ETAP 26 Buyer's Guide
The ETAP 26 is a Belgian trailerable cruiser from the van de Stadt drawing board, produced by ETAP Yachting across the 1982–1989 window with half a thousand hulls finished before the tooling closed. That lifting-keel sloop rewards the shopper who wants shallow draft at anchor and road transportability, but the manual ballast-raising routine and an idiosyncratic cabin plan deserve a careful look before any purchase.
Layouts on the Used Market
Every example shares the same van de Stadt arrangement shaped around the vertical-drop iron keel. Five berths are possible: a bow V-berth, two saloon settees with one converting via a drop-leaf table, and the head just aft of the forepeak. The L-shaped port galley sits forward of the companionway with a two-burner stove, icebox, and sink, while the chart table is pushed to the forward saloon on the starboard side, forcing the navigator to sit sideways. A tiller steers the internally mounted spade rudder, and an inboard saildrive engine is standard.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
Heating, solar, and an inverter are commonly fitted, and teak decks and a cockpit shower are also frequently seen on brokerage boats. For a buyer, solar and an inverter matter most: they let the boat sit comfortably on a mooring or in a shallow marina with the keel down without draining the engine start circuit, while heating extends the shoulder-season cruising window in cooler markets. Teak decks and a cockpit shower are comfort items rather than systems-critical, but teak brings recurring caulking and scrubbing obligations.
What to Inspect
The keel-lifting gear is the weak point to verify. The iron ballast foil is raised by hand at the mast foot and a full lift takes about 15 minutes of winch-grinding, so check the mast-base winch, the cable or strap, and the pivot for fatigue or corrosion. Some boats carry an electric servo motor to do the work; confirm it operates and that the manual override still functions. With the keel retracted and extended, look for cracks or water staining at the trunk where the foil passes the hull, since repeated cycling loads that joint.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
These boats turn up in the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Spain. Before you commit, run through this short list:
- Confirm the keel winch and cable at the mast foot operate smoothly.
- Test the electric servo, if fitted, and the manual fallback.
- Inspect the keel trunk for cracks or staining both up and down.
- Check the saildrive seal and the seven-gallon fuel tank for age.
- Sit at the forward chart table to judge the sideways nav station.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the ETAP 26. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 4 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25 | 5 | $7,780 | — |
| Jan 26 | 1 | $26,472 | +240.3% |
| Mar 26 | 2 | $11,001 | -58.4% |
| Sep 26 | 2 | $7,842 | -28.7% |
Where they're listed
ETAP 26 listings appear across 3 countries. Switzerland has the most listings with 2 (40.0%), followed by Netherlands and Spain.
Country view
5 listings · 3 countries| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Switzerland | $9,608 | 2 | 1 | 40.0% |
| Netherlands | $9,234 | 2 | 1 | 40.0% |
| Spain | $26,472 | 1 | 0 | 20.0% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.