Design and Construction
Barreau's hand is evident in a vessel conceived for serious offshore passage-making without surrendering the volume that makes a 28-foot 3-inch beam catamaran a proper home. The 522 is a daggerboard-equipped fractional sloop — a configuration that lets her trade a modest draft under boards for deep, efficient lateral grip when sailing. No construction detail specific to this model appears beyond her stated dimensions and tankage.
Rig and Handling
The rig is a fractional sloop carrying a mast 21 meters above the waterline and a mainsail of 102 square meters. That mast height and sail area, paired with the daggerboard plan, describe a boat built to stand up to her canvas and point when the boards are dropped. Twin 78-horsepower drivetrains give her two independent propulsion plants — a redundancy that matters far more on a 20-tonne catamaran than on a monohull, where a single failure leaves you under sail alone. The 2 x 500-liter fuel and 2 x 400-liter water capacities round out a self-sufficient profile suited to long stretches between ports.
Accommodations
The only interior-relevant facts for the 522 are her external dimensions and tankage, so the livable volume implied by an 8.60-meter beam and 17.30-meter length must speak for itself. The boat was specified from the factory with substantial fixed tankage split port and starboard, a layout decision consistent with a vessel meant to be lived aboard away from resupply.
The Verdict
The Catana 522 is a Barreau-designed, Catana SA–built performance cruiser that pairs a large, beamy platform with a serious rig and genuine systems redundancy. She is a boat for sailors who want the speed and sea-kindliness of a daggerboard catamaran without giving up the provisioning range that long passages demand.
Pros
- 56'9" length with 28'3" beam delivers substantial catamaran living volume
- Daggerboard fractional-sloop rig with 21m mast and 102m² mainsail for performance cruising
- Twin 78 hp drivetrains and split 1,000 L fuel / 800 L water capacity for offshore autonomy
Cons
- Limited documented detail beyond dimensions and tankage
