32-foot sailboat with adequate headroom

[Daydream believer]

One of the reasons that I chose the Hanse 311 was the headroom. I am 6.5ft & although it is a tiny bit short of that I can manage Ok. It has an excellent heads department where i can stand close to the pan. The Elan, which I originally considered, has a droped beam above the heads. Unless one is hung like a donkey it is almost impossible to pee into the bowl from a standing position, because one cannot get close to it. This means stripping clothes & a lot of effort when in full oilies etc.
The bunks are long which is another plus. The Elan had narrow doors but also were restricted in height. This made it difficult to get through with full gear LJ etc. on.
So one should not just look at headroom. Look at the bunks, the heads, the shower, the headroom over the galley, the width & height of the door apertures, the headroom where one intends to get dressed
Even the width of the cockpit when helming is an issue. My son is tall but complains that his feet cannot reach the opposite side seats when heeled to brace himself. I can, so It suits me Ok.
Finally, If you must have one of those silly tents try getting in & out of the cabin under it without breaking your back. Then try winching the jib up the foil whilst standing under it to use cabin top winches ( assuming aft led halyards which is a must on any boat)
Then you might start cutting out lots of the suggestions above.

 

[Tranona]

Old boats yes

Not as easy as you might think. You will have to pay VAT based on your purchase price and you should clarify in advance that the boat will not need recertification when you import it. Post Brexit the cross channel trade (both ways) in used boats has effectively stopped.

 

[BarryWhite]

One of the reasons that I chose the Hanse 311 was the headroom. I am 6.5ft & although it is a tiny bit short of that I can manage Ok. It has an excellent heads department where i can stand close to the pan. The Elan, which I originally considered, has a droped beam above the heads. Unless one is hung like a donkey it is almost impossible to pee into the bowl from a standing position, because one cannot get close to it. This means stripping clothes & a lot of effort when in full oilies etc.
The bunks are long which is another plus. The Elan had narrow doors but also were restricted in height. This made it difficult to get through with full gear LJ etc. on.
So one should not just look at headroom. Look at the bunks, the heads, the shower, the headroom over the galley, the width & height of the door apertures, the headroom where one intends to get dressed
Even the width of the cockpit when helming is an issue. My son is tall but complains that his feet cannot reach the opposite side seats when heeled to brace himself. I can, so It suits me Ok.
Finally, If you must have one of those silly tents try getting in & out of the cabin under it without breaking your back. Then try winching the jib up the foil whilst standing under it to use cabin top winches ( assuming aft led halyards which is a must on any boat)
Then you might start cutting out lots of the suggestions above.

Thank you for this sharing of experience, I will take this into account! I just googled it, it is a really nice boat but out of my budget…

 

[BarryWhite]

Not as easy as you might think. You will have to pay VAT based on your purchase price and you should clarify in advance that the boat will not need recertification when you import it. Post Brexit the cross channel trade (both ways) in used boats has effectively stopped.

So you need to pay VAT and then … how do you get it back ?

 

[Tranona]

So you need to pay VAT and then … how do you get it back ?

You don't. That is the whole point. The EU and UK are now 2 distinct customs areas - and have been since 1/1/2021 so any movement of goods from one area to another are potentially subject to duty and VAT. Boats, new or used are not generally subject to duty, but must pay the ruling rate of VAT at the point of time and place of entry into the area. There are reliefs in certain situations but yours is not one of them. As a resident in the EU you will have to pay VAT to allow the boat to be used in the EU.

So in financial terms if you had a 20k euro budget you could only pay less than £14k for a boat in the UK taking into account the exchange rate and VAT. Don't forget all the other transaction costs such as travel to view, survey, remedial work to get the boat ready to sail back and so on. Once you add all this up nearly one third of your budget is not going on the boat. Hence my suggestion of buying locally as you will get more boat for your euros - and why I suggest this type of trade is now almost non existent.

 

[Daydream believer]

Thank you for this sharing of experience, I will take this into account! I just googled it, it is a really nice boat but out of my budget…

I do not know your budget, but that was not the point. We all think that our boat is the best choice- for us perhaps- I just wanted to point out the experiences as headroom is not just about headroom. Regardless of budget.

 

[Concerto]

Standing headroom is certainly a problem for your budget. But when you consider how much time you spend walking inside the cabin compared to sleeping, berth length should be your priority. In 2021 I had my Westerly Fulmar as the owners association boat at the Southampton Boat Show. One visitor asked if he could test the berth lengths, which I was happy for him to do. He found he could lie flat on his back on all the berths. He was extremely pleased as many boats he could not do this. He was 6ft 8in or 2.032m! He was happy to stoop walking round the cabin, but realistically the time spend sitting or sleeping far outweighed it. He commented that the Fulmar was now at the top of his buying list.

 

[dunedin]

Standing headroom is certainly a problem for your budget. But when you consider how much time you spend walking inside the cabin compared to sleeping, berth length should be your priority. In 2021 I had my Westerly Fulmar as the owners association boat at the Southampton Boat Show. One visitor asked if he could test the berth lengths, which I was happy for him to do. He found he could lie flat on his back on all the berths. He was extremely pleased as many boats he could not do this. He was 6ft 8in or 2.032m! He was happy to stoop walking round the cabin, but realistically the time spend sitting or sleeping far outweighed it. He commented that the Fulmar was now at the top of his buying list.

Yes, and the extra beam and freeboard of the Fulmar make it much bigger inside in every respect compared to older generation boats of similar length - like Nicholson, Contessa, Rival etc.