Atlantic Cruising Yachts has been named the official Fountaine Pajot sailing and power catamarans dealer for California, with three sales locations in San Diego, Dana Point, and Newport Beach. The territory expansion follows the recent announcement of two new offices in the Great Lakes region. 

Atlantic Cruising Yachts has also recently rebranded under the name ACY Yachts. Its exclusive distribution of the popular catamaran brand Fountaine Pajot now stretches across North America with 8 offices and 18 regional yacht consultants.

In production since 1976, Fountaine Pajot catamarans have become highly regarded for their innovative design, spacious interiors, onboard comfort and noteworthy performance. With models that cater to various needs and preferences including eight models of sailing catamarans and five models of power catamarans ranging from 40 to 80 feet, Fountaine Pajot is a longtime pillar of the production catamaran scene. 

“We’re thrilled about the ACY Yachts expansion in California through our partnership with Luke Brown Yachts West,” said Christian Bent, president of ACY Yachts. “Not only do we have the opportunity to introduce Fountaine Pajot catamarans to new customers on the West Coast, but we can also present yacht buyers with more options on their ownership journey, including the Business Yacht Ownership approach,” Bent added.

Thanks to ACY Yachts’ partnership with its affiliate company Waypoints Yacht Charters and other premiere charter operators, there is a smarter way to own and manage yachts. One that meets the needs of the most discerning customers: a better yachting experience, less hassle, and robust support with maintenance and charter management. To learn more about ACY Yachts’ Business Yacht Ownership, visit: https://atlantic-cruising.com/business-yacht-ownership/.

ACY Yachts will represent Fountaine Pajot catamarans during the San Diego boat show, June 20-23, with the Fountaine Pajot Elba 45 on display, as well as during its ACY Yachts California Launch Event & Open House on July 9 at its new San Diego office.

About ACY Yachts 

ACY Yachts, originally known as Atlantic Cruising Yachts, is one of the largest sailing yacht dealerships in North America with exclusive distribution of new Fountaine Pajot Sailing and Power Catamarans, as well as Dufour Yachts. The dealership counts 8 offices in North America, in Annapolis (MD), St. Petersburg and Fort Lauderdale (FL), Kemah (TX), Toronto (ON), Sandusky (OH), San Diego (CA) and St Thomas (USVI). ACY Yachts also founded Waypoints Yacht Charters, a network of boutique charter operators. Waypoints offers professional management and maintenance to yacht owners who wish to offset their cost of ownership by placing their boat in a charter fleet. Waypoints locations span from the East Coast of the US to Caribbean locations, including Annapolis (MD), St Petersburg (FL) the Bahamas, the US Virgin Islands, and the British Virgin Islands.

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It was perhaps fitting that Fountaine-Pajot and Lagoon Catamarans—two longtime pillars in the production catamaran community—came head-to-head for the title of best cruising cat over 50 feet for 2024. Talk about symmetry: Both boats measure in at about 51 feet. A nearly exact price point of just around $1.6 million. Each is produced by one of the pioneering French multihull builders that’s been at the game for decades. In some ways, this matchup was not unlike a heavyweight boxing bout between Ali and Frazier, or a good old-fashioned feud like the Hatfields and McCoys. It was a duel that the judges relished and dreaded because the competition would undoubtedly be close—but there could be only one champ. 

Winner: Fountaine-Pajot Aura 51

During deliberations, judge Mark Pillsbury summarized the overall layout of the Aura 51, a viewpoint shared by his fellow panelists: “A length overall of 51 feet is enough space to give designers options when it comes to how a cruising cat is laid out, and Fountaine-Pajot takes advantage of this by offering a variety of layouts, with up to six cabins in charter mode. The boat we sailed in Annapolis had what they term a ‘double Maestro layout,’ i.e., a master cabin aft in each hull, with guest quarters forward. It would be a boat that two owners might share, sailing separately or together occasionally. I really liked their decision to locate the helm station on the Aura partway between the cockpit and the flybridge, which they called the sky lounge. That way, the skipper stays in contact with guests below and above, and has good visibility astern when docking. I also like the separation between the steering seat and the three winches on the cabin top. Shorthanded, the autopilot can be engaged when the skipper steps forward to trim sails, and with crew, the trimmer has room to work and the skipper room to steer. We had light wind the day we sailed, only about 5 to 8 knots, and the Aura made 4 knots closehauled—a good run for a big, well-stocked cruising cat.

Judge Herb McCormick weighed in: “I really thought that this category was a toss-up. Both boats will be sold to private owners and will also be set up for the charter trade. At the end of the day, what leaned me toward the Aura was that helmsman’s arrangement, centered between the cockpit and the top deck. I loved that big flybridge on the Lagoon, which will be a great space especially on charter, but this is the best ‘cruising’ cat, not best ‘charter’ cat, and that one feature I believe is better-suited to real cruising.”

Runner-up: Lagoon Catamarans 51

The French boatbuilding industry is to be applauded for its forward-thinking approach to sustainable building practices and exploring next-generation powering and propulsion systems. Judge Tim Murphy focused in on Lagoon’s approach: “This is largest Lagoon fully intended for owner-operators. Beginning with 55, the next size up in the range, a professional captain is expected to be involved. Lagoon produces 275 boats per year. From this year’s Boat of the Year fleet, Lagoon is at the forefront of carbon-positive materials: 35 percent biomaterial in the polyester resin (compared with 14 percent last year), with hemp fibers employed instead of glass in some of the smaller molded parts. The production plant is certified ISO 9001, 40001, 50001, which is notable for the commitment to sustainable manufacturing.” 

Unlike McCormick, judge Mark Pillsbury liked the Lagoon’s helm station just fine. He said: “The 51 is a big boat, but the layout of the helm station on the flybridge makes the boat simple to operate with a shorthanded crew. All sail controls are led to three winches on the cabin top, and there is a Harken electric sidewinder winch adjacent to the wheel to control the traveler. And for a large cruising cat, I thought that the 51 sailed well. The steering was very smooth. In 8 to 12 knots of breeze, we saw boatspeeds in the high 6s and 7s depending on our point of sail. The view from the helm was tremendous.”

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The Tanna 47 offers a heightened feeling of space, letting in light and focusing on elegance, highlighting the boat’s interior design. Her flybridge features an expanded lounge area that creates a friendly atmosphere and an incomparable benefit – ergonomics while sailing.

For more info about the Tanna 47, visit Tanna 47 Fountaine Pajot.

For a sea trial of the Tanna 47, visit Boarding Pass Fountaine Pajot.

