Stein was ready to take charge. His need for hired hands was over.

In Annapolis, with some 14,000 miles under the keels, Stein was still excited to talk about his boat, and after the show, he was more than eager to take us sailing. Out on Chesapeake Bay, I found it enlightening to watch him at work getting Jubilee underway, since one of the criteria we use when judging a sailboat is how well it measures up to its design brief. In the case of the Vision 444, the boat is intended to be an efficient, safe liveaboard boat for a cruising couple or otherwise shorthanded crew.  

To raise the main, Stein set the autopilot to head-to-wind, which freed his hands to attend to the halyard, reef lines and whatnot. For upwind sailing, the Vision has a self-tacking jib, which means coming about is as easy as turning the wheel. Stein says that in apparent wind of 16 knots or better, the boat can hold a course with an apparent-wind angle in the high 30s, which is respectfully close-winded for a roomy cat with short, fixed keels rather than daggerboards.

His go-to sail when singlehanding or on passage when varying conditions are expected is a code 55 (he carries a larger code 65 as well) that can be easily furled. Conditions for our sea trial were fairly light, around 12 knots, so after a couple of tacks, we quickly furled up the small jib and rolled out the smaller of the two reaching sails because that was the one already mounted on the continuous-line furler. Cracked off slightly to a close reach, we jogged along at 7 to 8 knots.

And of course, we encouraged Stein to set his asymmetric spinnaker, just to see how it would go. With that sail up, we managed to gain another knot or so.

Vision builds just the one model. Hulls, deck and furniture are all foam-cored and infused with vinylester resin. Furniture is tabbed and bonded in place, becoming part of the structure of the boat. 

Stein says that each hull so far is a little different, thanks to owner input and advances in technology. Hull No. 1, for instance, was built for a mobility-impaired owner, and doors were cut into the cockpit coamings to add accessibility from the dock or a tender. The idea proved useful and was incorporated into the design of subsequent models. 

Another neat feature on the Vision is having washboards that can be fitted across the stern of each hull to prevent following seas from washing aboard over the sugar-scoop transoms. A third washboard can be placed across the door to the salon.

All Visions come with a 24-volt lithium battery bank. On Jubilee, the bank is recharged by alternators of the same voltage mounted on two 40 hp Yanmar diesels, as well as by power from six 370-watt solar panels. Stein says that the boat’s original alternators were early models and installed just as 24-volt systems were becoming popular. They stopped working in December 2022, around the time he reached the Caribbean. It took three months to get replacements, but he and his guests had plenty of electricity without them, even with an electric induction cooktop (there is a propane stove too), espresso machine, countertop electric toaster ovens (Stein passed on a built-in oven in order to gain stowage), air conditioning, and a full suite of electronics. 

More-recent Visions are fitted out with 38-Nanni diesels (simple engines that are easy to work on) and eight solar panels, providing even more power, he says.

The interior layout of the Vision is straightforward enough, but even so, there are noteworthy elements. The owner has the starboard hull. Guests get the port hull, with an athwartships berth forward, and a head and shower in the forepeak. Another stateroom is aft, with a second head and shower. 

Amidships in both hulls, there are outboard lockers where wiring, hoses, through-hulls, and machinery are all neatly labeled and easy to reach. Engine access is well thought out too. On most cats, engine rooms are accessed through hatches in the cockpit sole, where they’re exposed to the elements. On the Vision, the aft berths in each hull lift up, and the engines are right there, with plenty of room to work on them without worrying about what’s happening outside. Adequate soundproofing keeps the staterooms ­relatively quiet underway when motoring.

Topsides, large cabin windows let in lots of light and provide good all-round visibility. The center two forward windows have hatches that open for ventilation. The L-shaped galley to port has deep double sinks and plenty of stowage. A dining table is forward to port, and can be lowered to make a berth that would be a handy place for off-watch crew to rest while on passage.

Gear throughout the boat was top-notch and included North Sails, B&G electronics, four electric Harken winches, a fridge, and two freezers.

During most of our Boat of the Year inspections, the judging team has to wonder how a boat will hold up with a few thousand miles under its keel, and how its systems and layout will work when owners find themselves out there on some dark, stormy evening. Not so with the Vision. Jubilee and Stein have been out there and done that, and both looked just fine. 

Mark Pillsbury is a CW editor-at-large and was a 2024 Boat of the Year judge.

