monohull vs cat

[rick@jenifer]

I've chartered bareboat monohulls but my friend wants a 50' cat next time. What is the biggest difference to sailing these "houseboats" (no offense) that I should know about?

[Cowboy Cruiser]

Cats are faster, sail flatter (little heal), because they don't heal much they don't give as much feedback that you are overpowered (too much sail up), they draw 1/2 as much water, some cats don't sail upwind as close as a mono and if you lay a cat over you are in a lot more trouble then with a mono.

Also cats can be overloaded much easier than a mono (more storage space to "put stuff" and they perform as they do because they are designed to be sailed light).

IMHO

[Auzzee]

There is a lot to commend both catamarans and monohulls, and each has advantages and disadvantages. I am a monohull man; however, if I was chartering and sailing in relatively shallow water with plenty of time spent at anchor adjacent to beaches, I would opt for a catamaran. If it was a matter of sailing offshore for any length of time I would choose a monohull.