Small catamarans under 38 feet — including the Gemini 105, Prout Snowgoose, PDQ 36, and Fountaine Pajot Antigua 37 — offer cruisers an affordable alternative to the large charter cats that dominate the market.
Rick Marcarelli of CatamaranSite.com tracks catamaran sales data and specializes in connecting buyers with smaller, cruiser-focused boats that the big brokerages overlook. I’m pleased he was willing to contribute this guest post. The specs and comparisons below are his work.
If you’re still weighing whether a cat is even the right choice, my article Catamaran or Monohull? walks through the real tradeoffs from someone who has owned both.
Why Charter Catamarans Don’t Work for Most Cruisers
When most buyers think of catamarans, they think of Lagoon, Leopard, and Fountaine Pajot. These are all fine vessels, but they were built to cater to the charter market. For long-term liveaboard cruisers, they may not be the best fit.
The typical charter catamaran accommodates three or four couples sailing for one to two weeks in the Caribbean or Mediterranean. They provision once, sail a few daylight hours, eat out more than a typical cruiser, and anchor or moor for the night.
Compare that to how most cruisers actually live. Most cruisers spend over 90% of their time at anchor or on a dock. They provision repeatedly, often for many months at a time. Many rarely eat out. And when making a passage between cruising destinations, they sometimes sail non-stop through the night for days or even weeks.
Those differences drive very different needs in a boat.
For charter boats, the focus is on several small cabins, each with its own head, minimal storage, and enormous salons and cockpits. Long-term liveaboards generally want a large master cabin, fewer heads, and significant storage space. Most are also willing to trade some interior volume for better sailing performance, which shortens passages and helps with avoiding bad weather.
The Affordable Catamaran Market
Unfortunately, the market is dominated by enormous, expensive, four-cabin-four-head charter models. Our analysis of sales data shows that about 38% of the market is Lagoon catamarans, and over 50% are Lagoon or Fountaine Pajot. In addition, 90% of the market consists of catamarans over 38 feet in length.
But traffic on CatamaranSite.com tells a different story: about 40% of buyers are actually looking for smaller, simpler, affordable catamarans under 38 feet. Buyers like Carolyn was when she purchased Barefoot Gal. Maybe like you.
10 Small Catamarans Worth Considering
Prices below reflect current market conditions as of April 2026, based on active listings. All ten boats are out of production, so you’re buying used — condition, year, and equipment can shift a given boat’s price by $30,000 to $50,000 or more. Check CatamaranSite.com for current listings.
Prout 37 Snowgoose
- Cruising Grounds: Bluewater
- Underbody: Fixed Keels
- Draft (max): 2.08′
- Mast Height: 40’ (Standard) / 50’ (Elite)
- Bridgedeck Clearance: Average
- Layouts: 3 cabins, 1 head; galley down; open version has larger salon while private stateroom has larger master cabin
- Speed: Slow
- Engines: Usually single outdrive; rare versions have twin inboards
- Availability: Relatively common all over the world
- Ballpark Price: $30,000–$100,000 USD
Catalac 9M
- Cruising Grounds: Built for North Sea
- Underbody: Fixed Keels
- Draft (max): 2.5′
- Mast Height: tabernacle mast
- Bridgedeck Clearance: Above Average
- Layouts: 3 cabins, 1 head; galley down
- Speed: Slow
- Engines: Single gas outboard or twin inboard diesels
- Availability: Somewhat rare; usually a couple on the market or 8M sister ship; more in Europe
- Ballpark Price: $20,000–$90,000 USD
Lagoon 37 TPI
- Cruising Grounds: Bluewater
- Underbody: Fixed Keels
- Draft (max): 4′
- Mast Height: 55’
- Bridgedeck Clearance: Above Average
