Your first sailboat
Have you thought about buying a sailing boat? You should start with looking at 35ft size.
I do love sailboats. So I decided to do a little research to explore available yachts. I have that question in my mind:
What yacht would you want as your first sailboat?
If you’re looking to buy your first car I think you’ll definitely look at some C-class sized vehicles like Mercedes C-class, Audi A3, Honda Civic etc. In a yachting world the equivalent would probably be a 35–38 feet sailboat.
35 ft boats are made for comfortable sailing and, what is more important for a starter, — it can be perfectly handled by a single person. For instance two helms became a common thing here — which is really cool looking and makes your sailing super comfortable. These boats are easy to enter marinas, accelerate fast and suite well for companies of 3 to 6 people.
So 35ft is definitely a good start. Let’s see what’s out there on the market.
Beneteau Oceanis 35.1
Beneteau is well known French shipyard with 130 years of yacht building experience. Oceanis 35.1 is a modern and fantastically designed sailboat. Architects made an amazing exterior with twin rudders and arch above the deck which adds uniqueness to the look of the yacht. You can’t confuse it with any other.
The interior was done with Italian design team. I strongly recommend you to visit Oceanis 35.1 page and see how great it is. You’d be happy spending your sailing days on it.
I think that Oceanis 35.1 could easily be one of perfect boats for starters. But also you could make a little step forward and take a look at her “longer” sister Oceanis 38.1. These both are pure joy for a beginner sailor.
Length: 10.45 m
Price: from 115,080 €
Janneau Sun Odyssey 349
Yachting is sooo romantic, maybe that’s why we’re starting with french shipyards. And the second is Janneau with the world’s largest shipyard for the construction of production-model boats, extending over 40 hectares. That’s definitely a trusted builder.
The Sun Odyssey line they offer are comfortable and high performance boats made for your joyful sailing. It looks really modern inside and it makes you feel at home.
Designed by Marc Lombard and true to the values of the Sun Odyssey line, the 349 is the perfect combination of performance, comfort and safety at sea.
Yep, looks like that.
Length: 10.34 m
Price: from 150,000 €
Dufour Grand Large 360
The newest and just-built French 10.30 meter yacht from another old and well known shipyard. It’s so fresh that I’ve managed to find only 3d models of this boat online (March, 2018) but you already can see that it is a class yacht.
Created in close collaboration with Italian designers Grand Large 360 looks really good both inside and outside. What can I say — Italians know how to design, French know how to build great boats. Good combination.
When you’re thinking of buying a boat you absolutely should take a look on these French shipyards. You’ll definitely get something good here.
Length: 10.30 m
Price: from 112,800 €
Hanse Yachts
Let’s move from France to another european shipyards. And here come germans Hanse. This line is inspired by natural powers of water, air and earth. These two boats will make your sea life fast and comfortable. They’re very special boats as for me and something you’d want to live at.
Hanse 348
Let’s start with “small one”. It’s a new generation of famous Hanse 34ft boats. Hanse means great sailing experience, ergonomic design (they’re the one who invented the integrated self-tacking jib and were the first to bring all the lines aft to the helm position) and spacious organization of cockpit and interior.
Being just under 10 meter in length and priced under 100K euros it’s perfect opportunity to get an amazing boat and become a great sailor by exploring your favorite seas.
Length: 9.99 m
Price: from 89,000 €
Hanse 388
As for me, this Hanse 388 can cause you nothing but excitement, admiration and delight. It’s a meter longer than 348 but looks a way different vehicle. That is just stunning boat where you can live comfortably. Not only live but also move yourself to any part of any sea you like. It just looks like cool California house both inside and outside.
The boat is just what you need in that size for that amount of money. Take an extra minute and check a video about Hanse 388. Looks like I’ve fell in love with this baby.
Length: 10.99 m
Price: from 115,000 €
Bavaria Cruiser 34
Another good and famous german shipyard. That’s a big automated shipyard with high speed of building yachts. 550 workers of Bavaria build 1,500 yachts a year. That makes 4 boats a day.
As for the boat itself, Bavaria Cruiser 34 combines sailing pleasure and spaciousness. Can’t argue here - it’s a really good boat.
They also claim to make your dreams come true… Well, who knows.
Length: 9.99 m
Price: from 145,000 €
Hallberg-Rassy 340
You can’t write about sailboats and miss Scandinavia. Swedish company Hallberg-Rassy history started back in 1943 and they still build wooden yachts. This particular boat was released in August, 2017 and delivers a very special combination of classic approach and modern design.
Only Scandinavian cal build a special boat like that. It’s a small and powerful family cruiser. With these boat you can go to both worm and cold seas. And if you like classic boats, then Hallberg-Rassy 340 is definitely for you.
Length: 10.95 m
Price: unknown
X-yachts Xc 35
One more shipyard from Scandinavia — Danish X-yachts. They build luxury performance cruising yachts since 1979. Relatively young but really good builders.
I think you can notice some similarities between these two builders. Obviously cold seas dictate some specific rules but also require extra quality which certainly can be found here.
Length: 10.95 m
Price: from 167,800 €
Leonardo Yachts, Eagle 36
Modern yachts doesn’t necessary look almost the same. Here’s a really really amazing piece of art. Leonardo Yachts from Netherlands build mouth-opening classic daysailers.
It’s really really hard to describe how impressive they are.
Eagle 36 is the smallest of all boats. It’s inspired by the giant J-class racing yachts of the 1930s that are now enjoying an incredible revival.
If you’re looking for something really special — that’s it! You can only enjoy looking at it.
Length: 10.70 m
Price: from 160,000 €
So, have you decided?
I bet it’s not an easy choice here. Of course these 9 yachts are not the full list of all available boats in the word but that company gives a good overview of what’s out there.
As for me, I know what I’d like to have. How about you?
That article is written for Spinnaker — The Sailing Magazine.
Follow us on Instagram:
And also, follow me on Twitter.
