Here we review some of the boats we seriously looked at; and talked ourselves out of buying:-

Urszula found Yacht "Swan Around" advertised in the UK 'Boats-for-Sale' magazine. We contacted the owner and received these photo's and specification by return email. In truth, we might well have bought this boat, the price and specification were good and the boat's location (Spain) was an ideal place to kick-off from. We should have immediately flown out and taken a look, but, being rather naive in these things, we stalled for far too long and the boat was sold before we even got a chance to look at her.

One of the many boats we saw on our September 2002 visit to Holland - Almost ideal in every respect; An Australian couple had been living aboard for the last five years, we were told. It looked to us as if they had simply walked off and returned to Aus. You almost expected to find food still in the fridge! Everything was there, equipment, charts, maps (in English), even some clothes left in the hanging lockers.

Virtually, and in desperation, the last of the Dutch boats we looked at on the September visit - Our 'Essen Boat' - Bella is almost certainly the wrong boat to buy, but having seen so many there, she came as an 'interesting' surprise, we felt 'at home' immediately. One of many boats we have seen, where the older hull has been 'gutted' and recently re-fitted internally, this "All-White" interior may not however, be to everyone's taste!

Spotted in the UK, whilst we are still trying to convince ourselves if the prices here; are comparable to Holland, or not. Another 'gutted' hull; with a newer interior, but of a very good internal specification and build quality.

We probably should have bought this boat, however, it was in Spain and we couldn't easily (at the time) drop everything to go there to see it - In hindsight we should have rung up, discussed over the phone and made a quick 'snap decision' but we are not so hasty - Now sold anyway.

This boat would seem to be ideal, however, Colin is concerned about the complex technical specification of this vessel. It having a commercially-made and fitted hydraulic bow thruster which works in all four directions! Onboard generator, 240v inverter, Micro-Wave, washing machine, tumble-drier, oven and an amazing plumbed-in vacuum cleaning system! With very 'swish' low-level cabin lighting in the main saloon, amongst a veritable host of other extras. (Just take a look at the 'dash-board'). However, although a six-berth boat, both of the smaller cabins are effectively 'wasted space' with the fore-cabin full of a fridge-freezer and other 'domestic appliances'. The rather clever rear "children's cabin" completely filled by a huge tumble-drier - handy, but...

"Freedom" - For and against

Item	Spec	For	Against
Date	1994	New design	More expensive to buy
Size	14.56 x 4.10 x 1.30	Large, spacious	Higher mooring fees
Hull	Steel	Very solid	High free board, difficult access (to climb aboard)
Superstructure	Steel	Very good looking	Exterior of saloon window area, black painted
Decks	Teak laid	Cool, smart	Will need constant washing and scrubbing to look good
Engine	Valmet (Saab)		Unknown (to Colin) possibly under-powered?
Equipment	Very high Spec	Lots of 'toys'	Overly complex, difficult/expensive to repair
Interior	Teak	Light, smart
Heads	1 electric	New, very 'posh'	Only the one 'loo' if guests stay aboard
Bedroom	Side double	Spacious	Not so keen on side-walls to a bed, rather dark room
General	Very suitable	Large, lots of goodies	The wasted space is rather an annoyance

Perfect, almost - The size is right, pontoon to side deck access is easy, she is well fitted out, in good condition - It's just that white interior - can we live with it? Colin would love to meet the owner/designer, as he wished he was that clever, it was so very well thought-out. On-board genny, inverter, Solar panels, washing machine, heating etc. Urszula is more concerned about the ultimate resale value, however:-

"Bella Amie" - For and against

Item	Spec	For	Against
Date	1994	New-ish looking	Older design
Size	14.0 x 4.1 x 1.15	Big	Mooring fees
Hull	Steel	Beautiful condition	Interior insulation suspect
Superstructure	Steel	Low headroom	Uninspiring looking
Decks	Track mark	Non-Slip	Dirty looking
Engine	Daf 120Hp	Reliable, easy to maintain	Unusually noisy, with a slight hunting problem
Equipment	GPS + Auto-Pilot	Sufficient equipment	Low-spec
Interior	White Wood	Bright, airy, clean looking	Low quality wood, poor resale value
Heads	1 x Electric	Separate cabin
Bedroom	Side 2 x single = 1 double	Large, brand-new	Wall on two sides quite high off floor
General	Very Suitable	Good sized galley, neat layout	All white wood & plastic interior

Again almost ideal, smaller than either of the above, but similarly priced (This is the UK mark-up effect). Lacking a generator, but well re-fitted with good equipment and layout. The hull needs a complete repaint, however. She has obviously been recently(?) bought over from Holland (where she was probably re-fitted) via the Medway.

"Jan Henning" - For and against

Item	Spec	For	Against
Date	1993		Older design, tatty exterior
Size (m)	12.8 x 3.75 x 1.0	Narrower, lower mooring costs	Less internal space
Hull	Steel	Looked OK	In severe need of a repaint/antifoul
Superstructure	Steel	Solid feel, safe walkway	Rather 'Odd' cabin roof capping
Decks	Sanded Deck-Paint	Ease of repair	Looks OK only when cleaned
Engine	1 x Cummins 210Hp	Powerful	Turbo-Charged
Equipment	Plenty of add-ons	GPS, auto-pilot & Radar	Not essential on inland waterways
Interior	Teak	New and hard-wearing	Darken's the interior
Heads	2 x manual (holding tanks)	Built-in Macerator 'dump-pump' 2 loos = Good for guests	More complex plumbing
Bedroom	Big centre double	Spacious	Mattress has rounded rear corners
General	Suitable	Good accommodation & Galley	Dark and slightly smaller than most. Too expensive for the specification.

© CRB Ltd. Updated - Monday, 07 Sep 2020