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The Cruising Sailboat and the Lifestyle That Goes with It

There's something rather special about a sailboat...

But there's definitely something really special about a cruising sail boat. Size isn't it - large or small - they all have it. Neither do they have to be stunningly beautiful nor hugely expensive.

A yawl under full sail

It's not about what they are; it's more about what they can deliver - simple pleasure, high adventure or genuine white-knuckle challenge.

Perhaps just a day sail on the lake or a trip along the coast.

A voyage across an ocean maybe, or even a circumnavigation of the world.

And best of all, by utilizing nature's free and sustainable energy resource - the wind.

But be warned - it's addictive. You could end up going the whole hog - getting rid of the shoreside assets, buying a suitable boat and living aboard .

But before you take that gient step, maybe you should charter a sailboat for a couple of weeks, just to be sure?

Either way, you'll find that they represent pure freedom; they're beguiling machines, sailing boats.

Take the beauty below for instance, reaching between the islands in one of the world's favourite cruising grounds - the Windward & Leeward Islands of the Caribbean .

A Hinckley Sou'wester 42 yawl-rigged sailboat with mizzen staysail set.

So whether you're a paid-up, certifiable sailboat fanatic  familiar with all the nautical jargon and niceties of flag etiquette , or just curious about those of us who are, you're sure to find something of interest by cruising around in this website.

Who knows where you'll fetch up?

Hey, you might even start thinking about buying a sailboat of your own !

The Three Most Popular Types of Cruising Rigs...

Sketch of a sloop rigged sailboat

Just a headsail and a mainsail - simple and efficient.

Is the Sloop the Best Rig for Cruising?

Sketch of a cutter rigged sailboat

A smaller headsail and a staysail makes sail handling easier. 

Why the Cutter Rig Sailboat is My First Choice for Cruising .

Sketch of a ketch rigged sailboat

A second mast with a mizzen sail, for greater versatility. 

Why the Ketch is Many Sailors' Favoured Rig for Offshore Cruising

Sailboat Rig Type Examples:

The Bavaria 55, a Fractionally Rigged Sloop

A Sailboat for Offshore Cruising

Owning a sailing boat, particularly one designed for  offshore and ocean sailing , can change your life.

With a few gallons of fuel, adequate food and water aboard she'll take you thousands of miles leaving a carbon footprint in her wake that would delight the most ardent environmentalist.

A Tayana 37 cruising sailboat

Hey, you can catch your own fish , make your own drinking water from seawate r (or collect nature's free offering with a raincatcher) and charge your batteries with a windcharger or solar panels - all without using a drop of fuel! 

And you don't need to be on the helm all day - a windvane self-steering gear will keep you on the straight and narrow without drawing a single precious amp from your 12volt battery bank .

With a bluewater boat  equipped in this way you could go the whole nine yards, sell your shoreside assets, cast off the shorelines together with the tedium of life ashore and set off on a  cruising life of freedom and adventure.

A surprising number of people do just this, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Take the accommodation below decks for example. What might look very attractive at a boat show could prove to be considerably less so when in a seaway. 

Take a look at the two alternative interior layouts below for instance...

Below Decks

It's here that the interior designer can recreate the appeal of a country cottage or splendor of a minor palace, often in the process making access to fixtures and fittings impossible without major surgery to the boat's interior. It's much better to follow the wise adage that 'form should follow function' and leave all the glitz and glamour to vehicles with wheels on.

The interior layout of a cruising boat is all important. Take a look at these two similar - but different - interior layout options...

Sketch showing the interior accommodation layout in a cruising sailboat

One of them is much more suitable for long-distance offshore sailing than the other.

But which one is it, and why?

This, and all other artwork on this page by  Andrew Simpson

Multihulls for Cruising

So far we've only mentioned monohulls, but multihull sailboats  - both catamarans and trimarans - can make good cruising boats too. 

A Lagoon 42 Cruising catamaran, intended primarily for the charter market

Our eBooks...

eBook: 'Secrets of Buying Secondhand Boats' by Andrew Simpson

Popular Cruising Sailboats...

Our ever-growing gallery of pics, specs and key performance indicators of many popular cruising boats...

Sadler 25 sailboat

Second-hand Cruising Boats for Sale...

Just click on the images below to see the full details of these cruising boats that are advertised by their owners ( not through a broker or other 3rd party ) right here on sailboat-cruising.com ...

Latest Sailboats Offered for Sale by their Owners...

'Stratocruiser', a Person 33MkII, THUMB

Stock images by Depositphotos

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  1. CUTLASS 27

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  4. 1970 Cutlass 27 Antique and Classic for sale

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  1. It begins, a sailing boat restoration project! Episode 1

  2. Cutlass 27 sailing fast

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COMMENTS

  1. CUTLASS 27

    Kelsall Sailing Performance (KSP): Another measure of relative speed potential of a boat. It takes into consideration “reported” sail area, displacement and length at waterline. The higher the number the faster speed …

  2. The Cutlass 27 Sailboat

    The Cutlass 27 is a classic small fast cruiser from the 1970s, designed by Eric White and Alan Hill, and built by Marine Construction Ltd. in the UK. It is a pretty boat with a long keel, a sloop rig, and a counter stern.

  3. CUTLASS 27

    Blue Water Surf Value Rank (BWSVR) 3988. Capsize Comfort Value Rank (CCVR)

  4. Marcon Cutlass 27

    Long keel with cutaway forefoot. The Cutlass 27 was designed by Eric White of Marcon and Alan Hill, one of the pioneers of GRP yacht design, who was responsible for a wide range of …

  5. Review of Cutlass 27

    The Cutlass 27 is a sailboat designed by the maritime architect Eric White together with Alan F. Hill from United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

  6. Cutlass 27

    Cutlass 27. This typical Alan Hill-designed long-keeled cruiser was built by Marine Construction (Marcon) and first launched in 1968 as the Cutlass, but extensively updated in …

  7. Cutlass 27

    Cutlass 27 is a 27 ′ 0 ″ / 8.2 m monohull sailboat designed by Alan F. Hill and built by Marine Construction Ltd. starting in 1967.