Diesel Duck
Senior Member
If you had the choice of a boat that has a LOA of 50’ with a FWD guest cabin with either a V-berth or single bunks to starboard (lower bunk being slightly larger than the upper bunk) or, you could have a boat with the same LOA of 50’ but it had a FWD guest cabin with a queen berth (center walk around), which would you choose and why?
Ahh but it’s not that simple…
This 50’ LOA boat, with either a V-berth or single bunks to starboard in the FWD guest cabin, has a saloon big enough for a 9’ 6” settee and that same 50’ LOA boat with the queen berth in the FWD guest cabin only has a saloon big enough for a 7’ 6” settee (the overall depth of the saloon is roughly 2’ less than the V-berth/bunks boat), now which boat would you choose and why?
And if that wasn’t a hard enough decision, you now have a third option… With this next boat you can now have the best of all worlds, however, it comes with a price…
This third option is for a boat that has a LOA of 53’ with a FWD guest cabin with a queen berth (center walk around) and it has a saloon big enough to accommodate a 9’ 6” settee. Best of both worlds, yes? Ahh, but here’s the price…
The price… As most of you already know everything cost more with a boat beyond the 50’ LOA mark and, in this case, it’s not so much the initial cost of the boat but it’s for the never ending extra cost of higher slip fees, canal transit fees, etc. etc.
I realize those who plan to stay in marinas often would be more concerned about the LOA beyond that sweet spot of 50’ but for those who plan to use the boat as it is intended (passage making/circumnavigation) me thinks the LOA may not be high on your priority list and you would be more concerned about overall comfort, space, seaworthiness etc.
Now that brings up another question… Would you be so concerned about a guest cabin having a queen berth vs. a V-berth or single bunks if your long term plans didn’t include a lot of family or friends and your planned voyages were for just you and your significant other with an occasional guest aboard?
Personally, I fit into the category of a single handler with an occasional guest. Having guest, especially for those long passages, a queen berth would be nice but it is not so much of a priority for me but… I keep reverting back to my original business philosophy of always having a good solid “exit strategy” (in this case I’m thinking desirability, a.k.a. resale value) and thus my query to all of you here on TF.
Note: All of the above mentioned boats are virtually identical, same single diesel engine, each with an aft master cabin with (center walk around) queen berth, guest head forward with separate shower, etc. etc. etc.
Editing after original posting:
Addendum... These boats (all 3 versions) each have 4 social areas. One is the main saloon down below (similar to a sailboat) with the galley adjacent, then there's the pilothouse which has a very large U-shaped settee (360 degree views) seating 6/7 very comfortably (not including the helm chair) and, on that same level, there's also the aft U-shaped cockpit located just behind the pilothouse (270 degree views) and last, but not least, is the flybridge area with an L-shaped settee along with a helm chair (360 degree views).
Ahh but it’s not that simple…
This 50’ LOA boat, with either a V-berth or single bunks to starboard in the FWD guest cabin, has a saloon big enough for a 9’ 6” settee and that same 50’ LOA boat with the queen berth in the FWD guest cabin only has a saloon big enough for a 7’ 6” settee (the overall depth of the saloon is roughly 2’ less than the V-berth/bunks boat), now which boat would you choose and why?
And if that wasn’t a hard enough decision, you now have a third option… With this next boat you can now have the best of all worlds, however, it comes with a price…
This third option is for a boat that has a LOA of 53’ with a FWD guest cabin with a queen berth (center walk around) and it has a saloon big enough to accommodate a 9’ 6” settee. Best of both worlds, yes? Ahh, but here’s the price…
The price… As most of you already know everything cost more with a boat beyond the 50’ LOA mark and, in this case, it’s not so much the initial cost of the boat but it’s for the never ending extra cost of higher slip fees, canal transit fees, etc. etc.
I realize those who plan to stay in marinas often would be more concerned about the LOA beyond that sweet spot of 50’ but for those who plan to use the boat as it is intended (passage making/circumnavigation) me thinks the LOA may not be high on your priority list and you would be more concerned about overall comfort, space, seaworthiness etc.
Now that brings up another question… Would you be so concerned about a guest cabin having a queen berth vs. a V-berth or single bunks if your long term plans didn’t include a lot of family or friends and your planned voyages were for just you and your significant other with an occasional guest aboard?
Personally, I fit into the category of a single handler with an occasional guest. Having guest, especially for those long passages, a queen berth would be nice but it is not so much of a priority for me but… I keep reverting back to my original business philosophy of always having a good solid “exit strategy” (in this case I’m thinking desirability, a.k.a. resale value) and thus my query to all of you here on TF.
Note: All of the above mentioned boats are virtually identical, same single diesel engine, each with an aft master cabin with (center walk around) queen berth, guest head forward with separate shower, etc. etc. etc.
Editing after original posting:
Addendum... These boats (all 3 versions) each have 4 social areas. One is the main saloon down below (similar to a sailboat) with the galley adjacent, then there's the pilothouse which has a very large U-shaped settee (360 degree views) seating 6/7 very comfortably (not including the helm chair) and, on that same level, there's also the aft U-shaped cockpit located just behind the pilothouse (270 degree views) and last, but not least, is the flybridge area with an L-shaped settee along with a helm chair (360 degree views).
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