Island Packet 349 Buyer's Guide
The Island Packet 349 on the brokerage market is a modern reinterpretation of the builder's Estero lineage, designed by Bob Johnson and produced from 2019 onward as a bluewater-minded cruiser with a full keel and encapsulated ballast. Shoppers will find a boat that pairs traditional passagemaking substance with updated rig and deck geometry, offered in semi-custom layouts that make individual hulls differ belowdecks. Knowing which equipment and structural points to verify will help a buyer judge condition rather than be swayed by cosmetics.
Layouts on the Used Market
Owner three-cabin arrangements are the more common on the used market, but both layouts are available, and ex-charter examples are common. Regardless of plan, each 349 is fitted with comprehensive LED cabin lighting and many thoughtfully positioned hand grips, with the hull portlights and cabintrunk ports admitting strong ambient light. The test-boat configuration documented a cedar-veneer interior, an L-shaped starboard galley with Force 10 stove and Vitrifrigo fridges, swiveling bucket seats forward of the galley, and a forepeak with offset double berth ahead of a port head. Because customers could specify layout, saloon seats, and countertops as semi-custom work, buyers should confirm the actual berth count and galley geometry rather than assume one standard interior.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
Used Island Packet 349s commonly carry a bow thruster, dodger, freezer, asymmetric spinnaker, chartplotter, autopilot, AIS, radar, swim platform, bimini, inverter, lithium batteries, electric winches, furling main, cockpit shower, solar, and heating. For a buyer, the consequential clusters are power and energy — lithium banks, inverter, solar, and heating speak to off-grid autonomy — and sail handling and canvas, where furling main, asymmetric spinnaker, bimini, and dodger reduce crew workload. Navigation is typically covered by chartplotter, autopilot, AIS, and radar as a matched suite. Often-seen additions include a washing machine, hardtop, and a short-handed setup that simplifies solo sail handling; less commonly, buyers will find a watermaker, air conditioning, self-tacking jib, teak decks, or Starlink as owner upgrades.
What to Inspect
The structural facts worth verifying begin with the PolyClad3 gelcoat and its 10-year limited warranty against blisters; confirm transferability and any claimed repairs. The hull is hand-laminated solid fiberglass with a vacuum-bagged Divinycell-cored deck, and the Full Foil keel carries encapsulated lead ballast rather than external bolts, so check the keel-to-hull junction for impact or separation. The scoop transom was chosen over a drop-down step for extreme-weather safety, and the swim step carries an integral telescoping ladder with stainless handholds — inspect the ladder mechanism and the recessed LED lighting in the scoop. On deck, verify the Dorade cages, cabintrunk handrails, and double anchor roller/sprit for corrosion. The Jet Thruster in the bow uses a smaller aperture than a conventional thruster; confirm it functions and that the aperture is uncracked. Finally, the Yanmar 45hp common-rail diesel should be run to confirm the 5-knot at 1,500 rpm and 6-knot at 2,000 rpm performance reported on the test boat.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
The typical market for the Island Packet 349 is the United States. For a shopper, the takeaway is a checklist: confirm the semi-custom layout matches your needs; verify the gelcoat warranty and hull/keel integrity; test the Jet Thruster, bow gear, and diesel rpm bands; and review which of the commonly fitted systems — lithium, furling main, autopilot, AIS — are present versus owner upgrades. A well-kept 349 is a capable 1,000- to 3,000-mile passagemaker with modern rig options and a serious build.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Island Packet 349. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 8 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 25 | 1 | $379,000 | — |
| May 25 | 2 | $399,000 | +5.3% |
| Sep 25 | 1 | $329,000 | -17.5% |
| Feb 26 | 2 | $509,000 | +54.7% |
| Apr 26 | 4 | $395,000 | -22.4% |
| May 26 | 3 | $395,000 | 0.0% |
| Jun 26 | 1 | $32,900,038 | +8229.1% |
| Aug 26 | 2 | $499,900 | -98.5% |
Where they're listed
Island Packet 349 listings appear across 1 country. United States has the most listings with 12.
Country view
12 listings · 1 country| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $395,000 | 12 | 2 | 100.0% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
11 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeanneau Sun Sun Odyssey 349 | 33.92' | $ 151,876 | 317 | 89 |
| Pacific Seacraft 34 | 34.08' | $ 80,716 | 62 | 11 |
| Island Packet 35 | 35.33' | $ 74,900 | 62 | 24 |
| Pacific Seacraft 37 | 36.92' | $ 135,000 | 60 | 17 |
| Island Packet 38 | 38' | $ 99,000 | 56 | 22 |
| Island Packet 32 | 35' | $ 64,900 | 40 | 3 |
| Island Packet 350 | 34.67' | $ 117,000 | 38 | 5 |
| Island Packet 29 | 32' | $ 56,500 | 26 | 10 |
| Catalina 375 | 38.5' | $ 161,000 | 16 | 6 |
| Island Packet 349You are here | — | $ 395,000 | 13 | 3 |
| Cape George 36 | 36' | $ 89,500 | 9 | 1 |