Design and Construction
Berret Racoupeau's hallmark virtually straight bow sections give the Saba 50 an immediately contemporary silhouette, but the visual statement is backed by engineering purpose. The hulls feature fine entries for better upwind performance — an unusual priority on a liveaboard cat — and a pair of fixed twin keels that allow a perfectly acceptable angle of sail for a cruising catamaran without the mechanical complexity of daggerboards. The laminate is a vacuum-bagged PVC-foam-core structure, and Resin Transfer Molding produces the entire deck and cabin as a single component, with gelcoat applied to both sides for a finished appearance throughout. Chainplates are integrated into the hull structure and strong enough to lift the entire boat — a detail that speaks to the structural seriousness underlying the resort-like surfaces.
Deck Layout and Social Spaces
One of the Saba 50's most discussed characteristics is how Fountaine Pajot carved its extensive deck area into three functionally separate social zones. Forward, a bow conversation nook with twin lounges and a cocktail table seats eight comfortably in the shade of the cabinhouse — a superyacht-style amenity rarely seen on production catamarans of this era. The aft cockpit steps up from swim platforms on each hull, and a cockpit table can seat up to twelve people, making the boat a natural gathering point in any anchorage. Overhead, a hardtop targa roof shades most of the cockpit while leaving the transom seat open to the sun. A third level — a flybridge in all but name — adds three sun lounges and a separate settee, and the dedicated helm pod two steps below keeps the person on watch clear of sail-handling traffic. The one layout criticism that emerges in testing is the absence of direct side-deck access from the helm, requiring extra steps around the wheel to reach dock lines — a simple modification that buyers have addressed in refit.
Rig and Sailing Performance
The Saba 50 carries a fractional sloop rig on a rotating spar, with a mainsail of 899 square feet and a 619-square-foot genoa. Optional light-air canvas includes an asymmetric spinnaker at 1,453 square feet and a gennaker at 1,238 square feet. The sail-area-to-displacement ratio of 19.72 sits in the bracket that indicates reasonably good performance. On the water, this translates into real numbers: in 17 knots of breeze, the boat logged 9.2 knots under main and genoa, reaching 10.3 knots on a beam reach, with a best recorded speed of 14.6 knots at a broad apparent wind angle. More telling for offshore passages was the upwind showing — a large cruising catamaran making 6 to 9 knots with the wind ahead of the beam is genuinely unusual, and reviewers noted it as the most impressive aspect of the sea trial. Electric winches support shorthanded passages, and an autopilot is essential for singlehanded work given the helm-to-winch arrangement.
Accommodations
Fountaine Pajot offered the Saba 50 in several distinct interior configurations to serve different owner profiles. The Maestro layout gives the owner a large island-berth aft stateroom occupying three-quarters of the port hull, with an ensuite that separates the toilet and shower into distinct compartments — a meaningful luxury on a passage boat. The starboard hull carries two more double cabins with private heads. For those chartering the boat, the Quintet arrangement packs five double cabins and five bathrooms into the same hull, with a sixth midships cabin designated for crew. The galley amidships features a center island, double-drawer refrigerator, four-burner stove, separate freezer, and an oven at counter level — a full working kitchen rather than the galley-as-afterthought common on charter-optimized hulls. A sliding window passes meals directly to the cockpit, reinforcing the designers' correct assumption that most eating happens outside. The saloon itself prioritizes natural light, with overhead hatches and large windows visible even when seated, and the principal dinette is deliberately located in the aft cockpit to keep the interior saloon spacious rather than filling it with a fixed table.
Power and Handling
The standard engine fit is a pair of 55-hp Volvo Penta D2 diesels with saildrives; an upgraded 75-hp-per-side option was available at order. Three or four-blade fixed or folding propellers were available. Fuel capacity of 248 gallons and a 185-gallon water tankage suit extended offshore passages. The boat's 26-foot, two-inch beam is imposing in marina berths, but test experience confirmed that docking in a beam wind on one engine remained manageable, reflecting predictable low-speed behavior rather than the nervousness that afflicts lighter wide-beam designs. The CE Category A ocean certification — for winds above Force 8 and significant wave heights of four meters or more — confirms that the hull structure was evaluated for serious offshore conditions.
Known Issues and Refit Considerations
No systematic fault pattern emerges across published reviews, which is consistent with the relatively short production run and the builder's focus on quality laminate processes. The helm-to-side-deck access gap noted in the original sea trial is the most-cited ergonomic irritant and is straightforwardly corrected. Buyers should confirm saildrive service history, as the twin Volvo Penta saildrives require regular bellows replacement — standard practice on any sailing catamaran of this era. The davits are rated for a fourteen-foot tender, and their design also accommodates kayaks or windsurfers on top, reducing cockpit clutter. The gennaker, when fitted, can be sheeted relatively tight and holds up to the beam in under ten knots of wind, making it worth confirming whether it is in the inventory when evaluating any example.
The Verdict
The Saba 50 succeeds at a task most builders consider impossible: a legitimately spacious, charter-ready liveaboard catamaran that sails to weather with conviction. The Berret Racoupeau hull form, fine bow entries, and rotating spar combine to produce windward numbers that embarrass many smaller cats, while the three-zone deck layout and hotel-grade interior arrangements give the boat a breadth of entertaining capability unmatched in its class. It is not a lightweight performance machine — the displacement-to-length ratio and comfort ratio reflect a boat built for blue-water staying power rather than regatta glory — but within its design envelope it is exceptional.
Pros
- Upwind performance markedly better than typical for a production liveaboard catamaran of this size
- Three distinct, socially separate deck zones with genuine superyacht ambiance
- Versatile interior configurations (Maestro, Quintet, Maestro Crew) accommodate owner and charter use
- Vacuum-bagged foam-core laminate with RTM deck construction produces a structurally cohesive, light hull
- CE Category A ocean certification supports serious offshore passages
- Gennaker and asymmetric spinnaker options extend light-air range significantly
Cons
- No direct side-deck access from the helm pod — an ergonomic inconvenience for shorthanded docking
- 26-foot beam demands wide-berth marina awareness and may incur premium slip fees
- Fixed keels are a meaningful upwind compromise relative to daggerboard designs, despite the favorable performance numbers