About Fountaine Pajot

Legitimacy and values

The story of Fountaine-Pajot began in 1976, and the story of its creators long before that. Boldness has propelled us forward from the start. We have acquired experience and expertise over the years, but also the wisdom that has guided us. The open sea teaches humility. Yes, wisdom is one of the core values of Fountaine-Pajot and it comes into play when making new choices.

Identity and transmission

Today, Fountaine-Pajot is an ambitious structure, proud of its local roots and its history, capable of adjusting its course to adapt to the challenges of the world to come. New generations have joined us and are breathing new life into the company. The stakes are high. Transmission plays a part. With us, the generations flow together.

To learn more about Fountaine Pajot, visit Fountaine Pajot Luxury Catamarans.

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With a length overall of 61 feet, 7 inches and a beam of just over 31 feet, Fountaine Pajot’s Samana 59 is a big boat. As I wandered fore and aft, upstairs and down, while sailing on a sun-splashed morning on Chesapeake Bay with Cruising World’s Boat of the Year judges, I found multiple places to stop and take in the surroundings. 

The view from the flybridge was expansive; in the cockpit, the gurgle of the wake passing by was hypnotic. It was a little early in the day to kick back on the foredeck sun cushions, and besides, my feet kept taking me back to the owner’s stateroom in the starboard hull, where an athwartships queen berth sat amidships. Leaning on its edge, I could look directly out the long, rectangular port in the hull and see waves dancing by. 

Yep, I thought. That would be the place to be.

Fountaine Pajot is a longtime player in the French catamaran industry. Its more-recent models have tacked in the direction of luxury accommodations, but it hasn’t forgotten its performance roots. Besides looking good, most of the FPs I’ve encountered have sailed well too, the Samana included.

Designed by Berret-Racoupeau—FP’s collaborator for nearly a decade—the Samana has stylish good looks. Its sheer rises from slightly raked-back bows and then tapers downward from the mast aft to the transoms. The lines of the cabin top are repeated in miniature on the Bimini over the ­flybridge, giving the boat a somewhat space-age look, while displaying the same visual DNA that Olivier Racoupeau employed in the rest of the FP range. The boat we visited in Annapolis, Maryland, all tricked out with gear for the show, carried a price tag of $2.8 million.

On deck, the Samana has a versatile cutter rig with a slightly overlapping jib and large genoa, both set on electric furlers. Upwind, roll out the jib, and coming about is a fairly straightforward chore (with a little help from electric Antal winches). Off the wind, furl the small sail, and deploy the big genoa for more power when reaching. During our test sail, in 9 to 10 knots of breeze, the speedo hovered in the 6-knot range on a reach. Our speed was slightly less than that closehauled—not a big cat’s favorite point of sail. I’d guess that in the Caribbean trade winds, where a boat like the Samana is likely to be found, the ride would be a bit more spirited.

The Samana’s fiberglass hull is resin-infused and balsa-cored for strength and stiffness; the deck and several smaller parts are injection-molded, which gives them a finished look top and bottom. Bulkheads are all cored composite structures and are tabbed to the hulls using fiberglass cloth and resin. Aluminum plates are placed in the laminate wherever hardware is to be installed, and they get drilled and tapped for
assembly.

Living space aboard the Samana is well-thought-out and can accommodate a crowd. The cockpit has a dining table to port and a settee opposite. A ­second couch spans the transom, with a fridge, grill and sink adjacent to it, to starboard. At anchor, a hydraulic swim platform can be raised for sunbathing or lowered to the water. On the foredeck, there’s more space to kick back on a pair of U-shaped seating areas that can be reached by walking up the wide side decks, or from the saloon, which has a beefy, ­watertight door front and center.

The boat in Annapolis had what FP calls the ­Maestro layout, with the galley up in the saloon. Counter space takes up nearly the entire port side of the main cabin, with all the appliances you’d ­expect to find in a long-legged cruiser. There are ­multiple fridges and a freezer, and a five-burner stove and ­oven. The cooking area is open but separated from the rest of the living space by an island with ­additional counter and stowage. 

Opposite is a U-shaped couch surrounding a table that can be raised for dining indoors or lowered for cocktails and coffee. In the forward starboard corner of the saloon, there’s a forward-facing nav station and seat that would be a nifty spot to stand watch when it’s snarly outside.

The Maestro configuration puts the owner’s ­stateroom in the starboard hull, where it takes up about two-thirds of the space, with sleeping accommodations forward and a head and shower aft. A ­five-step companionway and hatch provide a private entrance from the deck; a second ­companionway from the saloon separates the owner’s stateroom from the en suite guest stateroom forward.

A galley-down Maestro version is also available, with the galley replacing the center of three staterooms in the port hull. Access to the aft stateroom is from the cockpit. 

There is also a six-stateroom charter version ­available, giving an owner lots of options for how the boat can be used. 

No matter the layout, given the Samana’s size and systems, it is likely that most owners will have a ­full-time captain and crew, whose quarters are in the ­forepeaks of both hulls.

For an owner who plans to live aboard and sail, friends and family will find all the comforts of home aboard the Samana. And if chartering is in the plans, pick the layout that will prove the most alluring, and the new FP is bound to be a breadwinner.

Mark Pillsbury is a CW editor-at-large.

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Oyster Yachts collaborated with Humphreys Yacht Design on this elegant 50-footer, which focuses on couples and other shorthanded crews who are headed for bluewater adventures. An in-mast furling main and electric winches are standard, as are twin wheels in the cockpit, located a bit forward on the clutter-free deck. The 495 has three staterooms below. oysteryachts.com

With more than 15,000 J’s built since 1977, the team at J/Boats is now adding this 45-footer, which has a carbon, double-spreader fractional rig. The boat is built tough with SCRIMP resin-infused molding for the foam-cored hull and deck. Below, French interior designer Isabelle Racoupeau added an elegant touch to the decor. jboats.com

Bridging the gap between high-tech racing and performance cruising, the First 36 is designed to fully plane in a moderate breeze. Or, owners can ditch the racing gear altogether and take the family out cruising aboard the three-stateroom model, which has a galley and a central fridge. Part of the same model line is the First 44, which is available in a performance version with a different deck plan, and options for keels and masts. beneteau.com

Excess Catamarans in France, following up on the launch of the 37-foot Excess 11, has added the 52-foot Excess 14 to its model line. The boat has a low boom, reduced windage thanks to lower freeboard, redesigned hull windows, an aft-set coachroof, a forward stepped mast, a composite bowsprit and an exposed forefoot. Three- and four-stateroom versions are available with an option for a sky lounge. excess-catamarans.com 

