Dufour 32
Practical Boat Owner|December 2022
Peter Poland reports on the new 32-footer that reflects the many changes made down the years in the designs and dimensions of production cruising yachts
Peter K Poland
Dufour 32

When Michel Dufour set up as a designer and builder of GRP yachts back in the 1960s, the Arpege 30 (introduced in 1966) was only his second production yacht. In those days a 30-footer was one of the largest GRP cruisers to be built for the fast-growing market in GRP yachts. And an impressive 1,500 of this great Michel Dufour design were sold before production ceased in 1976.

Yet today, buyers looking for new cruisers around the 30ft size will be hard-pressed to find anything on the market. Beneteau, Jeanneau, Dufour, Bavaria, Hanse et al are all producing ever bigger cruisers; and GRP 60-footers are now commonplace. New smaller yachts like the recent Beneteau Oceanis 30.1 (2019), Hanse 315 (2016) and Dufour 32 (2022) are rare. The smallest Jeanneau, Hallberg-Rassy and Bavaria are all 34-footers.

Big yacht surge

There are many reasons for the increasing number of large, high-value yachts. The most interesting of these relates to what is known in the USA as 'The Great Wealth Transfer. As ageing 'baby boomers' sadly begin to depart in increasing numbers, they leave their substantial assets to their children. A 2019 study by American real estate specialists Coldwell Banker suggests that US millennials stand to inherit in excess of US$68 trillion from their baby boomer parents by 2030.

Millions of young US consumers are therefore likely to become buyers of high-value goods. UK figures will of course be smaller; but they will have much the same effect. UK dealers tell me that this surge is already being seen in yacht purchases. More people are buying bigger yachts.

Denne historien er fra December 2022-utgaven av Practical Boat Owner.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra December 2022-utgaven av Practical Boat Owner.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA PRACTICAL BOAT OWNERSe alt
Orca sink yacht in Strait of Gibraltar
Practical Boat Owner

Orca sink yacht in Strait of Gibraltar

Spain's maritime rescue service, Salvamento Maritimo, has reported that a 15m (49ft) yacht sank in Moroccan waters in the Strait of Gibraltar following interaction with a pod of orca.

time-read
1 min  |
Summer 2024
No kill cord or lifejackets were worn during fatal powerboat crash
Practical Boat Owner

No kill cord or lifejackets were worn during fatal powerboat crash

A kill cord and lifejacket are useless unless worn-that's the warning from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB), following its investigation into a powerboat crash that killed a 32-year-old woman and five-year-old girl on 2 October 2022.

time-read
2 mins  |
Summer 2024
Multihull sail work
Practical Boat Owner

Multihull sail work

Brush up on multihull sailing skills before heading off on charter with Gavin Le Sueur's guide to spinnaker handling, tacking and gybing

time-read
4 mins  |
Summer 2024
Five top causes of engine failure and how to prevent them
Practical Boat Owner

Five top causes of engine failure and how to prevent them

Jake Kavanagh talks to Sea Start marine engineer Nick Eales about how to avoid the five major causes of an engine breakdown at sea

time-read
10+ mins  |
Summer 2024
Sail the Atlantic with strangers
Practical Boat Owner

Sail the Atlantic with strangers

Would you sail across the Atlantic with someone you've just met? Ali Wood meets the cruising crews who've done just that

time-read
10 mins  |
Summer 2024
IZIBoat: simple sailing
Practical Boat Owner

IZIBoat: simple sailing

Rupert Holmes sails an innovative catamaran design intended to widen participation in sailing among those with little time to get on the water in more conventional craft

time-read
7 mins  |
Summer 2024
30 WAYS TO GET AFLOAT
Practical Boat Owner

30 WAYS TO GET AFLOAT

From tall ships to small dinghies, you needn't own a boat to sail. Ali Wood looks at the options, and how skippers can also find crew

time-read
10+ mins  |
Summer 2024
Boats for restoring under £20,000
Practical Boat Owner

Boats for restoring under £20,000

Duncan Kent picks the best sub-35ft sail and power boats to look for when aiming to undertake a restoration on a budget

time-read
10+ mins  |
Summer 2024
Seaworthy dinghies for less than £500
Practical Boat Owner

Seaworthy dinghies for less than £500

For low cost traditionally-styled GRP trailer-sailers, consider the Foreland and the Otter available at bargain basement prices

time-read
5 mins  |
Summer 2024
Playing with coloured sails
Practical Boat Owner

Playing with coloured sails

Maintaining an hourglass-shaped balloon and ratcheting up the log numbers

time-read
3 mins  |
Summer 2024