how hard is it to learn to sail a catamaran

How is Catamaran Sailing Different from Monohull Sailing?

Sailing a catamaran is very similar to sailing a monohull in most aspects. If you learn to sail on a monohull, most of the skills are easily transferable. However, there are a couple of subtle differences that one has to be aware of:

When tacking, you must work hard to maintain your speed throughout the tack and often need to ease your mainsheet to prevent “windvaning”. Windvaning is when the larger mainsail on a catamaran tries to turn the boat back into the wind.
When gybing on a monohull, you must be very careful of an accidental gybe, and so you gybe much more slowly. On a catamaran, you can use the increased speed to your advantage and maintain speed while gybing to help depower the main.
On a monohull, as winds increase, the boat starts heeling which lets you know that you have too much sail up and it’s time to reef. On a catamaran, because they do not heel, you have to be very careful in terms of when to reef the massive main. Typically, you will throw in the first reef at 18-20 knots of wind speed (depending on the size of your vessel) and put in a second reef as the wind gets closer to 23-25 kts)

Most aspects of sailing a catamaran are very similar to a monohull, so making the transition to a sailing catamaran is usually not that challenging of a process!

Why are Catamarans Popular?

Catamarans have exploded in popularity in the last 5 years! There are many advantages to catamarans over monohulls.

Much more space on a catamaran!
Catamarans are far more stable than monohulls so they do not heel when sailing, and are less prone to rocking when at anchor. Making for a much more comfortable boat!
Catamarans have a shallow draft which allows them to enter shallower areas. In the South Pacific, most lagoons are 6-8 feet deep. This is too shallow for monohulls to enter, but a catamaran can easily enter these lagoons.
Speed: Often, especially downwind, catamarans are faster than monohulls
More light and airy living area. On a catamaran, the living space is usually up in the middle of the boat, built on the bridge deck whereas in a monohull you go down into the hull where it is darker and feels less open.
More storage space and room for extra systems like air conditioning, water makers, generators, larger fridges and freezers, etc… Again, having room for all these amenities makes for more comfortable living.

What is a Catamaran?

A catamaran is a sailboat with two hulls. These two hulls are connected by a bridge deck. Many people will be familiar with Hobie cats, small catamarans that are popular for sailing on lakes and in calmer waters. Cruising catamarans are based on this same principle but have large hulls that can fit many cabins inside, and house large structures on the bridge deck (like a galley, salon and living area).

Are catamarans safer than monohull sailboats?

Great question! Catamarans are much more stable than monohulls, and so people are less likely to fall overboard, which does make them safer in this aspect. They are larger, more stable boats, and so in most situations, this will make them a “safer” sailboat than a comparably sized monohull.

Catamarans also have the advantage of having 2 engines, which makes them “safer” when it comes to engine problems. On a monohull sailboat , if you have major engine problems you only have the option of sailing. On a catamaran, you always have a second motor ready to help out in an emergency!

Are catamarans easier to sail?

What makes monohulls harder to sail is heeling and more confined spaces. In stronger winds monohulls heel, making most tasks a little more difficult to manage. Whether you are going forward to reef, trying to winch in a sail or moving about the boat, sailing on a heeling boat is more challenging. Catamarans, however, because of their extra stability and room, allow for much easier movement around the boat as they do not heel. For this reason, catamarans are often considered “easier” to sail.

Can a catamaran cross the Atlantic?

Definitely! Early on many catamarans and trimarans were home-built from kits, and many of these boats gave catamarans a bad rap for offshore sailing. For decades now the major catamaran manufacturers have been improving these amazing vessels, and now catamarans are safe, stable and fast on offshore passages. In 2020 we completed an Atlantic crossing in our very own Never Say Never Lagoon 400S2 catamaran.

How fast does a catamaran sail?

Not all catamarans are created equal. Many of the production catamarans like Lagoon, Fountaine Pajot and Leopard are designed for cruising. This means that they are willing to sacrifice some performance in the interest of comfort for their owners and crew. These boats still are often faster than a monohull of comparable size when on a beam reach or downwind point of sail, often seeing speeds in the double digits. Upwind, catamarans do not usually have the same ability to point into the wind (as they have shorter, stubbier keels) and do not travel as quickly.