With piercing bows and exterior lines drawn by designer Xavier Fäy, the Bali 4.4 has a forward cockpit with dedicated lounging and sunbathing areas, as well as separate interior access. There are living areas amidships and aft, and a helm station with panoramic views on the coachroof, accessible from both sides. bali-catamarans.com

Limited wetted surface and a generous sail area help the Italia 11.98 perform well, even in light air. This boat is designed for shorthanded ease of use. There are three staterooms below (one forward, two aft) and two heads. Owners also can outfit the boat with a full race package. italiayachts.com

New from this French builder of sailing cats is the Aura 51, which has an open living arrangement that connects the salon, galley and cockpit. The flybridge is big enough to accommodate 2,000 watts’ worth of flush-deck solar panels for sustainable ­cruising. The boat is available in four layouts, including a “full maestro” version that dedicates the port hull to an owner’s ­stateroom. fountaine-pajot.com 

The Dutch builder’s first aft cockpit model in the 50-foot range includes options for all-electric propulsion and sustainability. Living areas forward of and abaft the inboard twin helm stations create space for guests to spread out. The three-stateroom accommodations plan leaves space for a tender garage and a submersible swim platform. An integral carbon-fiber A-frame mast configuration has an incorporated hydraulic furler for easier off-wind sailing. contestyachts.com

The Dehler 46SQ strikes a balance between performance racing and relaxation. The ­redesigned cockpit is uncluttered, with fewer plastic parts and more elements stowed out of sight. An integrated footrest allows for extra comfort at the helm, and folds flush to the deck when not in use. There’s a remote-control-­operated swim platform for water access. For race days, owners have membrane sails and carbon rigging. dehler.com

The Dufour 37 is built to handle easy coastal cruising, ocean itineraries and performance sailing. The 37 is available in two- or three-stateroom versions, and the design emphasizes outdoor living, with extra space in the cockpit. The 37’s new hull form is built to deliver a greater power-to-weight ratio, and the mast has been ­elongated for increased sail area. dufour-yachts.com

Elan Yachts worked with Humphreys Yacht Design and the technical team at Gurit to create the 50-foot E6. The team used 3D Vail technology to enhance lightness and stiffness, and to optimize the hull with a T-shaped keel. Performance characteristics are the result of scale-model in-house testing with an Olympic sailing team. This boat is designed to be sailed by an experienced couple, with twin rudders and helms, and with Harken winches positioned for precision trimming and fast, unobstructed movements. elan-yachts.com

The GS40 from Grand Soleil Yachts is designed for speed and responsiveness without sacrificing volume and comfort. Multiple versions are available: performance, which includes four winches and a self-tacking jib; standard, with three staterooms, one head and a technical compartment for added stowage; and a three-stateroom, two-head layout. A 72-footer is also on the way. The builder says it will have an Italian aesthetic. grandsoleil.net

Swedish builder Hallberg-Rassy is premiering a sporty-looking 40-footer designed by Germán Frers. The HR400 has a sizable cockpit, and twin wheels and rudders. Owners can choose a slightly overlapping genoa or self-tacking jib, one or two heads, and a two- or three-stateroom layout below. hallberg-rassy.com 

The first of a new generation of B-Yachts, the Brenta 34 is billed as a luxury racer that can sail fast in all wind conditions, yet remain easy to handle with a crew or singlehanded. Performance comes from the boat’s light weight, minimalistic interior and sleek waterlines. Owners who want to use the B34 for cruising can opt for a removable cockpit table, spray hood, hot shower in the cockpit, and removable swim ladder. b-yachts.com

The Hanse 460 is the first Hanse yacht designed by French design team Berret-Racoupeau. Innovations include a hydrodynamic hull shape, a tall rig for a maximized sail plan, and a standard bowsprit with an integrated anchor arm. Accommodations can include six to 10 berths, with a roomy owner’s stateroom and an upsize galley. hanseyachts.com

Few builders are creating wood performance cruisers these days,  but Maine’s Lyman-Morse yard is. The cold-molded 46-footer is designed by Kiwi Kevin Dibley, and is fashioned from Douglas fir and western red cedar. Double headsails and twin wheels help make the boat easily capable of 10-plus-knot speeds, while the onboard ambience comes in part from Herreshoff-style white ­bulkheads and varnished trim below. lymanmorse.com

Following recent launches of the 60 and 65, Jeanneau now offers the Jeanneau 55, which is a collaboration between Phillipe Briand and Winch Design. Its dual-cockpit deck plan leaves the aft cockpit dedicated to relaxation, with the forward cockpit set up for handling. Below, the owner’s stateroom is forward and occupies about two-thirds of the interior. jeanneauamerica.com

The flybridge on the Lagoon 51 spans 80 percent of the coachroof, helping to create enough space on board for separate sunbathing and dining areas, roomy stern platforms, and more than 3,000 watts of integrated solar panels for greener cruising. The boat is available with three to six staterooms for private cruising or charter. To help with flow when more people are aboard, the salon has improved circulation with the mast set forward, which also increases the volume in the owner’s stateroom. cata-lagoon.com

The DS41 is a sporty design with a slender bow, steeply pitched stem, and convex sheerline. The hull windows and a sweeping roofline blend the deckhouse into the overall aesthetic for a one-level living concept. A high-performance sail plan helps with speed, while the minimalist interior belowdecks is warm and inviting. moodyyachts.com

The 44 Open is the first new Nautitech model in three years, and it focuses on the needs of private owners such as couples, families and other shorthanded crews. Naval architect Marc Lombard drew the slippery hull. The boat has a reversed bow, a boom mounted low above the coachroof, and a sweeping curve to the deck line. nautitechcatamarans.com

The Neel 43 is the smallest yacht in the builder’s lineup, but it’s built to be big on performance. Designed by Marc Lombard, the 43 is intended to be easily operable by a shorthanded crew. The helm station is to starboard with a triple seat for comfort and commanding views. neel-trimarans.com

The X4.3 underwent a serious makeover for 2023, essentially becoming a smaller version of the X5.6. The modifications are ­aplenty, including are designed hull shape with the max beam brought further aft and with soft chines, allowing improved downwind performance and a wider cockpit; a redesigned deck and deck liner; a new sprayhood layout for added protection from weather at sea and improved sightlines at the helm; and larger berths aft, thanks to a slight ­raising of the cockpit floor. x-yachts.com

Designed by Franck Darnet and Marc Lombard, the Privilege 650 is an evolution of the builder’s 640. New features include an adjustable interior layout, more windows and headroom, a redesigned foredeck and sun lounge, and an aft-facing cockpit lounge. The optional carbon rig adds 19.7 inches to the mast and 11.8 inches to the boom, adding 32 square feet to the genoa and 64.5 square feet to the mainsail. privilegecatamaransamerica.com

attention to making the onboard experience feel even roomier. For starters, the Oceanis 34.1 has more volume forward in the owner’s stateroom than the 35.1 it replaces in the builder’s model line. That volume is thanks in part to a flared bow and hard chines that run from stem to stern. On a larger scale, Beneteau’s new flagship, the Oceanis Yacht 60, has the same volume as the brand’s 62-foot predecessor. beneteau.com

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Monohull sailors can sometimes become bemused when thinking about catamarans. ­Attributes such as size, performance and cost are all ­relative. Consider, for instance, the ­Isla 40, the newest model from French builder Fountaine Pajot.

