At this end of the market, don’t fixate on a particular model. Look for a reasonably equipped and lovingly maintained boat.
For example, this Dufour Arpège caught my eye. She has clearly had fastidious owners and looks in excellent condition.
The arpège is a great boat to sail.
Dufour 30...
No-nonsense performance cruisers with fairly spartan interiors are quite a popular idea in France. The pogo 36 as seen here for example.
Mind you, they didn’t make it like this to make it cheaper !!
No. From just outside Paris, Saint Germain en Laye to be precise.
I named my boat Benbow mainly because it was a nickname my Mum had for my Dad, but also because it was the name of the pub in Treasure Island, and because John Benbow devoted his career to making life a misery for the French...
Of course, many of the early Swans (36 & 43 for example) had lovely 2 tone interiors; pale panels (in Koto iirc) framed in dark wood (mahogany maybe ?). I always found the look very attractive, though the pale wood is more prone to staining and often on these boats will have been painted over.
The toe rails on my Sun Odyssey 349 are synthetic with a wood grain finish. Visually, I can’t tell the difference, yet they are gloriously maintenance free.
The unavailability of teak and the questionable morality of continuing to cut down mature trees is well known, and is part of the change in the style of yacht interiors, but it is also a question of style and individual taste.
I guess Contessa Yachts could be accused of being amongst those who...
Sounds like you need to join the amalgamated union of foredeck crews and associated trades and get all stroppy with the management down at the blunt end.
I remember the foredeck crew on the Swan 43 I used to race on (a feisty lady dentist from Wales) saying “We’ll only put the f***ing...
TBH, not having stained any stained glass windows on my boat has never been an issue for me.
I understand the Archbishop of Canterbury is a keen sailor. Maybe it would float his boat ?
Back in the early 80s the Fjord dealer in Lymington (nice guy whose name now escapes me) got stopped on the Ridgeway towing a boat behind his scruffy old landrover. His tank was dipped, followed by an indignant “Hey ! This is petrol !”.
The engine of his Landrover was so rattly that they had...