Finding a boat that met our requirements was an exciting adventure unto itself. After stumbling upon the first candidate, a Hylas 56, docked right across from us in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, we were able to better define the category of boat we were seeking: bigger, stronger, private comfortable guest quarters, storage, and more autonomy in terms of fuel, power, refrigeration and water, not to mention a few additional creature comforts.
Our search took us to many places:
- Boston, Massachussetts, USA
- Annapolis, Maryland, USA
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA
- Palma, Majorca, Spain
- Hyères, France
- Ragusa, Sicily, Italy
- San Francisco, California
Fortunately, we had lots of miles to cash in on United Airlines and we took advantage of EasyJet, a European discount airline, for the Europe hops from our home base near Geneva. These were fun trips and we enjoyed visiting the locations as much as discovering fantastic boats, such as: Oyster 495, Hylas 48 and 56, Outbound 46 and, of course, Amel 50.
When we visited Amel in Hyères, we were given the VIP treatment including review of the company’s history, a full day on the water trying every feature of the boat and every point of sail, a three-course lunch at anchor, and the opportunity to ask questions of two very knowledgeable team members (the company belongs to its employees)… Laurent and Jean. VIP treatment aside, this cemented our feeling that the Amel was the right boat for us.
We sailed a recent model Amel in Ragusa, but were disappointed with how poorly it was maintained. We had eye on Fregata since the beginning, but since she was based on the West Coast of the USA, we shied away from the idea. In the end, despite the logistical complexities, we settled on her.
