Island Spirit 40 Buyer's Guide
Shopping the brokerage market for an Island Spirit 40 means weighing a compact South African cruising catamaran built from 2003 through 2005, with Phil Southwell’s design hand and Fortuna Catamarans’ construction under Alan Whitley’s ownership. These are two-hulled offshore cruisers of 39 feet 9 inches overall and 22-foot 1-inch beam, and the used Island Spirit 40s split between private and ex-charter histories. Knowing the documented construction and the few recorded critiques helps a buyer focus a survey rather than chase myths.
Layouts on the Used Market
Owner three-cabin layouts are the more common on the used market, but both are available; ex-charter examples are common. The boat’s roomy interior, wide and easy to navigate sidedecks, and elongated transoms that ease boarding are consistent across layouts, as are the stand-up nav station and excellent stowage. Cabins drew good ratings for comfort, stowage space, headroom, and ventilation in period reviews, so even ex-charter wear tends to leave the core living spaces intact.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
Commonly fitted gear on the used fleet includes chartplotter, autopilot, radar, air conditioning, watermaker, solar, inverter, electric winches, cockpit shower, EPIRB, dinghy davits, and life raft. Often seen are wind generator, spinnaker, asymmetric spinnaker, freezer, hot water, hardtop, AIS, and circumnavigation outfitting. Less commonly seen are lithium batteries and bimini, which typically arrive as owner upgrades rather than factory standard.
What to Inspect
The Island Spirit 40’s hulls and deck are built of hand-laid fiberglass vacuum-bagged over a balsa core, so a survey should confirm core integrity at through-hulls and deck penetrations. The interior is finished with a coat of white Awlgrip and has no hull liner, aiding visual inspection of the hull skin. Testers noted the nav station would benefit from a proper nav seat, a minor item to verify rather than a defect. Every example was delivered on its own bottom from Cape Town and underwent a rigorous sea trial, but buyers should still confirm the simple, robust, accessible systems and high-quality deck hardware are unmodified and serviceable.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
The typical markets for the Island Spirit 40 are the United States, Panama, and Australia. For a buyer, the checklist is short: confirm balsa-core condition at penetrations, verify the beefy electrical system built for offshore passagemaking, check the traveler across the coachroof for wear, and assess nav-station seating. With those clear, the 40 remains a straightforward catamaran to own.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Island Spirit 40. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 7 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 25 | 2 | $ 179,000 | — |
| Dec 25 | 1 | $ 179,000 | 0.0% |
| Jan 26 | 4 | $ 187,000 | +4.5% |
| Feb 26 | 1 | $ 220,000 | +17.6% |
| Apr 26 | 5 | $ 220,000 | 0.0% |
| May 26 | 2 | $ 204,206 | -7.2% |
| Jul 26 | 1 | $ 177,326 | -13.2% |
Where they're listed
Island Spirit 40 listings appear across 3 countries. United States has the most listings with 7 (50.0%), followed by Panama and Australia.
Country view
14 listings · 3 countries| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $ 179,000 | 7 | 0 | 50.0% |
| Panama | $ 220,000 | 5 | 1 | 35.7% |
| Australia | $ 222,887 | 2 | 1 | 14.3% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robertson and Caine 40 (2005-2009) | 39.27' | $ 334,060 | 346 | 135 |
| FP Isla 40 | 39.14' | $ 479,500 | 112 | 35 |
| Island Packet 40 | 40' | $ 159,000 | 44 | 11 |
| Performance 40 | 40.42' | $ 113,260 | 37 | 15 |
| Elan 40 | 39.04' | $ 88,144 | 30 | 3 |
| Nautitech 40 | 39.67' | $ 251,689 | 27 | 4 |
| Manta 40 | 39.67' | $ 200,000 | 22 | 11 |
| Admiral Admiral 40 | 40' | $ 199,990 | 17 | 7 |
| Island Spirit 40You are here | — | $ 204,206 | 16 | 4 |
| Islander 40 | 39.54' | $ 32,500 | 15 | 10 |
| Island Spirit 37 | 36.08' | $ 169,000 | 10 | 5 |