Big yacht with small crew

Jamesuk said:
How old are you and your wife?
How fit are you?

Buy a 52ft yacht. Bow thruster and a stern thruster too. Hydraulic/electric in mast furling and Genoa sails electric anchor.

Have fun.

Later upgrade to a 60+ and get a crew :-)
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Apparently there is a critical gap between 50 and 80 feet. 50 feet is too small for a professional crew, but if you want a crew and at the same time, to have a certain isolation then you need to go above 80'.
 
WHY (a bigger boat) ?

Clearly size can be an advantage for a circumnavigation or similar. But for most coastal cruising as a couple I would suggest there is an optimal size - and it is probably just below 40 feet. Big enough to be spacious, but small enough to fit in most interesting anchorages and harbours, and importantly to feel like a sailing boat.

Even our 38 feet and 2 metre draft is over large for some interesting desitinations

To me its like cars - I prefer a top quality medium sized car over a cheaper large car, for quite similar reasons (tactile quality, comfort and sportiness)
 
I had a 46 footer which we sailed 2 up for some years. Now readying for a RTW...

We sold the old boat and bought an Amel Super Maramu. We are retired... no sweat for us.
 
Hi,
lot's of hints thanks... We are 30 and 35 years old with five years of chartering experience in 35-40ish range (med only) mainly bavarias an jeanneaus. We are going to start in the med but we will look forward to try the ARC and back. Actually I'm not that into bigger yachts but hubby is looking forward to host some friends, he has lots of friends.
 
Be careful about friends...

Your boat is your home, your mistress and your skin. Inviting extra people on board creates opportunity for friction and difficulties. You can't go for a walk to get some space when guests begin to wear thin on the nerves....
 
You'll know yourself whether you can do it or not. Bigger boats just require you to be ahead of the game a bit more because it is harder to get yourself out of an awkward situation once you've let it take you by surprise. If you know that you're running things slickly in the 35 to 40 range, you'll have confidence with bigger boats and with more awkward sailing areas than the Med in summer. If you're struggling at times, or getting yourself into positions you have to get yourself out of, then it'll be hard.

Beware also the group of inexperienced friends. A single novice will follow the lead of others around them and adapt to the environment on a boat. A group of them will be much less likely to recognise the change in environment. Your hubby could find himself allocating a large proportion of his focus to managing the friends and not the boat.
 
Not sure if everyone has the same understanding here.

Could the OP confirm, is this to buy a bigger boat or what is the largest they should consider chartering? Big difference if you're only going to have her for a couple of weeks as maintenance, bending on sails etc is someone else's problem.
 
Tomahawk said:
Be careful about friends...

Your boat is your home, your mistress and your skin. Inviting extra people on board creates opportunity for friction and difficulties. You can't go for a walk to get some space when guests begin to wear thin on the nerves....
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+1

Quickest way to mess up your plans is having friends arriving so you have to be in specific places at specific times. We now say they have to find out where we are and get themselves there, I'm not hanging around for 2 - 3 weeks just because they want cheap air tickets.
 
milkysleep said:
Hi my first post here,
me and my hubby have some experience sailing the med on charter yachts, mainly bavarias and jeanneaus in the 32-40 range. We are thinking to make the big jump to a bigger yacht but I'm wandering which is the maximum size for a yacht that can be handled by just 2 crew member (me and hubby)?? Do you have any specific type in mind??
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I depends how big is your "big". If for bigger you mean for example 42ft or 46ft, I would not see any issues for a couple. Normally I sail single handed a 42ft. In fact sometimes bigger yachts might be even easier to sail if rigged with all controls aft. Under sail you might be using winches more, for example to tension halyards and mainsheet, when you might have been used to do it just by hand. Manouvering in a marina is not so different with a bigger size, clearly you get into larger berths ... a bowthruster can help you when it gets more difficult to swing the bow in confined spaces.
 
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GrahamM376 said:
Quickest way to mess up your plans is having friends arriving so you have to be in specific places at specific times. We now say they have to find out where we are and get themselves there, I'm not hanging around for 2 - 3 weeks just because they want cheap air tickets.
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This is so true, even with your stricture they will still be a constraint one way or another, causing you to sail when it may not be prudent to do so. Because arrival may be so arranged as you dictate, they will still have return tickets that require meeting a deadline. I had such a problem when delayed in the USVI with visa problems and the crew having discount flights out of Puerto Plata, DR, with only two days to get there from Puerto Rico. A lot of seasick passengers as we crashed non-stop to get there in rough seas.

I class it similarly to us buying a house in Switzerland, where property is priced very much on square metre costs. When we priced how much more it would cost for an extra, rarely-used guest room, there was no contest - guests can book in at the local hotel if they really want to visit us - and some do. Then you find out who are the real friends.
 
Thanks for all the hints,
Today we had our first try on a 50ft both single than double handling. The yacht that we tried has no electric winch and wasn't difficult at all, but for sure "our own" will have electrical winches.
Last but not lest I would like to investigate the catamaran option too.
 
We own a 49 footer. Being just under 15m in length is very important as most marinas price bands and up to 15m and then more for over 15m. One thing to consider is draft. When we sailed around the Spanish and then French coast, there were several places that we could get into - just, with draft of 2.1m Any more and we would have not got in which would have been a problem. We have powered in mast furling and powered winches. SWMBO and I handle 49 feet without a problem. I would not get anything bigger - even if I could afford to move up, as I do not think we could manage it.

TudorSailor
 
I will echo an earlier reply - there are no boats better designed for a couple than Amels. The Amel yard have been building and evolving their yachts for 30-40 years exclusively around the retired sailing couple (with occasional guests) and their feedback.
 
For the last six years we have sailed as a couple (motor before that), day, weekend, holiday. five years on a 43 and last year upgraded to a 48. Both boats selected by what we wanted, while I agree an Amel is designed for a couple it would not be what we wanted - so I would start from another place, what do you want to sail? centre cockpit or aft, sloop, ketch etc. etc. biggest limiting factor will probably be your budget
Select well and no matter what you select you will find your own groove.
 
I would suggest that from a handling point of view its the weight of the boat rather than the length which is the restricting factor. Its much easier to pull a 50' white boat about than a 25 tonne 42 footer. The heavier the boat the heavier the gear, sails, blocks, loadings etc. Its the weight of the boat that requires the heavier systems not its length.
However the heavier the boat the easier it is at sea and will look after you better. So, first decision is whether your priority is to be comfortable in harbour...or comfortable at sea. All other decisions will follow from this.
 
Haven't read all the replies yet, but I would add that it might depend on how tall you are. We chartered a 44' in the caribbean and at just 5'1, I couldn't reach above the gooseneck to flake the sail or take off the halyard. HWMO is 6'2 and could only just manage it.
 
Sinbad1951 said:
I would suggest that from a handling point of view its the weight of the boat rather than the length which is the restricting factor. Its much easier to pull a 50' white boat about than a 25 tonne 42 footer.
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But part of the technique for berthing bigger boats is to avoid having to pull. Get the lines securely on the cleats then use springs and the engine for fine tuning the position. Winches can be handy too.
 
ChattingLil said:
Haven't read all the replies yet, but I would add that it might depend on how tall you are. We chartered a 44' in the caribbean and at just 5'1, I couldn't reach above the gooseneck to flake the sail or take off the halyard. HWMO is 6'2 and could only just manage it.
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If it is your own boat (and not a chartered one) that issue is easily overcome with a couple of fold down mast steps. That is what I did. Means you can't use both hands for the sail, as the other will be holding onto the mast, but one hand for the sail is sufficient I find.
 
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