One Sailor’s Jubilee

On my first visit to David Stein’s Vision 444 catamaran at the dock during the Annapolis Boat Show this past fall, I got a kick out of a graphic on the bow with the boat’s name, Jubilee. Below it was a circle around the whimsical drawing of a bear playing some sort of crooked horn. Later, when we were out on Chesapeake Bay and sailing the boat, we hoisted the spinnaker and hauled up the snuffer, and saw the same quirky image, this time in white on the black asymmetric chute.

I had to ask the owner, “What’s up with the bear?”

Turns out, it’s a pretty good story.

Stein hails from western New York, where he had an ­insurance brokerage firm. Before buying the Vision, he’d done most of his sailing on smaller race boats, but in 2008, he took his family on their first charter vacation, aboard a 38-foot Beneteau in the Grenadines. And with that, he was hooked.

“As soon as I got home from that trip, I started building a spreadsheet on how, when my son graduated from high school, I’d be able to do this,” he said. He put down a deposit on the Vision in 2020 and took delivery of Jubilee in July 2022 at the builder’s yard in Knysna, South Africa.

Stein is a self-confessed (Grateful) Deadhead, and one day, he was listening to one of his favorite songs, “Sugaree.” Jerry Garcia sings, “Shake it up now, Sugaree/I’ll meet you at the jubilee/And if that jubilee don’t come/Baby, I’ll meet you on the run.”

Stein said he always thought a jubilee was a party, but then when he did a little research, he discovered that the word has an older biblical meaning: a person’s jubilee year, when you turn 50 or 51. At that age, if for some reason you had to lease your family land because of financial difficulties, you got your property back, or if you’d sold yourself into indentured servitude, you got your freedom.

“You were supposed to spend the entirety of your jubilee year not working, and getting good with God and the universe,” Stein said. “Therefore, I’ve got a Grateful Dead bear trumpeting a kudu shofar, which you’re supposed to do apparently to signal to everybody that you’re starting your year. My jubilee year is apparently several years long, but who’s counting?”

Stein retold the story when I spoke with him by phone in April. He was sitting aboard Jubilee at the dock at the Antigua Yacht Club, where he was tied up to repair the seawater pump on his watermaker. 

After Annapolis, his plan had been to sail south with the Salty Dog Rally, but instead, he took a left and headed for the Bahamas. He spent the holidays in the northern Eleuthera area with his wife and kids, and his parents came to sail with him in the Abacos.

From there, he headed south to St. Thomas. It was a five-day windward trip, but he and his crew endured the ordeal by catching four big tuna, four mahimahi and three marlin. They had so much fish, they had to pitch frozen pizza overboard to make room for it.

For passages, Stein brings friends aboard, and finds mates from the Vision owners group, which now numbers about 40 ­current and future owners. Around half have placed an order for a boat, and they’re eager to spend time aboard Jubilee while they wait for theirs.

After exploring the US and British Virgin Islands, Stein said, they had a perfect overnight sail to St. Maarten, where he caught the Heineken Regatta and the St. Barts Bucket regatta. 

Stein’s daughter will be joining him soon in Antigua to start the journey back north, where he plans to put the boat on the hard for the summer in Virginia. 

 “I feel like every day I’m doing stuff that’s physically and mentally engaging, so I haven’t gotten bored yet,” he said. “That absolutely hasn’t happened.”

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While strolling the docks of the Annapolis Sailboat Show each fall for, let’s say, at least the past decade, one thing has become abundantly clear: Between the rows of charter catamarans lining the docks of the so-called Vacation Basin and the ubiquitous lineup of cats (and trimarans) on display on the Spa Creek Marina piers, the twin-hull phenomenon continues to resonate, and it easily remains the fastest-growing segment of the sailboat universe. That anecdotal observation was backed up by hard numbers in the 2024 Boat of the Year fleet, with more than half the contestants being multihulls. 

Fittingly, then, the most competitive category in this year’s contest was this class of four cruising cats. Amazingly, in features and layouts, each nominee was decidedly different from the others, a true benefit to potential owners, who now more than ever have real choices to ponder. 

Winner: Vision Yachts 444

It’s hard to say if it’s a definite advantage, but in recent Boat of the Year contests, when inspecting boats with their owners aboard—folks who have put some hard miles under their keels, and who can speak with authority on the positives and negatives of their vessel—the track record shows that such nominees do very well. Which is the case with the Vision 444, whose owner took delivery of the boat at its building site in Knysna, South Africa, cruised to Mozambique, and then sailed it up the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean. 