At a little more than 39 feet length overall and with just ­under 22 feet of beam, the Isla takes up a fair share of watery real estate—about 850 square feet. That’s roughly the size of many urban apartments, and considerably more than the footprint of a similar-length monohull. Still, the ­builder calls this model a “gateway” boat, and it’s the smallest in the Fountaine Pajot sail range. With cruising cats, trying to go much smaller would mean that the hulls, to perform adequately, would not be beamy enough to fit a double berth. Besides that, they’d struggle to float all the hardware, gear and toys most cruisers want to bring to sea.

As for the ride, a 40-foot monohull beating upwind in 15 knots of breeze might seem sporty as it heels over and the spray flies. A 40-foot cat? Not so much. Oh, the boat might squirm around a little in the chop, but drinks won’t be ­tipping over—one of the ­reasons catamarans are so ­popular these days.

And then there’s price. The catamaran is going to cost more just about every time, thanks to two engines, additional air-conditioning units, and more fiberglass, resin, furniture and so forth. Then again, you get that aforementioned living space. And the Isla, at $411,000, was the least expensive cat that CW Boat of the Year judges took for a sail this past fall in Annapolis.

Me? I thought the Isla had a Goldilocks charm that would appeal to all sailors: big enough to sail just about anywhere, yet small enough to be handled by a couple or ­family, and just about right for an owner relying on charter ­income to help pay the bills.

Designed by Berret-­Racoupeau Yacht Design in collaboration with the yard’s in-house team, the Isla shares the look and feel of its larger siblings. And, like them, it sails well. Closehauled in about 12 knots of breeze—not a cat’s favorite point of sail—the GPS showed us going 6.5 to 7 knots. Cracked off to a reach, I saw a few 8s on the screen in puffs. That’s not bad for a well-­appointed cruising cat, and it shows the benefits of rigging the boat with a flat-top mainsail and overlapping genoa.

The boat was easy to ­handle too. The helm station is to starboard and raised so that the helmsman can see over the cabin top and Bimini. Three winches and several line clutches are within easy reach of the wheel, making all sail-control lines readably accessible, including those for the traveler, which spans the rear of the Bimini. There’s access to the helm from the cockpit and side deck, and a set of steps leads from there up to the Bimini, where the boom is mounted low enough to provide good access to the sail pouch when the time comes to zip up things. 

Fountaine Pajot offers the Isla with a few ­different living arrangements. The boat we visited was a Maestro, with the owner’s quarters taking up the starboard hull. There was a berth aft, a desk and head compartment amidships, and a shower forward with a washer/dryer in the forepeak. In the port hull, double-berth cabins filled either end, with separate head/shower compartments between them. There is also a four-stateroom layout, popular with charterers, called the Quatuor. A skipper’s cabin in the forepeak is also offered.

On deck, the cockpit has a table adjacent to the galley, located just inside the saloon door to port, and multiple lounge areas to kick back and enjoy the ride. Inside and opposite the galley is a digital nav station with a multifunction display mounted at eye level, with a dedicated space for a laptop below. Forward to port, a table can be raised for dining or lowered for cocktails. 

Put it all together, and you have a cat that’s fun to sail and comfortable to live aboard. Sounds just right, no?

Specifications

Mark Pillsbury is a CW editor-at-large.

The post Sailboat Review: Fountaine Pajot’s Goldilocks Cat Isla 40 appeared first on Cruising World.

The sweet spot for cruising catamarans, for most multihull sailors, is right there between 40 and 50 feet: manageable by a couple, not so large that finding a place to park or dock is prohibitive, and with lots more room to spread out and bring the toys and kids than a monohull of similar length. This year’s set of nominees features industry stalwarts Leopard and Fountaine Pajot—both of which have enjoyed plenty of success in previous Boat of the Year competitions—and a pair of relative upstarts from Bali, the cruising offshoot from French builder Catana. The former are all-around cats with plenty of versatility; the latter aim to cater more toward the cruising/liveaboard part of the equation. Choices, choices! It proved to be a challenging quartet of cats for the judging panel to evaluate and sort out. 

The larger sibling of the two Bali cats entered for BOTY 2022—all the Bali offerings feature an innovative “garage door” separating the saloon and cockpit, which when raised creates a seamless indoor/outdoor living space that has proven to be highly popular—was the 46-plus-foot 4.6. It’s yet another one of this year’s catamarans with the ever-popular flybridge that has become a design staple for many cat builders. Judge Tim Murphy found it a pleasure to sail. “On some of the other cats, you felt you were fighting the sail controls,” he said. “Not here. It’s laid out nicely. It has a double-ended mainsheet system with no traveler but control at both ends, so you’ve got a port and a starboard sheet, and I think that’s a fine way to control the mainsail. It’s arguably easier to jibe with that system than a standard traveler; you have good athwartships control throughout the maneuver. Bali cats are known for comfort, but this one sails well too.”

At 40 feet, the Bali Catspace—the second of two boats from the brand entered in the 2022 BOTY contest—is the smallest offering in the Bali line, but judge Murphy found the open floor plan particularly alluring: “The living experience of being able to open up the back end of these cats so you create an indoor/outdoor platform is terrific. I didn’t give it much thought until I chartered a Bali, and it was totally delightful. The sailing performance was actually fine, but it was that back porch that made the trip.”

Dream Yacht Charters has added more and more Bali cats to their fleets, and it’s easy to see why. With their vast interior space; plenty of amenities including air conditioning and multiple fridges, including ones that would not be out of place in any well-equipped household kitchen ashore; and surprisingly effective sailing prowess given their systems and accommodations, these boats are almost synonymous with the word “vacation.” Take the interior layout of the Catspace: It has four staterooms with private heads, the forward pair with berths aligned athwartships and the aft set laid out in a fore-and-aft configuration. It’s hard to imagine a better use of space for four couples or a family in 40 feet of waterline.