- Layouts: 3 or 4 cabin; 2 heads; galley down
- Speed: Fast
- Engines: Twin inboard diesels
- Availability: Very rare; cult classic
- Ballpark Price: $130,000–$175,000 USD
PDQ 36 Capella
- Cruising Grounds: Bluewater
- Underbody: Fixed Keels
- Draft (max): 2.82′
- Mast Height: 47’ (Standard) or 55’ (LRC)
- Bridgedeck Clearance: Average
- Layouts: 2 or 3 cabin; 1 or 2 heads; galley down
- Speed: Slow
- Engines: Single gas outboard, twin gas outboard, or twin diesel inboard
- Availability: Usually a few on the market and more likely in USA
- Ballpark Price: $65,000–$175,000 USD
Seawind 1000
- Cruising Grounds: Bluewater
- Underbody: Fixed Keels
- Draft (max): 3.2′
- Mast Height: 47’
- Bridgedeck Clearance: Average
- Layouts: 4 cabins; 1 head; galley down
- Speed: Fast
- Engines: Twin gas outboard
- Availability: Usually a few for sale; newer models still being built; originally built in Australia
- Ballpark Price: $100,000–$200,000 USD
Antigua 37
- Cruising Grounds: Coastal
- Underbody: Fixed Keels
- Draft (max): 3.35′
- Mast Height: 55’
- Bridgedeck Clearance: Average
- Layouts: 4 cabins or 2 cabin Maestro; 2 head; galley up
- Speed: Fast
- Engines: Twin inboard diesels with saildrives
- Availability: Usually a couple on the market often in Caribbean
- Ballpark Price: $100,000–$175,000 USD
Endeavour 36
- Cruising Grounds: Coastal
- Underbody: Fixed Keels
- Draft (max): 2′ 9″
- Mast Height: 47’
- Bridgedeck Clearance: Average
- Layouts: 3 cabin; galley down
- Speed: Slow
- Engines: Twin inboard diesels
- Availability: Rare and likely in the USA
- Ballpark Price: $70,000–$145,000 USD
Mahe 36
- Cruising Grounds: Coastal
- Underbody: Fixed Keels
- Draft (max): 3.62′
- Mast Height: 55′
- Bridgedeck Clearance: Average
- Layouts: 3 cabin / 1 head; 2 cabin / 2 head; galley up
- Speed: Fast
- Engines: Twin inboard diesels with saildrives
- Availability: More common especially in Caribbean
- Ballpark Price: $150,000–$250,000 USD
Gemini 105
- Cruising Grounds: Coastal
- Underbody: Centerboards
- Draft (max): 5′
- Mast Height: 47’ (M) or 48’ (MC)
- Bridgedeck Clearance: Below Average
- Layouts: 3 cabin; 1 head; galley down but open
- Speed: Fast
- Engines: Single inboard diesel with retractable outdrive
- Availability: Common especially in the USA
- Ballpark Price: $50,000–$120,000 USD
I put in 10 years on a Gemini 105M and have written up the full experience — what I loved, what I’d do differently, and how it compares to the monohull I had before. You can read it in Our Gemini Catamaran.
Dean 365
- Cruising Grounds: Coastal
- Underbody: Fixed Keels
- Draft (max): 3′
- Mast Height: 46′
- Bridgedeck Clearance: Below Average
- Layouts: 4 cabin / 1 head; 3 cabin / 2 head; galley down; bathtubs on some
- Speed: Slow
- Engines: Single or twin inboard diesels
- Availability: Rare model
- Ballpark Price: $50,000–$165,000 USD
Before you make an offer, it’s worth reading up on the hidden costs of buying a boat and how much it actually costs to cruise — both will sharpen your thinking on what you can realistically afford.
Ready to Take It Further?
Looking at boats is often where cruising dreams start, but it’s only one piece of the picture. Our course From Dreamer to Cruiser helps you work through what cruising really involves, what it costs, and how to build a realistic plan to get there, whether or not you have a boat yet.
Carolyn Shearlock says
I’ll see if we can perhaps add that.
Carolyn Shearlock says
Thanks! Good info.
Carolyn Shearlock says
Catalacs are great boats. We saw a couple for sale around the time we bought Barefoot Gal but they were sold the same day they were listed so we didn’t get to even look at them.
Dai says
I have an Edel 35′.
For their price, they are a good option, for this size of catamaran.
They are not slow, by any means.
Disadvantage: clearance under nacelle.
Carolyn Shearlock says
Great choice of boat for the Loop!