# what kind of boat for family



## SailorDan2

Hi 
I'm thinking to buy a boat for me and my family( 3 of us)
we love sea and we saved some money and now we want do it. Can anyone tell me what kind of boat I should buy? I need a second hand with place to sleep.


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## Skipper Jer

Dan, budget to purchase, budget to maintain and budget to store. Do you intend to keep the boat at a marina, on a mooring or on a trailer? Without additional input from you the answer is anywhere from a free (ha ha ha) fixer upper to sky is the limit 70 foot Oyster with crew. Dan help us to help you.


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## superslomo

It seems the hometown is Miami from the user info... where do you plan on using it, and where would you like to go together?

Day sailing and occasional "camp on the water" nights will likely provide a different answer than you'd get if you're planning on months-long Caribbean trips


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## Quercus

We have 10 and 12 year old boys. Got an old Cal 25. 4' draft. Fast forgiving boat. 

What makes it great for family is the flush deck design. Lots of room to move around and learn sailing above, and roomy below, albeit with lower headroom, though the hatch is a pop up on ours.

Any boat you can afford to store and maintain can be a great family boat.

I would echo the other posts -- let us know your plans and perhaps past experience.


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## David Chin

SailorDan2 said:


> Hi
> I'm thinking to buy a boat for me and my family( 3 of us)
> we love sea and we saved some money and now we want do it. Can anyone tell me what kind of boat I should buy? I need a second hand with place to sleep.


What you need and what the boat needs are equally important. Have you had any sailing experience at all? or perhaps you need a boat with a red button which you push to start?


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## annaba

Moody 425 sailing yacht. Great layout and super safe with a centre cockpit.


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## capta

I may be wrong, but it doesn't sound like you have any sailing experience at all. If that is so, buying a boat now would be like buying a car before you knew how to drive. Get a bit of sailing experience by going out on other people's boats and perhaps taking a few lessons, then you will have a much better idea of what you are getting into and what sort of boat you want.
Also, I highly recommend Royce's Sailing Illustrated as a basic primer. It covers just about everything one needs to know to safely handle a small craft in a fun yet comprehensive format. From anchoring to boat nomenclature and even splicing, it's got most of what you'll need for getting started, yet is still a good reference book for the most experienced of us. No preachy tome here.


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## Jeff_H

annaba said:


> Moody 425 sailing yacht. Great layout and super safe with a centre cockpit.


Really? You know nothing about this person's sailing experience, sailing venue, physical condition, budget, child's age, performance or comfort preferences, and/or short and long goals, yet you know that a Moody 425 is the right boat for them. That mystifies me.

I guess that I need to ask you, what in that original post led you to believe that a Moody 425 might possibly be a reasonable choice for this person?

Jeff


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## ianjoub

Jeff_H said:


> I guess that I need to ask you, what in that original post led you to believe that a Moody 425 might possibly be a reasonable choice for this person?
> 
> Jeff


He/she has one for sale?


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## Damon Gannon

The most important thing to remember is that there is no such thing as the perfect boat. All boat designs represent a series of tradeoffs between purchase price, operating expense, maintenance expense, complexity of systems, ease of operation, speed, comfort, storage capacity, seaworthiness, etc.

Without knowing how you intend to use the boat (day sailing, racing, local coastal cruising, bluewater cruising), where you intend to use it, your budget, or your level of experience, it's difficult to give you any useful guidance on specific boats.

But here is what I will suggest: go to your local marinas and yacht clubs and look at the boats. See what's out there and what appeals to you. Meet sailors and ask if they'd show you their boats. Most sailors are happy to show off their boats. Ask them why they bought that particular boat, and what they like and dislike about it. Ask them how much they paid for it and how much they typically spend on maintenance and storage. See if you can get an invitation to sail with any of them. The easiest way to get aboard a boat is to crew during races. You're probably not interested in actual racing boats, so look for PHRF regattas that have cruising boat divisions.

Bigger boats may be more comfortable, but they take greater effort (and money) to maintain and to get underway. So you will likely get more use out of a smaller boat than a larger one. If this is your first keel boat, go small and go simple. For a first boat that is used for daysailing and short cruises of up to 2 weeks, I'd recommend something under 28'. For example, look at Cal 24; Oday 25; Catalina 22, 25, 27. You can get a lot use out of a boat like that, you would learn a lot from it (often by breaking stuff), and it won't break your bank account. Most importantly, you and your family will have fun.

Here is a useful resource for design information on sailboats: Sailboatdata.com is the worlds largest sailboat database.


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## outbound

DG agree with your post. Many good points but respectfully disagree about you’d get more use from a smaller boat.
Find with a larger boat:
You’ll go out in a fresh breeze whereas on a smaller boat you’d be less inclined.
You have room to work the boat so more family or guests is not a reason to not go.
Folks are more comfortable so more likely to want to sleep over and be there ready to leave in the morning.
You have room for two sets of clothes and can leave the boats all set up (food and supplies) so anytime you have a chance to go sailing you just show up and leave.
Have had trailer boats where sailing was an all day affair with launching and transport.
Have had a multiplicity of small boats where I had to work around other obligations to friends and family.
Find in actuality as long as you can do the boat handling tasks ( docking etc.) by yourself or with minimal help bigger means more not less use.
Wife and kids are more likely to agree to vacations on the boat.
Understand others experience may differ but that’s my 2cents.