Yes, a 40-foot catamaran is a design challenge; it’s fairly easy to accommodate loads of features in a 50-foot multihull, but it’s quite another to include all the creature comforts and niceties in considerably less real estate. But Murphy felt that the Isla 40—another 40-footer like the Catspace, but this one from longtime cat leader Fountaine Pajot—pulled it off well. The Isla also had a tall order to fill in that it replaced a previous cat of the same size in the builder’s lineup, the highly successful Lucia 40. “The mission for this boat was described in thirds,” Murphy said. “Bareboat charter, crewed charter and private ownership. I think they’ve created a boat that accomplishes all those missions. The boat sailed well, but it was also laid out well. In fact, the owner’s cabin to starboard was superb, one of the nicest places on any boat we inspected. We toured a lot of much bigger boats that didn’t have that sort of space.”

But when all was said and done, the Bali Cats and the Isla ran into a juggernaut with the Leopard 42, which proved to be a powerhouse BOTY entrant. It’s pretty clear by now that the relationship between South African builder Robertson and Caine; their lone client, the Moorings; and naval architects Simonis and Voogd, who bring the Leopard brand to life, is strong and fruitful. And they have a wall full of BOTY award-winning plaques to prove it. It’s time to make room for another. The judges found much to like about the latest Leopard, including the offset steering station to starboard and the lounge space forward accessed via a front door in the saloon. But the Leopard sealed its victory with an awesome sea trial in which it overhauled and passed a popular new monohull that shall remain nameless. Cats can’t point? Wrong!

What put the boat over the top wasn’t just the sailing performance, which was obviously terrific, but also the tools with which to sail the boat, and its overall deck layout, all of which optimized the experience. Murphy said, “With the Leopard, you have visual eye contact from the raised helm station to starboard down into the cockpit, you’ve got a visual line of sight into the saloon, and you’ve got a pretty good visibility over the top of the cabin top everywhere. You had access to your main sheet right there where you needed it. This was one of the boats that had no traveler, but instead had a windward and leeward block on the mainsheet. I think that’s a fine system, I like the control you have. Jibing works fine and is easily controlled.”

It was one little thing in a series of them, all of which added up to a boat—the Leopard 42—that was the unanimous winner in the 2022 category of Best Cruising Catamarans (Under 50’).

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Are they really all-around cruising sailboats, or are they luxurious and large party platforms that are best-suited for crewed charter vacations in tropical settings? That was once a fair, probing question to ask of the builders knocking off long, tall, beamy vessels balanced on a pair of cabin-filled hulls. But no longer. Despite their respective girths and displacements, not to mention a wide variety of windspeeds and sea states, this quartet of full-size cats performed admirably across the board in this year’s BOTY sea trials. Yes, they now truck along like good, honest sailboats. All that room is icing on the cake. At the end of the day, however, it’s how that space is utilized that separates the king and the contenders. 

Destined almost exclusively for the charter trade, the judges believed the Voyage 590 would truly excel in that role, so much so that they ultimately recognized it with a special award as the year’s Best Charter Boat. But that didn’t mean they did not consider it an innovative, exciting vessel on its total merits. “It’s a ‘techie’ boat, and they’re doing a lot of cool things with lithium batteries and 24-volt systems,” judge Ed Sherman said. “In terms of systems integration, they’re using high-end inverters to help out with things like variable-speed air-conditioning systems so they won’t have to run generators for extended periods of times. It’s pretty cool stuff. And under power, it’s one of the quietest boats we tested. High marks all around!”

Lagoon Catamarans, as most multihull sailors know, was one of the era’s true pioneers in the evolving world of cruising cats. Their new Lagoon Sixty 5 is another vessel that, not unlike the Voyage 590, will find plenty of duty in the serious business of having fun: in other words, the charter business. And it would be hard to find a better vessel for doing precisely that. The focal point of the boat, on multiple levels, is the epic flybridge, a feature that Lagoon first explored on a big cat with the firm’s 620 but which they have fully realized on this massive 67-footer. It utilizes a pair of steering stations, which are handy indeed given the beam of the yacht. The overhead Bimini sports a glass window for trimming the mainsail, a welcome and innovative addition. Sofas, wet bar, grill, fridge: all combined, they ask an important question, one that strikes to the heart of the boat’s clear purpose. Why would you ever go below?

In many respects, Fountaine Pajot was unquestionably another pioneer in the realm of production cruising cats, and it’s been fascinating to watch the company evolve. Tim Murphy has had a ringside seat for much of that decades-long evolution. “It’s been interesting to watch their trajectory over the years,” he said. “They started out as a very performance-oriented manufacturer. So, a lot of their thinking is about keeping weight out of their boats and creating cats that are going to perform well. Now they’re more in a market that’s moved in the direction of accommodation, and we’ve watched them transition in that direction. But speed and elegance remain important, as shown here.” A key selling point in the Samana 59 is the versatility offered in the several optional interior layouts. A pair of Maestro versions incorporate a roomy, stellar owner’s suite. But for full-on chartering, who could resist the six (!) double cabins with, of course, a half-dozen accompanying heads.

When all was said and done, though, the judges couldn’t help but honor the efforts behind the Xquisite X5 Plus; it must be noted that, unlike its competitors in the class, chartering wasn’t part of the design brief. This is a dedicated cruising cat, through and through. And there’s much to like about this 53-foot South African-built product. For judge Tim Murphy, the important details weren’t necessarily the ones you could easily see, but rather the ones you couldn’t. “What I was most struck by on our tour of the boat was actually the service side of the whole equation,” he said. “There are 40,000 man-hours invested in this boat. And you can see it—those are solid hours of labor. One thing that was pointed out were two different marks on the heads of bolts showing they were torqued. And part of the Xquisite program is they spend two weeks with each owner, training them up with systems. All told, this is really one strong product.” 

Judge Ed Sherman agreed: “The business model here is exemplary. What they’re really doing is emulating the high-end automotive market. I think they looked at the automotive sector for high-end cars like BMW and Mercedes and said, ‘OK, this sounds good, it looks good, and we’re going to do it, too.’ And they are. So, I think that that aspect of his business plan where they’re training the owners and then doing things like loading the boat up with spare parts as part of the original purchase, I mean, hats off to them. It’s a great way to go. How can you argue against it?”

“I couldn’t find anything that was done halfway,” said Gerry Douglas. “It was done better than you’d expect it to be, just because they wanted the boat to be perfect.  And the quality of construction is excellent. It’s an infused hull but with a hand-laminated deck because there’s so many very tight corners and cavities. They didn’t think they could infuse that without adding a whole lot of weight. And I get that. So, they would hand laminate it, which makes sense when you have some of the very sharp corners that exist on that boat. It was all just perfectly done.”