Judge Mark Pillsbury picks it up from there: “Many of the big cruising cats that we step aboard are a compromise by design because some of the fleet will go to private owners and the rest into charter. The Vision 444 was different, and after a 14,000-mile shakedown cruise, it clearly reflected the thinking of its owner, who was aboard every step of the way. This is a pure cruising cat, and a fine one. Gear was of good quality and well-sorted. Living accommodations were practical and proven. And build quality was readily apparent because the boat looked terrific after all those hard miles. I think it’s one of the only cats I can recall having a full and proper nav station. And the walk-in workshop forward in the starboard bow? Brilliant.”

Runner-up: Excess Catamarans 14

Text> Pillsbury has sailed the complete range of Excess cats, a relatively new brand from Groupe Beneteau, and has a unique viewpoint on how the range has evolved: “Each of the first three Excess catamarans we looked at brought us something new to talk about, and the latest, the 46-foot Excess 14, didn’t disappoint. The builder says that they want to try new things as they expand the lineup, and with the 14, they let the design team of VPLP push off in a couple of new directions when it comes to hull shape, and the width and depth of the keels to improve sailing performance. Unfortunately, we had pretty light wind for our sea trial in Annapolis, but in under 5 knots of breeze, we were still able to see speeds in the 3-plus-knot range. Visibility from the helms was good—our entire judging team are fans of the steering stations, located well aft and outboard— and the boat was easy to move around on. The 14 fits very well in what the builder is aiming to accomplish.”

Runner-up: HH Catamarans HH44

Text> Unfortunately, due to a shipping snafu, this latest offering from HH Catamarans arrived too late to Annapolis to be displayed at the boat show. But it did make it in time for the sea-trial portion of the Boat of the Year contest. The judges were very pleased that it did, for on a windy test sail, the 44 had the opportunity to strut its stuff, so much so that the panel awarded it with the Judge’s Special Recognition prize.

Runner-up: Seawind Catamarans 1170

The Seawind collection of cats has seen more than its fair share of success in previous Boat of the Year contests. As judge Tim Murphy summarizes, the builder’s new 38-footer is carrying on with that positive tradition: “Our test boat, Hull No. 2, was built at the company’s primary facility in Vietnam, but going forward with the 1170, the line will be produced in a new plant in Turkey to service the European market. The infused hull is vinylester throughout with a PVC core; it’s a good, cost-effective choice that avoids osmosis. Foam is perforated and ‘double-cut’ with kerfs around curved surfaces. It has a Mastervolt lithium-ion battery system, no genset, but with 990 watts of solar power (an optional 1,320 watts is available). I like the cabin top/boom relationship: It doesn’t invite lounging guests to lounge in the boom’s path, but does give the operator easy access to the entire foot of the mainsail. The galley is down—a good layout on a smaller cat. The sail plan is simple but effective. This is a very solid couple’s boat.”

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After stepping aboard the Vision 444 catamaran at the fall 2023 Annapolis Sailboat Show, it was immediately apparent that this was a cat of a different sort compared with the several other midsize production models on display. Let’s start with the handy fold-down boarding doors located on the aft quarter of each hull that allow you to take a simple, convenient step into the cockpit. It was an innovation introduced on an earlier model that was designed around the needs of a handicapped sailor and then adopted because, well, it was a good idea.

Then right inside the salon, to starboard, there sat a full-fledged forward-facing nav station. Does any other cat builder bother with a dedicated piloting space these days? Can’t think of one, but at sea, it’s mighty handy to have a place to settle in and update the log, work the computer, or check the charts—all while keeping an eye on instruments, systems, and the sea ahead.

At its yard in Knysna, South Africa, Vision Yachts produces one model, the 444, and each boat, so far at least, seems to evolve with the technology and gear available. Buyers’ ideas are also considered and put to good use when they make sense, said David Stein, the owner of Jubilee, Hull No. 8.

Stein picked up Jubilee at the yard in Knysna, sailed to Mozambique for a shakedown cruise, then crossed the Atlantic, via St. Helena, to Grenada. After a season in the Caribbean, he sailed the boat north (the rig is Intracoastal Waterway-friendly, he reports), arriving in Chesapeake Bay in time for the show. After 14,000 miles at sea, he said he was looking forward to sailing many more.

During a walk-through, he was meticulous about detailing innovations developed before his boat was built, and what’s available on models that can be ordered now. The evolving design means each new boat carries the latest equipment, such as the lithium power system on Stein’s boat.

Vision’s hulls, deck, and house are vacuum-infused using vinylester resin and foam coring. The hulls, which sport mini keels, are fabricated with a matrix of watertight boxes beneath the soles. Composite water and fuel tanks are also built into the hulls.