Some high-performance catamarans from manufacturers like Outremer, Gunboat and HH, make incredibly fast catamarans that can achieve speeds in the high teens and low 20s under ideal conditions.

Want to learn more?

Learning to sail a catamaran has it’s differences from monohulls. If you are planning on sailing catamarans, then it’s best to spend a week onboard one learning how to sail and operate these vessels. We offer catamaran sailing courses in the Grenadines (Caribbean), Sea of Cortez (Mexico), Mallorca (Spain) and Tahiti (South Pacific).

Our week-long live aboard courses truly are an incredible experience! You will spend the week learning over 100 different skills and learn to comfortably sail and operate the vessel. Upon successful completion of the course, you will earn ASA certification 101, 103, 104 and 114 (up to Cruising Catamaran certification) which allows you to charter catamarans internationally.

This intensive course will give you the knowledge, skills and experience to charter catamarans, or help you set sail on your vessel! All while having a blast, snorkelling, hiking and exploring exclusive bays.

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ASA Sailing School for Catamaran Cruisers & Liveaboards

Build sailing techniques & prepare for the sailing lifestyle.

catamaran sailing school and liveaboard training

ASA sailing school & Live-Aboard Instructors

A catamaran sailing school was unheard of years ago. In the early days of Catamaran Guru, catamaran experts, Stephen & Estelle Cockcroft kept their cruising kitty going by teaching American Sailing Association courses and offered liveaboard orientation experiences aboard their monohull and later their catamarans. They know by experience that a liveaboard seaschool is the best way to learn to sail.

Though no longer offering instruction or liveaboard orientation experiences themselves, their passion to help others follow their nautical dreams of yacht ownership has kept them involved in sail training and hands-on cruising lifestyle experiences.

Why catamaran sailing school is important

The ASA sail training courses provide a good grounding for all new sailors and advanced courses increase competency and confidence. While learning to sail monohulls will provide many useful basics of sailing knowledge, instruction aboard a catamaran, and even better aboard your catamaran or a similar model is the best possible scenario.

Getting yacht insurance , especially a policy you can afford, requires proven related boating experience. The only way to get that experience safely is with a catamaran sailing school that offers liveaboard hands-on experiences.

Another vital role sea school plays for cruisers is getting the enthusiasm and confidence of the first mate up. While not always the case, often one partner in a sailing duo is the driving force of the cruising life dream while the other is often reluctant. Here are our tips on overcoming the reluctance of a catamaran cruising partner .

The top tip is to participate in a liveaboard experience with a seaschool even before you buy a boat.

Weeklong liveaboard sailing school is invaluable for anyone who plans to own their own boat, but especially those who plan to be full-time cruisers. During these hands-on sailing experiences, your seaschool instructor combines our real-life practical methods with the most up-to-date sailing theory courses. These experiences set you up to enjoy a stress-free cruising lifestyle. Especially when you can train aboard your own boat, you can become comfortable with your equipment and configurations for operation and safety.

You not only learn how to be a team as you sail, anchor, trim sails, and navigate safely from point A to point B, you also get your questions answered by experienced liveaboard sailors about how to downsize, provision for long cruises, and mostly, how to enjoy watching the sunset in a gorgeous anchorage with your favorite beverage in hand.

CATAMARAN SAILING SCHOOLS & LIVEABOARD EXPERIENCES

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Week-Long Liveaboard Courses Rare RYA Classes & Certifications

Catamaran Guru’s real-life practical methods combined with up-to-date sailing theory in lessons aboard recent model catamarans…or your own boat!

Prepare for certifications or take the first step aboard to embark on your dream life of boat ownership or cruising

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Our Seaschool Students Excel As Sailors & Cruisers

We are very proud of our former seaschool students. Most of them have embraced yachting, sailing, and cruising in some way or another. Many of our graduates have successfully own their own boats. Some are long-term cruisers or charter boat owners and some have even done successful circumnavigations. Others have done long-term sabbaticals and several liveaboard school graduates have even moved on to successful careers in the marine industry as yacht brokers, charter yacht operators, and charter management.

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Estelle Cockcroft

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For more than 30 years, we have been a part of the catamaran community and created Catamaran Guru™ to encourage and educate all the aspiring sailing out there. We understand the dream of traveling the world by catamaran and created a one-stop-shop to make that dream a reality for you.

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