Sometimes coming to a decision is hard. Sometimes it’s obvious. And when the votes were tallied, it was the Xquisite X5 Plus that was the obvious choice as Best Cruising Catamaran (Over 50’) for 2022.

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“Plongée,” the man in the canoe said to me.

I flipped through the pages of my French sailor’s dictionary, hoping to stumble upon an explanation of what this man wanted. It had been years since we were in a French-speaking territory, and I was woefully unprepared to figure out he was talking about diving.

But I was motivated. In his small little dugout canoe was my prize for a successful negotiation: two large spiny lobsters and a moderate-size grouper. We had stumbled through delivery negotiations the day before.

“Langoustine?” he had asked me.

“Oui!”

He held his hands up: big or small?

“Gros.”

And then fingers: one, two, three?

“Deux.”

He nodded and sat in his canoe.

“Poisson?” I asked him.

And there we were, 12 hours later, and all that stood between me and a seafood extravaganza was my horrible French. I had no ariary, the local currency, and when I offered euros, he shook his head.

I stepped inside our 44-foot catamaran, Starry Horizons, a Fountaine Pajot Helia, and pulled out a few items from a designated “trading” bag. Prior to our arrival in Madagascar, cruising friends who had come before had advised us that the Malagasy people prefer trade over commerce.

I handed the man a few items, which he looked over—some he kept, some he gave back. “Plongée,” he said again, tapping an open hand on the surface of the water.

Finally, I pulled out a snorkel mask, and he became excited. With a big smile, he accepted the mask and handed me over his catch.

I was proud of myself; it was our first morning in Madagascar, and I’d just had a successful interaction with a local and acquired some delicious seafood.

My husband, David, and I had come over the top of the island from the Seychelles, a passage that had taken us a little less than four days, and the previous night had been a whopper. Cap d’Ambre had proved to be challenging, with the swells and currents hitting us in the black of night. Starry Horizons climbed up waves, barely making any speed over the ground, before surfing down the other side at 10 knots.

We’d hastily thrown on both engines and cut toward the shore—land that we couldn’t see under the cover of clouds and a new moon. The chop and wind lasted longer than we thought it would, even while trying to tuck in along the shore to get under its lee. Finally, we dropped anchor at Nosy Mitsio, a small island off the northwest coast, where we were well-protected and not alone; three other cruising boats were in the anchorage just off the village.

This was our first true glimpse of Madagascar. It was dry and brown with sparse vegetation, and cows—or maybe zebu, the horned and humped cattle— wandered along the shore.

Since we hadn’t officially cleared in yet, we rested and moved on quickly, taking a day to sail down to Nosy Be, the hub for sailing activity in Madagascar, and one of the busiest tourist centers in the country.

Madagascar, once known at the Malagasy Republic, has always intrigued me. Even before other sailors had told me that the island nation was on their list of favorite places, I pictured it as an opportunity to explore a world completely different from my own. We were on the home stretch of our own circumnavigation, and had been to many places where the cultures were vastly different from ours. But these places didn’t seem as authentic. For instance, tourists flock to Thailand by the millions (35 million in 2017), whereas Madagascar, only slightly larger than Thailand, saw fewer than 100,000 tourists in the same year.

There’s a reason: It’s hard to get there, and once you reach the former French colony, travel within the country is a challenge too. A majority of the roads (some estimate 90 percent) are unpaved and wash out during the rainy season. Trains and buses are cheap but cramped and unreliable.

Travelers can overcome these difficulties by visiting Nosy Be, however. It’s a small island on the northwest coast. Direct flights arrive from Europe, bypassing the capital, Antananarivo, and there are a variety of activities available when you get there, whether as a tourist or cruiser.

Touring the Town

We arrived at Hell-Ville, the capital of Nosy Be, with vague advice from friends to “find Jimmy with the red hat.” And despite the thick traffic of tour boats, ferries and traditional Malagasy dhow fishing boats, we did find him. It turns out that he’s at the dock every morning keeping an eye out for the few sailboats that wander into Hell-Ville’s unattractive port to complete their formalities.

Jimmy spent all day with us. We visited the required offices, paid fees and filled out paperwork. He took us to the ATM, where we stuffed our wallets full of 20,000 ariary bills, each the equivalent of $5 back home in the US. With our newfound cash, we bought a SIM card, connected to the internet, and then hired a tuk-tuk to take us shopping at a store called Shampion, which was stuffed with French imports. I had thought that Madagascar would be one of the harder places to provision based on its economy, but happily, I was wrong; the shelves were full of Western foods.

Besides Bio- and Carrefour-branded items, I found Tsara Malagasy dark chocolate. At no other time in my life have I experienced such a startling departure from a familiar taste. Malagasy chocolate is rich and fruity, made of a bean variety rarely grown elsewhere.

Next, Jimmy took us to the Hell-Ville Market, a building stuffed to the gills with local food. I bought small shelled peanuts, roasted and salted to perfection; smoked and dried bananas that are ubiquitous to French territories; and giant, succulent Malagasy tiger shrimp, caught that morning by the local fishermen. (I avoided the red hunks of zebu meat that were sitting out and covered with flies.)

When our day with Jimmy was done, we’d paid officials over $200 to visit Nosy Be. Without negotiating, we also paid Jimmy his requested fee, a paltry amount for spending the entire day with us. We’d done the same with our tuk-tuk driver and at each stall at the market. The prices were low, the economic gap wide, and I gratefully handed over the fees.

Settling In

Sailors in Madagascar learn to time their days with the breeze: offshore in the morning, onshore in the afternoon. In between, it’s either dead-calm or the breeze is light. We chose afternoon to move to Nosy Komba, an island 6 miles southeast of Hell-Ville. We raised sails and coasted along in 7 knots of wind, dodging the traffic in and out of Hell-Ville. By sunset, we were anchored on the northeast side of the island, fairly unprotected from the swell but next to our buddy boat and friends Kimi and Trevor, who had been in Madagascar for more than a month.

In the morning, the four of us went to the park-ranger office in the village and hired a guide to take us on an ambitious trip to the top of the island. Our ranger, John, grabbed a fistful of bananas before we started the climb.

As we walked, John told us about the local village, and we passed through stalls where women sell hand-carved wooden lemurs or traditionally woven linens. Most were unattended because it was still early.

John stopped us. “Look,” he said, pointing to the tree. “We have company.”

Climbing through the branches were lemurs. The females—the bosses—were brown; the males, black.

“Stand right here,” he directed me, “and turn around.”

A moment later, I was startled when a small weight hit my shoulder from behind. My cheek brushed against delicate fur, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw an inquisitive face and a paw reaching out for John’s offered banana.