Jubilee is powered by a pair of 40 hp Yanmar diesels (38 hp Nanni diesels are standard on current models), and the engines are located under the aft berth in each hull. The beds lift up, providing good all-round access to the motors, and maintenance can be done out of the elements. Despite their interior location, under power, the Vision was a relatively quiet boat with sound levels ranging from 60 to 68 decibels, depending on engine speed. (The Nanni’s are approximately 30 percent quieter.)

On Jubilee, the owner’s cabin is located aft in the starboard hull, and includes a spacious head and shower. Far forward, in place of a guest cabin, there’s a handy tool shop/man cave, complete with workbench and vice for making repairs underway. In the port hull, there’s an athwartships berth forward, with a head and shower in the forepeak; a double berth aft, also with head and shower, is located aft. 

Large storage lockers sit amidships in each hull. Inside them, electrical circuits, systems and plumbing are easily accessed; every wire and hose is clearly labeled.

Jubilee was well-mannered under sail. The rack-and-pinion steering is silky smooth and responsive. In 10 to 12 knots of wind, our speeds were consistently in the mid 7s to over 8 knots in the puffs. 

Seated at the raised helm station, with sail-control lines within easy reach and with good visibility all around, the boat loped comfortably along. With its practical layout, plenty of solar power and lithium batteries for living off the grid, and a well-thought-out sail plan, clearly the 444 is a boat built for sailors with visions of going places.

For more information about the 444, visit https://visionyachts.com/

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Built by sailors for sailors, the Vision 444 was inspired, according to the builder, by thousands of miles spent at sea understanding the demands of a vessel and her crew, years of experience building custom catamarans, and a passion to produce the perfect bluewater cruiser. Boatbuilder James Turner and Vision Yachts have created this 44’4” lightweight performance vessel with unique features and an impressive standard inventory that sets this catamaran above the rest.

The Vision 444 is constructed with an innovative resin infusion technology with all support struts and davits made from advanced composite and integrated into the hull to create a strong yet lightweight vessel. Key features of the 444 suggest that form follows function. All furniture is structurally bonded to the hull in an ergonomic design. Midship service lockers in each hull offer easy access to shut-off valves, filters, sea strainers, and pumps. Two bilges line each hull, one in the service locker and one in the engine room. Fuel line hoses and electrical wiring have their own dedicated conduits. The lithium ion batteries are under the salon seats, and the engines are under the bunks, allowing safe and easy access. A bench seat in the engine room with dedicated tools, storage for spare parts, ventilation, and lighting make servicing the engines a breeze. Access to the rudder system is in the starboard stern locker. Every locker has ample space for access or storage, and a room in the starboard bow (accessed through the master shower walk-through) contains a complete work bench with a vice and additional storage. And, exhale…

The interior is equally functional, and with a healthy dollop of form mixed in. All windows and hatches in the salon provide superb vision of the horizon. From the forward-facing navigation station in the salon, GPS can link up to the TV for a Spielberg-sized chart-plotter display. Flooring is flush throughout and an L-shaped door between the cockpit and salon doubles the space while open and offers an alfresco ambiance. In the salon, the U-shaped settee is standard with leather. Windows are single-panel flat glass. All vertical finishes are quarter sawn reconstructed oak veneer with an oil finish, which is easy to maintain or to replace without matching wood grains if needed. Quartz composite countertops with stainless steel refrigerator/freezer and all high-end appliances surrounded by stainless grab rails throughout yield a dual sense of openness and safety when underway.

On deck, the side access door is great for boarding, loading and accessibility. Wide, level decks are clear of all running rigging, and the flush mount hatches allow the crew to move around safely. Two standard electric winches and running rigging led back to the helm provide ease of operation for single-handed sailing. The mainsheet bridle system (eliminating the traveler and tracks) is simple to use in conjunction with the self-tacking jib. Atkinson’s-theory-calibrated rudders help to maintain drive when tacking and jibing. The working helm seating for two has a commanding position with a view over both bows and 360-degree visibility.

The deck sole in the cockpit, and on the side decks and foredeck is EVA foam padding, a UV resistant material that is resilient—like a high-quality yoga mat with grip. The cockpit has ample seating with a large teak table. Stainless steel tubing that retracts into the transom bulkhead provides additional safety at sea.

“A sense of certainty in any sailing vessel begins with strength” says a Vision Yachts representative. “We use an innovative resin infusion and gel-coat technology to form the Vision 444’s durable hulls. Decks are extra-tough while still maintaining impressive performance due to the weight-saving process. The result is a better, lighter, faster, stronger and safer vessel which will hold its investment value longer.”

Vision 444 Specifications

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