This Fountaine Pajot catamaran Saba 50 review would take you through the major design innovations of this boat while also taking a detailed look at its performance characteristics.
Accommodation
As mentioned above, the Saba 50 has tried to oblige the differing demands from both private owners and charter companies by offering this boat in two flavors, the Maestro and the Quintet.
The Maestro, designed for private owners, comes with 4 cabins while the Quintet has 5 cabins, not including the one reserved for skipper and the crew.
The social area on the main deck is even more generous in terms of space, easily capable of accommodating as many as 3 dozen people on a day sail.
Two spacious sun pads on the bow, the full-width cockpit settee, a generous transom seat aft, and the flybridge come together seamlessly to create a sense of space that would make a medium sized apartment dweller in London envious.
Especially on a chartered sail, the generous space along with its intelligent design would allow the sailing parties a sense of privacy.
Interior
One of the defining features of the Saba 50 is how it has optimized the exterior social spaces without any trade-off with its profile and performance.
The cockpit has a seating layout for eight to ten people while up top there’s an understated sun lounge.
Another sun lounge awaits you behind the bow just ahead of the cabin. Once again, at the helm station, the crew can have a conversation with the guests without being intrusive.
For handling and stowing line tails, there’s enough space in front of the wheel, and the active crew enjoys an unobstructed view of the sails.
Exterior
One of the defining features of the Saba 50 is how it has optimized the exterior social spaces without any trade-off with its profile and performance.
The cockpit has a seating layout for eight to ten people while up top there’s an understated sun lounge.
Another sun lounge awaits you behind the bow just ahead of the cabin. Once again, at the helm station, the crew can have a conversation with the guests without being intrusive.
For handling and stowing line tails, there’s enough space in front of the wheel, and the active crew enjoys an unobstructed view of the sails.
Under the Sail
In terms of sailing performance, the catamarans are not known for their pointing ability.
However, the Saba 50 surprises with its cruising speed clocked at almost 7-9 knots with the wind ahead of the beam.
Once the mainsail is raised substantially with the help of the electric winch, the catamaran achieved enough steerage to completely turn the engine off.
For those inclined towards numbers, the maximum speed can reach around 15 knots.