We all took turns standing by the tree as lemurs leaped onto our heads, shoulders or backs, and climbed down our arms. They were lighter than we expected, and softer. Several of the females had babies clinging to their bellies, with large round eyes staring at us.

When the bananas were gone, so were the lemurs.

“In the rainy season, when the fruits are ripe, they don’t come to feed with us. There’s too much good food for them in the trees,” John told us as we continued on up the path.

Then John stopped us again five minutes later. He pointed to a small tree just to the left of the trail, and I strained my eyes trying to see what he saw. As happens when viewing an autostereogram, my eyes adjusted, and a chameleon appeared in the leaves before me. And then I saw them everywhere. The others saw them too, and we watched their tall but extremely narrow bodies as they slowly, haltingly climbed the branches.

As we climbed, we saw a ground boa, various lizards and insects, and we passed a religious memorial and cemetery for French soldiers. At the top, overlooking Nosy Be, we found a bamboo shack on a manicured plot of land. The lawn was dotted with picnic tables and the view was spectacular, the flat-calm waters around the islands reflected the clouds above. At the shack, a young man sold beverages. John ordered a hot lemongrass tea, while the rest of us asked for cold lemon juice; Trevor got his with a shot of local rum.

Dhows and Dugouts

Back in Nosy Be, we anchored in Crater Bay off the yacht club. In the morning, we sipped our wake-up beverages and watched the local fishermen. All day, every day, they paddled by in dugout canoes to lay out fishing nets before hauling up shimmering silver fish by the hundreds. Meanwhile, traditional Malagasy dhows glided around us, with their patched sails making use of the light winds.

“What exactly are we doing on the tour today?” David asked me.

I shrugged. “I’m not sure. Lokobe Park, I think?” It’s the top attraction in Nosy Be, according to Trip Advisor, which meant we could expect an adventure.

Our guide, Achim, picked us and Kimi up at the yacht club, and we headed off to the other side of the island. The road was mostly unpaved, and our big van bumped along, passing men and zebu plowing fields together, and ylang-ylang trees bowing down in vast groves.

In Ambatozavary, a small village, Achim changed out our driver for one of the men from the village, a local guide named Joe. It seemed as though the whole village was there, and everyone walked down to the beach, through the mangroves and mud, to where outrigger canoes were anchored. The local school children stripped down, swam out and brought in the boats.

Joe and Achim instructed us—the only tourists—to climb into a canoe, and Achim handed us a paddle. We set off before the other boats were loaded.

After 20 minutes, I asked Achim, “How far are we paddling?”

He pointed vaguely out over the horizon. “Across the channel.” The next island was more than 10 miles away, and I was glad I’d kept up a workout routine while sailing.

We took turns paddling, but Joe and Achim were our ringers, rowing strongly and steering us around the reefs. Before long, boats started to fly by; not just the outrigger canoes we’d left behind, but also small powerboats with tourists. Some even towed canoes behind them.

To our relief, our guides steered our canoe to the beach after about 45 minutes—our destination was not the distant island. We disembarked and set about exploring the Lokobe National Park. Joe led us on a walk through the forest, where we spotted tree boas, leaf-tailed geckos and more lemurs. These lemurs were feeding on jackfruit, sticking their heads into the insides of the fruit from beneath and feasting.

When we returned, lunch—a variety of Malagasy dishes—was prepared: green mango salad, crab curry, and bananas cooked in coconut milk. When the meal was over, we were given time to wander through nearby handicraft stalls selling ylang-ylang oil, carved wooden lemurs and traditional woven linens. Then it was back to the outrigger for our paddle back.

To finish our day, we took the easy walk to the top of Mont Passot and watched the sun set over the crater lakes. Sunsets in Madagascar were exceptionally beautiful. The air quality was clear, and we could see mountains 50 miles away as the sun turned a deep red and dropped behind the islands.

Many Stars

We had one last adventure in store for us in Nosy Be. With our other cruising friends Carlos and Linda, we hired a dive shop to take us out to look for whale sharks. David and I have tried, unsuccessfully, to swim with them for years in various places around the world, and this time, we were exceptionally lucky. Our captain pointed the motorized outrigger toward open water, and a young boy climbed up on the bow to spot. The boy scanned the surface of the water looking for schools of jumping tuna. Whale sharks don’t eat tuna, but the tuna feed on smaller fish, which, in turn, feed on plankton. Where you find leaping tuna chasing their food, you’ll find whale sharks too, basking and sweeping up the plankton in their wide mouths.

We spotted the first school of tuna and approached. A whale shark was just below the surface of the water, and with the crystal-clear view, we could see his constellation-riddled hide. After all, the Malagasy name for whale sharks is marokintana, which translates to “many stars.”

“Go,” our guide said quietly, and we slipped into the water less elegantly than we’d have liked. The shark floated diagonally, its mouth on the surface while surrounded by beams of sunlight. It tolerated a few moments of our attention but then moved on.

Our guides had a tough job trying to predict where the whale sharks would be found. They tried to drop us in the water where we wouldn’t disturb the fish too much, but also near where they expected the whale shark to swim in order to maximize our time with each one. By the end of the day, we’d been in and out of the water dozens of times, and some whale sharks approached close to inspect us, while others veered off quickly. We were euphoric, having finally taken that amazing swim we’d dreamed of for years.

Sailing On

Our time in Nosy Be had come to an end. We had an ambitious few months ahead of us: crossing the Mozambique Channel and sailing around South Africa. As do most cruisers, we made our way down the west coast of the big island, ducking into protected waters and making progress toward the narrowest part of the Mozambique Channel.

The sailing was an exercise in frustration. The morning wind was light and from forward of the beam. It died midday, then picked back up again from the opposite direction.

When we arrived in Honey River, only our friends Carlos and Linda were there, but as the day progressed, the charter boats filed in. Still, there was plenty of room for everyone.

A small village sits on the north shore, and it was possible to buy the namesake honey there. I went ashore with Linda, who speaks French—a good thing because the locals didn’t speak English. At one shop, we agreed to the price, and the woman started to fill our jars with honey from a jerry can. Around her sat a collection of 1.4-liter plastic bottles of honey, which I belatedly realized were a better price. But our deal had been struck.

She poured the sweet liquid into my jar through a sieve, and when it was full, she lifted the sieve and licked the drop of honey off the bottom before placing it in a bin. There were certainly no health inspectors around!

Linda and I visited the library and donated school supplies. The kids swarmed around us. They are used to cruisers and charter guests popping in with gifts, and they have learned to be persistent. They asked for books, candies, even the hats and sunglasses off our heads, and we eventually had to shoo them away. Honey bought, donations made and village explored, we returned to our boats.

