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Peter I am assuming that you are talking about catamarans in general? Cabins: Generally an owners version is more popular in the secondhand market, which means that if your boat is a three cabin instead of a four cabin, you will likely sell the boat faster as most used boat buyers want to use the boat to go cruising and wants an owners cabin. However there are many families cruising nowadays and they require more cabins, in which case the four cabin is ideal. But by far the owners cabin is still better and you get a better price for it. Bathrooms: In smaller boats (38-42) a jack & Jill arrangement is great (two toilets / washrooms with a connecting shower stall in the middle). It gives you more space and negates wet-heads (shower and toilet in one). Bigger boats must have en-suites for each cabin. Flybridges: Fly bridges are becoming a lot more accepted because it is a great feature when at anchor. While a semi-raised helm station is great when doing long passages and couples feel more secure, I think that people are becoming more used to the flybridges. We had both and at first we insisted on the semi-raised helm but now that we have experienced both, we defintely prefer the flybridge. Flybridges are usually enclosed now and is secure and comfortable during inclement weather. People argue that with a flybridge the boom is high and the center of gravity is high which is all true but one have to adjust for that. We set our boat up (Bali 5.4) with various sets of sails for various conditions to make it safe and get good performance. Remember, unless you are a circumnavigator on a short timeline, you will likely spend 80-90% of your cruising life at anchor and that flybridge is great to have for space and comfort. Front Lounges: We were never big fans of the front lounge because we wrongly assumed that it may be dangerous in big seas but our opinion have changed since. We have tried and tested these boats (Leopard and Bali) with the front lounges in various conditions on passages in various parts of the world and it is a game changer. That front door is not only good for exceptional ventilation of the boat but also for comfort at anchor. Obviously these are generalities and these opinions are based on our personal experience over 30 years of full time living aboard five different catamaran brands and sailing and testing various catamarans for clients. We also deal with many buyers and sellers and in general terms these are also their opinions but it ultimately comes down to your personal preferences and your application and skill level.

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Doug, yes. The only reason we could hear him was because we were sailing. If the engines were on, we would have missed him. The boat had no lights, no VHF and obviously no AIS. Apparently there was only one man onboard and he has been drifting for at least two days or so according to him. It was about a 30ft powerboat. We also thought that it was a little strange and did not want to approach. Not only was it a little rough, so not safe to come alongside but it was a pitch dark night and we did not know what we would find. We decided to simply circle the boat at a distance and wait for the Coastguard. It took about two hours or so for them to arrive. But we don't know yet what the problem was.

Thank you! Yes, it can happen to the best of us! LOL

Tom that "chick" just so happened to have sailed around the world and she has a great deal of experience on sailboats. Be that as it may, cats can generally out run predicted bad weather. With modern technology and good weather prediction, that can easily be done and that is what she was referring to. Seldom can you outrun sudden squalls or bad weather in the middle of the ocean unless you have some warning. But in general terms, we have sailed out of the way of weather many times on our cat as we are actually doing right now as we speak. I am on Starlink and we can see the weather coming and are currently sailing on our Catana at between 10-12 knots north to get ahead of a storm. We will be in port well ahead of the storm. If we had been on our 45ft monohull which averaged about 5 knots, we would have had to hunker down much sooner or ride out the storm in the ocean somewhere.

Hey Julian, we had it made ourselves. It is a game changer for us. The space is much more usable.

😜 howzit Mike! The Catana is such a great boat and yes the front windows make such a big difference. Have fun in Asia. I hope we will be free to sail that way soon.

Thank you! 😊

We agree! Racing…well yes of course! We did a fair amount of that and she did not disappoint!

Thank you! Hopefully this will give people insight into what to expect on one of these boats.

They are two very different applications as you know. The semi raised helm station is great because you stay in contact with people inside the boat and that is particularly great when you do long passages. However we quickly got used to the Bali 54 flybridge after we sold our Lagoon 450 Sportop. It is obviously removed from the living space down below and that is not ideal for some - even for us in the beginning. But we got used to it and now we love the flybridge. We now prefer the flybridge purely because we love the space. We spend a ton of time up in the flybridge.

HI there! You are welcome! We have actually discussed this in another video but to be honest, we did not have many issues at all. The only issue we had that we considered a nuisance was the bamid system but they need it in Europe, so it is what it is. We just paid extra attention so it did not get over filled. The other issue was the 400 amp hours of batteries. We added more lithium. The nets are terrible in our opinion because they are too "springy" and you bounce all over the place but that is personal preference and we changed the nets. We would have preferred bigger forward hatches in the forepeaks. They have changed it now in the newer models, so it's not a problem anymore. As far as issues with the boat itself, we really cannot complain at all.

Okie dokie!

Yes you can

Hi Brian that is hard to believe. There must be some issue. The boats are not heavy. However it is under rigged for light wind because it only has a jib, no Genoa or Code Zero. They do this in the charter fleets. But I think if you go to the Bali owners group you will see that sailing ability is not an issue for these cats.

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it!

hi guys, you may want to watch our other videos about crewed yachts. We go into more detail about this. Otherwise email me and we can discuss.

