What's the perfect size

[Johntheoil]

I guess it depends on if you are 'parking' and where you park?

Having moved my 50ft F/B boat from the Hamble to the Med, I can say that it's great for entertaining lots of family and friends for an exciting day out in the sun.

But somehow upon returning to the marina after a 'long and exciting day' (med style mooring, no finger pontoons here)
the 'crew' always seemed to lose their 'concentration'...possibly too long in the sun? (Vino veritas?).....resulting in good employment for the local diver fixing the lazy lines.......well someone has to support the Euro?
Needless to say, my 'neighbours' were never there, so no one to 'lean' on when we returned to berth, and the wind always seemed to get up!
Now the happy owner of a 34ft Sessa......that I can 'park' without help��

 

[Wavey]

I'm with Greg2 on this one.

At 42 foot ours is very comfortable and spacious when just the two of us are aboard (most of the time) but plenty of space for a couple of guests who have the benefit of their own cabin, loo and shower. A length long enough so it doesn't worry us unduly in all but silly sea conditions but one that is short enough that SWMBO feels very relaxed doing the deck work. During the whole of last season we were only refused moorings twice, and on both occasions the mooring was refused before we even got to the bit about how big we were. Small enough though for river work and we can easily get up the Thames as far as Oxford. Best size IMHO for all round use.

 

[IDAMAY]

As big as we can afford but not so big that two of us can't manage it easily. Currently that means 45 feet but we think we could go to as much as 55 feet and would like to when/if we sell Ocean Star. Our experience cruising in mainly north Europe waters suggests that 55 feet isn't too much of a problem for marina berths although we mostly book in advance.

 

[davedpc]

Hi Martyn. I think you will find your boat is 34.5 ft. According to my marina I have been paying for 33ft and it has recently grown . Thus extra mooring fees ,that,s without a dingy either on davits or hooks, that would cost more. Dave

 

[kashurst]

out at sea 45+ makes a very noticable difference to what sea state you feel happy in. When we bought the T50 it was the first boat we had owned where we discovered that people stopped saying "excuse me can I squeeze past etc". However I wouldn't go much bigger than 50 ish as there are lots of marinas you won't fit into, and the costs start to rise disproportionately (have I spelt that correctly?) for the fun/pleasure/seakeeping. Also you have to book bigger berths more in advance and some of the spontaneity goes. On a river I wouldn't go over 40ish, as turning around can get tricky and moorings get harder to find.