Rhodes 22 Continental Buyer's Guide
The Rhodes 22 Continental is a 22-foot trailerable cruiser designed by Philip Rhodes and built by General Boats from 1968 onward, with around a thousand examples produced at roughly fifty boats per year. On the used market it presents as a couple's pocket cruiser with a keel-centerboard hull, a pop-top cabin, and an unusually large cockpit for the length. Buyers shopping brokerage listings in the United States and Canada will find a boat whose construction and known weak points are well defined by Practical Sailor's survey rather than by rumor.
Layouts on the Used Market
The Continental uses a shoal keel with a centerboard rather than a swing keel or water ballast, drawing 20 inches board up and 48 inches down, and the centerboard pivots inside the hull so it cannot leak. The cabin top pops up to 6-foot-4 headroom and the cockpit is nearly 8 feet wide with self-bailing benches and a transverse lazarette. Below, the dinette makes a 6-foot-6 double to port and V-berths fill the bow, with the galley and enclosed head to starboard. The head has a ceramic-tile floor and a deck hatch through which one can rise upright when the pop-top is closed. A rotating table moves between dinette and cockpit, and the companionway door folds horizontal to make a chart desk or stows out of the way.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
Used boats commonly carry a furling main and a bimini, which suit the boat's cockpit-centered sailing. Solar and a chartplotter are often seen and make sense given the 12-volt and 110-volt outlets built into the cabin shelf. An autopilot appears only as an occasional owner upgrade. More consequential for a buyer are the Lewmar winches, the four-bolt 10-inch stainless cleats, and the adjustable transom motor mount that slides on plastic tracks and raises through a 6:1 purchase. The optional "Boom Room" canopy turns the cockpit into a standing-headroom second cabin on some boats.
What to Inspect
Practical Sailor's survey of the Rhodes 22 found no boom vang as built, which the reviewer considered a real omission missing vang noted, and testers wanted footrests or toe straps in the large open cockpit to keep crew from sliding. The roller-furling mainsail and genoa do not make the most efficient shape, especially partly furled in heavier weather, so check sail condition and the mast slot fitting that the pop-top rides in. The centerboard should kick up freely and its braided pennant and cleat should be sound; the rudder also kicks up and the pivot is inside the boat. Inspect the hull-to-deck shoebox joint, the glassed-in lower shroud chainplates, and the through-bolted forestay padeye for any loosening after decades of service.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
The Rhodes 22 turns up in the United States and Canada. Given General Boats' buy-back policy, factory-reconditioned examples have historically appeared. For a shopper, the checklist is short: confirm the centerboard and rudder kick up and pivot dry; verify the pop-top lip seals without a gasket; test the motor mount track and 6:1 raise; look for a vang retrofit and any added cockpit bracing; and check the chainplates and hull-deck joint. A sound example delivers a roomy, unsinkable trailerable cruiser with a rare amount of accommodation for its size.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Rhodes 22 Continental. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 9 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25 | 2 | $6,500 | — |
| Oct 25 | 1 | $28,757 | +342.4% |
| Nov 25 | 6 | $18,925 | -34.2% |
| Dec 25 | 1 | $22,900 | +21.0% |
| Jan 26 | 1 | $28,889 | +26.2% |
| Mar 26 | 1 | $15,000 | -48.1% |
| May 26 | 2 | $13,250 | -11.7% |
| Jul 26 | 3 | $13,950 | +5.3% |
| Aug 26 | 2 | $18,425 | +32.1% |
Where they're listed
Rhodes 22 Continental listings appear across 2 countries. United States has the most listings with 17 (89.5%), followed by Canada.
Country view
19 listings · 2 countries| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $13,950 | 17 | 5 | 89.5% |
| Canada | $28,823 | 2 | 0 | 10.5% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
2 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catalina 22 | 23.83' | $ 6,500 | 79 | 25 |
| Rhodes 22 ContinentalYou are here | — | $ 14,950 | 19 | 5 |