Hey there! This seems like a good strategy however the Leopard 48 is a discontinued model, correct? I would rather get a newer model to start with so that you will have a newer model when you phase the boat out at the end of the charter contract. You will get a better charter rate on newer models when you charter the boat yourself. Also, boats generally need a lot more upkeep after about seven years depending on the use of it. But this is about the time that you may have to replace sails and other expensive equipment. We have so much information on our website about charter management. Check it out here catamaranguru.com/charter-management/

I am so sorry to hear that. This is a rule from the government so there is not anything they can do, but because of these issues, we no longer accept boats in Tunisia. We have our boats delivered to Sicily where we send the Catamaran Guru team to survey the boat before we accept it. If we find issues, the Bali team will fix defects and after that is done we will do another inspection and then sign acceptance. I don't know who your dealer is but perhaps they can do something like that to help you. It is not possible to survey the boat in one day and even if you do find issues, they will not be able to fix it there because the government demands that you leave immediately.

@@Catamaranguru What does "because the government demands that you leave immediately." I cannot make holiday in Tunis and stay some days as a visitor? As a German guy I even do not need a visa. My plan is to see the boat in the factory before being in water. The demand to leave the Port Sidi Daoud was already communicated by Bali. So you mean cruising around Tunesia as tourist is really not allowed?

We have a 12 battery bank of Lithium batteries with a capacity of 800 Amp hours. The watermaker runs off this bank. We do not carry additional batteries for the watermaker.

not worried about the inrush current burning out the motor? @@Catamaranguru

Absolutely! Email me to give you some details estelle@catamaranguru.com

We have concierge marine finance for this program and the charter booking agents do a good job of keeping the boats booked if you work with our agents.

Hi Evan yes, the boat is available. Email me ecockroft@gmail.com to give you booking info.

You are welcome! Some of this information has changed slightly but the principle remains the same.

You're welcome! This video is a few years old. We mostly use soft shackles now but the pelican hook shackle is very handy and easy to use.

Thank you! We try to be as honest and concise as is possible. Of course we have biases too but I think it is pretty clear that choosing a boat is very personal and something that I think is a great feature might not resonate with someone else. Happy "hunting" for your perfect boat!

Nope, although, the only model that I have not sailed on is the Bali 40, so I am not too sure. But the rest of the models are all fine.

Mark I honestly cannot speak for other dealers but from our experience, our clients have been treated fairly. We have a very rigorous survey by our reps in France when we take possession on behalf of the owners at the factory. The boats then arrive in the US where we address any issues that may have come up during the delivery. This is all transparently recorded on the owner dashboards of each Bali owner for all parties involved to access, including owners, captains, factory and maintenance company. This keeps everyone honest and every issue is recorded and addressed before the item is ticked off the list. There will always be something that needs attention on a boat and a new boat is no different. It is how your dealer addresses it that makes the difference, so choose your “partner” carefully. Hopefully this answered your questions.

😀Sorry about that!! LOL The headroom is enough for Stephen to stand up straight. He is 6'4 and a bit. I hope that helps.

@@CatamaranguruThank you

HI Colleen! We actually did not choose one over the other. Our Bali 5.4 is currently in crewed charter and we use it regularly. We love this boat for livability and comfort and she happens to perform very well as a cruising boat. While Zuri is very capable of doing a circumnavigation, we want to do the ARC Rally around the world next year at a relatively quick pace. The Catana can sail an easy 200+ miles / day and we also want to be able to sail at windspeed in light winds. We know that the Catana can do both and to top it off, it is a very comfortable live aboard boat compared to most performance sailing catamarans that have relatively small interior spaces and accommodations. The Catana really excel in that department. After the circumnavigation we will likely move back onto the Bali 5.4 when we drift around the Bahamas and Caribbean. LOL

Thank you for answering! I was afraid it was because of the solid front deck...

Yes at times it will shaded and we have to move the boom out of the way.

Too many charters will suck the life out of the crew. They are on 24/7 and they really get worked!

Hey! We certainly can try. Best is to email me @ estelle@catamaranguru.com. Let's connect so we can learn exactly what it is that you want to accomplish and tailor make a plan for you.

​@@Catamaranguruthank you, sent you an email

Actually yes. LOL Honestly, the bad weather caught us a bit by surprise and we did not expect to have to use the enclosure just yet or we would have installed it properly. This just proves the saying; Proper planning and preparation prevents a piss poor performance. LOL

@@Catamaranguru Well glad you made it safe! So were you sailing single handed? My hats goes off to you how you kept your cool! What was your average knots per hour? Is she a fast sail? I am wanting to sell my house soon and look for a use Bali 4.8 to liveaboard permanently so I am watching every UA-cam video on a Bali owner.

@@markybolton hey! We were four people onboard at the time. We were doing about 10 knots average. Happy hunting! The 5.4 is a very good cruising cat. The Bali 4.8 is a nice boat but I really like the 4.6 also for a couple. It depends what you want to do with the boat.

@@Catamaranguruhow many people do you think it takes to properly sail the 5.4 in a circumnavigation?

@@KT-sw6er it obviously depends on your experience, sailing ability, level of fitness etc. Stephen and I sail the boat by ourselves usually but both of us are "seasoned" sailors and we work really well together as a team. We know what to do in emergencies because we have done it many times. It is always easy to sail a boat in good weather. The test comes in bad weather and it never happens at a good time and usually happens unexpectedly. I would say that if you are a halfway experienced sailor or at minimum have sailed some distances, knows your boat well enough and understand emergency drills, you will get along fine with three people during long passages to help with watches and emergency situations. This is a simplification obviously but practice makes perfect and I recommend that you do some sailing on the boat before you leave on long passages.

We have videos of our B5.4 in the Med sailing in crappy conditions with rain, big seas, crazy weather and 40 plus knots of wind. Check it out.