Thank you Ian and Judy for the heads up about the review.

I read Hare's article and appreciated her point of view.  She mentions the weaknesses of the design: high windage, required reliance on the bowthruster, defective passageway to the forward cabins while underway (which the company claims to have addressed in builds posterior to the hull sailed), and incomplete views of the sails, despite the pillarless windshield design and supplied cockpit roof hatches.

All boats are an exercise in compromises.

She also goes over the joys of it all:  the superior performance under all wind conditions, the riches of sailplan options, the joys of the enclosed cockpit, the ease of maintenance, the design details so the kitchen can be used in either tack, the trademark 5-star hotel experience, etc.

We haven't yet sailed the 50, though we did sail the 55 a few years ago.  My take is that these boats are what an updated Amel is supposed to look, perform, and work like.  Put another way: the 64, 55, and 50 are modern versions of what the Santorin Ketch and other Amels once were, decades ago.

Cheers,

Peregrinus
SM2K Nr. 350 (2002)
Underway, Crete to Sicily