Our next stop, with Carlos and Linda following, was the beautiful island of Antanimora. This is typically the last stop for charters, and for some reason, when we arrived in the afternoon, the vacationers were all anchored on the north side of the little sand spit that stretches out at low tide. The wind blows from the north later in the day, so they were experiencing a rigorous chop. We ducked under the south side of the spit, and even when the wind shifted in the morning, the anchorage wasn’t too bad.

After breakfast, Linda and I set off on a girls-only adventure. The island has a prominent hill, and, we thought, surely there would be a trail. We walked through the village, Linda asking in French about a path up it. The Malagasy people looked at us as though we were crazy. Finally, we met an older gentleman, who beckoned to us to follow him. We were joined by two younger men, who introduced themselves as the crew of one of the fishing boats. Their English was excellent, and our local guide’s English was good enough for me as he led us up a beaten path, pointing out medicinal plants and an ancient burial site.

After 90 minutes, slipping and sliding on the tall grass, we made it to the top. Below us stretched the whole island: the sand spit pointing straight out, and our two boats bobbing in the anchorage to our right. I pulled out my phone, and the five of us made a short video, in which our guide enthusiastically whooped and hollered for our achievement.

Back at the dinghy, he graciously asked for a tip, which we gave him, and then he explained that the village needed medicine, especially for digestion troubles. I had some over-the-counter pills in my small first-aid kit, and he was thankful when I pressed them into his hands.

Off to See the Giants

We departed the next morning for our last big stop in Madagascar. We sadly said goodbye to Carlos and Linda, and spent two days sailing to Moramba Bay, a popular cruiser hangout. The river had a narrow entrance that feeds into a big natural harbor, wide enough to fit a dozen boats, but mostly we had it to ourselves.

Throughout the day, several dugout canoes approached us, offering to trade limes and bananas for milk, clothes or medicine. But the draw to Moramba Bay for sailors is access to another famous Malagasy resident: the baobab tree. From our boat we could already see dozens. Following our friends’ directions, we drove our dinghy as close to shore as we could, anchored, and slogged through the calf-high water and mud to the beach, where we followed trails and found ourselves standing among the giants. The baobabs are distinctive, with their wide trunks devoid of branches for hundreds of feet before a cluster of foliage at the top.

We stayed for days, and when we departed Moramba Bay, it was with trepidation of the many trials that lay ahead. South of us, there were few protected anchorages, and then the treacherous Mozambique Channel. And behind us, we were leaving a country so different from our own, but one filled with opportunities we would have never found elsewhere.

Chartering in Madagascar

Chartering in Madagascar is a tiny industry, but exploring Nosy Be on a charter boat can be greatly rewarding. There are a limited number of boats in the charter market, meaning guests can find themselves completely alone if they desire.

The charter companies are based out of the Yacht Club De Nosy Be in Crater Bay. The marina is the only place to plug into electricity and top up water tanks. Provisioning from Crater Bay is best at Leader Price, a 30-minute drive from the marina, though local fruits and vegetables are freshest at the roadside stalls or in Hell-Ville at the market.

The peak time to charter is winter—May through October—when the temperature is cooler and the weather more consistent. The summer is monsoon season, and rainstorms become more frequent while the temperature peaks. Cyclones are active from December to March.

Various itineraries are available, from four to 14 days. Anchoring is easy, and winds are often light, making for comfortable, lazy sailing. The four-day itinerary covers the nearby Mitisio Islands, just north of Nosy Be. Longer itineraries include much of our route sailing south down the coast.

The spectacular wildlife, above and below the water, plus the friendly people and stunning geography will make a charter in Madagascar the memory of a lifetime.

Charter companies operating in Nosy Be include:

Dream Yacht Charters (dreamyachtcharters.com)

East Africa Yacht Charters (eastafricayachtcharters.com)

Madavoile (madavoile.com)

Ulysse Explorer (ulyssexplorer.com)

Amy Alton and her husband, David, finished their circumnavigation in March 2020. Her stories of adventure and advice are available at outchasingstars.com.

The post The Magic of Cruising Madagascar appeared first on Cruising World.

New-boat shoppers have long headed to Florida for a mid-winter look at what’s new on the market. But with the Miami International Boat Show cancelled by the pandemic this year, along with a number of regional winter shows across the country, a handful of builders have decided to host events on their own in the Ft. Lauderdale area over the next few weeks.

First up is Atlantic Cruising Yachts, which is planning its Las Olas Boat Show from Feb. 11 to 14. ACY is a dealer for French-built Fountaine Pajot sailing and power catamarans, and for Dufour sailboats. Models will be on display at the company’s docks at 1800 E. Las Olas Boulevard. Included in the show will be the Fountaine Pajot Isla 40, Elba 45, Samana 59 and the Dufour 360. Appointments are needed to attend; to register, visit atlantic-cruising.com/events/las-olas-boat-show/.

French builder Groupe Beneteau, meanwhile, plans to launch Sailaway Days a week later, from Feb. 19 to 21 at Seahaven Superyacht Marina, located near the Ft. Lauderdale airport. Participating brands include Beneteau, Jeanneau, Lagoon Catamarans, and Excess Catamarans, and each will have a range of their monohulls and multihulls on display. Attendees will need to preregister with each brand separately.

Beneteau’s lineup for the open house includes the Oceanis 30.1, Oceanis 46.1 and the Oceanis 51.1. To register to see these models, visit beneteauvip.com/events/2021-02-19-sailaway-days-seahaven-superyacht-marina-dania-beach-fl/.

Jeanneau also plans to have four of its models on display, including the 349, 410, 490 and 51. To register to see these boats, visit jeanneauamerica.com/en/articles/2026-sailaway-days-get-to-know-jeanneau

Excess Catamarans will have all three of its models on display at Seahaven, including the Excess 11, Excess 12 and Excess 15. To register to see them, visit excess-catamarans.com/our-events/sailaway-days-fort-lauderale-1.

Lagoon models at the open house will include the Lagoon 40, Lagoon 42, Lagoon 46 and the Sixty 5. Registration details for the Lagoons can be found at form.jotform.com/210114887797163.

Leopard Catamarans, built by Robertson and Caine in South Africa, is also planning a Ft. Lauderdale event with three of its sail models, the Leopard 45, Leopard 50 and the just-launched Leopard 42. The boats will be available for dockside visits and sea trials. The show takes place March 4 to 8 at Harbour Towne Marina. The Leopards are also available for charter ownership under the Moorings and Sunsail brands, and agents will be on hand to discuss ownership options and to book charters. To register for the event, and for more information, visit info.leopardcatamarans.com/cruising-world-open-house.

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