What will the future look like?

During the heyday of fiberglass boat construction in the 1960s and 70s, the sport grew rapidly with racer-cruiser keelboat racing. While many of the early builders are long gone, newer trends focus more on interior space and convenience, with this category now better termed cruiser-racer (or just cruisers being forced to race).

Mid-week racing offers these keelboats a low-key opportunity to test their racing skills, but what will the race course look like in 20 years? Will all the boats have mains with (ugh!) in-mast furling? George Day reports on the 2024 European Yachts of the Year winners for the Cruising Compass:

These days, almost all new production and semi-custom sailboats on the market are designed and built in Europe. So, the annual European Yachts of the Year awards have real significance for American buyers. The judges are yachting journalists from each of the continent’s major yachting publications.

For 2024, the European Yachts of the Year in sailboats are: The Best Family Cruiser is the Bavaria 46C, which is a stylish production sloop from Germany that ticks all the boxes for ease of handling, comfortable cockpit, sailing performance and ample, spacious accommodations. The Best Luxury Cruiser is the Arcona 50 from Sweden which combines modern Scandinavian style with a high-performance Niels Jeppesen hull and a truly sumptuous and finely finished interior.

The Best Multihull went to the new Outremer 52 that updates the extremely successful 51 and offers her owners great sailing performance with ease of handling and a more luxurious interior with three or four sleeping cabins. The best Specialty Yacht is the Saffier 24 LITE from The Netherlands which is a stylish and sporty day-sailer that has all the elegance of a modern Euro-style yacht with the simplicity that will make sailing it fun for the whole family.

The winner of the category Special Mention for Sustainability is the aluminum Bestevaer 39 (above) from The Netherlands that is a handsome, go-anywhere, drop-keel, outboard-rudder expedition yacht that will be perfect for an adventurous couple headed to the most remote and challenging cruising grounds.