With its new Sense line of cruising sailboats, ranging from 43 to 55 feet, Beneteau sets out to provide the best bluewater cruiser for families; a common-sense liveaboard that is completely unique in the layout of its accommodations, the openness of its cockpit and the comfort of its living spaces. Each of the Sense features was designed to enhance comfort and maximize enjoyment on the water for everyone aboard.
Cabins
The Sense concept blends the comfort of a multihull with the aesthetic of a monohull, with all of the cabins situated forward – in fact, they are more akin to little apartments with incomparable headroom and full size berths, each paired with its own en-suite head. This layout offers the most privacy between sleeping quarters and the cockpit. With fewer but better appointed cabins, the Sense becomes ideal for families longing for offshore cruising. For many Sense owners, the office or bunk beds configuration are popular options.
Salon and galley
The salon of the Sense is unlike any other sailboat, with an open floorplan that has now become a new standard for kitchens at home. In the Sense 50 for example, the galley runs alongside the entire starboard side of the salon, offering 13ft of continuous working space, plus an island which offers yet more counter space for food prep and entertaining. The full size galley of the Sense is in many ways ideal for liveaboard cruisers since it is fully open to the salon, thus creating the most favorable space for gatherings – from sharing meals to studying, relaxing and watching TV. Sense promotes life on one level, with a low angle companionway (45 degrees – with only 3 steps down; compared to 4-5 steps in traditional sailboats) for better comfort and safety. The wide beam of the boat maximizes enjoyment in the salon, which is outfitted with plenty of windows – even opening glass panels on either side of companionway! – giving you a near-360 view to the water. Another direct byproduct of the Sense layout is a brighter and better ventilated boat.
Daytime vs. nighttime activities
All of the cabins have been intentionally moved forward on the boat to separate the machinery and systems from the living areas; these compartments are located directly under the cockpit floor, greatly facilitating access for service and maintenance operations. The open and comfortable cockpit is now ideally suited for entertaining with virtually no disruption to the sleeping quarters 20 to 30-feet away. Your family will enjoy the quietest sailboat at all times of day and night – whether at the dock, at anchor or while in navigation.
Incomparable access to the sea
The wide beam of the Sense line provides an incomparable feeling of openness in the cockpit, while the asymmetrical seating provides easy flow around the table. Thanks to the retractable seating, the one-level cockpit expands aft into a teak beach – a large swim platform that is very close to the water. The stern of the boat can be fully closed with a bin board.
Navigation and sailing performance
Every model of the Sense line features twin steering wheels and twin rudders. The navigation is made comfortable thanks to long aft seats coupled with generous backrests; the helm station is endowed with outstanding ergonomics, providing a good read of navigation screens while seated. The archway (also a feature seen in Beneteau’s Oceanis line) does a great job at keeping the clutter away from the cockpit, improving movement about the cockpit and greatly facilitating solo sail handling. Finally, a traditional mainsail with full battens and a non-overlapping headsail that is easily tacked and jibed provide stellar sailing performance.
Offshore cruising
The absence of cabins from under the cockpit translates into an outstanding storage capacity in the lazarette – from sails and fenders, to dry food storage, offseason clothing, and toys for the entire family. The aft arch mentioned above also offers dedicated mounting space for eco-friendly power solutions such as solar-panel and wind-generator installations.
Manufacturing
Every new yacht built by Beneteau benefits from over 130 years of boat building know-how. Today the Sense line is manufactured in one of Beneteau’s 20 plants in Western France. The molded fiberglass hull of the Sense line features a grid with built-in bulkhead attachments that increases structural strength with minimal weight, and reduces the need for structural bulkheads, thus allowing for our open floor plan. The Research and Development process at Beneteau includes an in-house lab & engineering staff to evaluate the resins, adhesives, and sealants used in key structural aspects of building process. Large scale computer-assisted design and manufacturing techniques (such as robotically cut, sand, spray-finish sets of interior woodwork as shown in the BoatTEST.com footage) help lower labor costs and contribute to more value for customers.
Click the above link to view all Murray Yacht Sales’ Beneteau Models or click below to see our Beneteau Sense Series:
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