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## chuck53

Guys, the OP only posted one time...in July....and we haven't heard from him since.
Don't waste your time making suggestions that he isn't even reading.


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## PerryRight

Damon Gannon said:


> The most important thing to remember is that there is no such thing as the perfect boat. All boat designs represent a series of tradeoffs between purchase price, operating expense, maintenance expense, complexity of systems, ease of operation, speed, comfort, storage capacity, seaworthiness, etc.
> 
> Without knowing how you intend to use the boat (day sailing, racing, local coastal cruising, bluewater cruising), where you intend to use it, your budget, or your level of experience, it's difficult to give you any useful guidance on specific boats.
> 
> But here is what I will suggest: go to your local marinas and yacht clubs and look at the boats. See what's out there and what appeals to you. Meet sailors and ask if they'd show you their boats. Most sailors are happy to show off their boats. Ask them why they bought that particular boat, and what they like and dislike about it. Ask them how much they paid for it and how much they typically spend on maintenance and storage. See if you can get an invitation to sail with any of them. The easiest way to get aboard a boat is to crew during races. You're probably not interested in actual racing boats, so look for PHRF regattas that have cruising boat divisions.
> 
> Bigger boats may be more comfortable, but they take greater effort (and money) to maintain and to get underway. So you will likely get more use out of a smaller boat than a larger one. If this is your first keel boat, go small and go simple. For a first boat that is used for daysailing and short cruises of up to 2 weeks, I'd recommend something under 28'. For example, look at Cal 24; Oday 25; Catalina 22, 25, 27. You can get a lot use out of a boat like that, you would learn a lot from it (often by breaking stuff), and it won't break your bank account. Most importantly, you and your family will have fun.
> 
> Here is a useful resource for design information on sailboats: Sailboatdata.com is the worlds largest sailboat database.


I also believe that it depends a lot on the main intention for the boat.. :svoilier::svoilier::svoilier:


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## travlin-easy

PerryRight said:


> I also believe that it depends a lot on the main intention for the boat.. :svoilier::svoilier::svoilier:


Yeah, I know what you mean. I was gonna turn my 33 Morgan Out Island into a floating piano bar, or maybe a floating bordello, but neither one of them worked out. Guess I musta did something wrong. 

:2 boat:


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## Peter Pater

I opt for Moody 425 sailing yacht


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## robertbuxton

I think Pontoon Boats are kinda good to you. Today, pontoon boats can be fast, slick-looking, and shockingly comfortable to ride on.

True, they still aren’t the best pick for bodies of water that regularly experience large waves. But they’re extremely stable, they have gobs of deck space, and their modular nature means you can choose from endless seating arrangements and even add things .Pontoon Boat Basics will help you figure out the ins and outs of this class of boats in detail.


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## chuck53

chuck53 said:


> Guys, the OP only posted one time...in July....and we haven't heard from him since.
> Don't waste your time making suggestions that he isn't even reading.


Why are people still responding to this thread?


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## bryan3536

chuck53 said:


> Why are people still responding to this thread?


Well, I for one am appreciating the advice, so let me hijack the thread since the OP disappeared. I'm a lifelong powerboater, currently have a 34' Mainship trawler (1984) which is a boat a lot of sailors graduate to when sailing becomes too taxing. I'm looking to go the other way - or really looking to do both. I have been keeping an eye out for the usual suspects in the 22'-26' range as a "try it out" boat for day sails w the family. However I recently came across a 24' "Raven" that is in good shape and very local (down the block). I know nothing - been sailing twice, figured me and my boys (4 and 8) would take some lessons and tool around the local waters (south shore Long Island, NY - shallow bay). Looks "fast" which I thought might be good for the boys. I don't need an overnighter, I have the big boat for that. Good or terrible idea?

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## jpbronco

for *bryan3536* sake:

Our first family boat was a 30 year old Pearson 26. She was a little tired, but it worked out well for us. Sold it for exactly what we paid for it, 5 years later. We learned a lot and classes helped a lot!


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## Damon Gannon

bryan3536 said:


> I have been keeping an eye out for the usual suspects in the 22'-26' range as a "try it out" boat for day sails w the family. However I recently came across a 24' "Raven" that is in good shape and very local (down the block). I know nothing - been sailing twice, figured me and my boys (4 and 8) would take some lessons and tool around the local waters (south shore Long Island, NY - shallow bay). Looks "fast" which I thought might be good for the boys. I don't need an overnighter, I have the big boat for that. Good or terrible idea?
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


The Raven looks like a great boat to learn on. Have fun with your boys. They'll have a blast and will remember it for life. Just one note of caution: my parents did the same thing for me when I was a kid, and I'm still messing around on boats 45 years later.


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## bryan3536

So a little postscript, turns out oat was being sold by a local YC. They talked me out of it as a starter/learning boat, feeling it was a little too much power/unforgiving for what I had in mind. Appreciated the honest opinion, and made a contact so not all a loss. I will keep my eyes out for something - no shortage of boats! Thanks folks. 


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