Best Family Cruisers Under $500K
$500K gets you a lot of boat, but which are the best family cruisers to choose from under this price-point?
When it comes to choosing a power cruiser for the family you have such a huge range of options it can be overwhelming. Sizes can range from 30-somethings to full-blown yachts, there are options for outboard, inboard, and stern drive cruisers, and you can opt for opulent luxury machines or something a bit more simple and straightforward. For most families, however, the budget will dictate the final decision. And while $500,000 is a hefty budget to work with, it does limit your choices. Which family cruiser will be the best pick? That’s your call, but these 10 best family cruisers under $500,000 are all worth serious consideration.
- Aquila 32 Sport
- Axopar 45 XC Cross Cabin
- Beneteau Gran Turismo 36
- Chaparral 347 SSX
- Cutwater C-32 CB
- Jeanneau DB/37 OB
- Ranger Tugs R-31 Sedan
- Regal 33 Express
- Sea Ray 320 Sundancer
- Tiara 34LS
Aquila 32 Sport
This one will be the pick of power catamaran fans, delivering that smooth twin-hull ride and stability. Though a bit untraditional for a family cruiser the design fits the bill, with a private cabin with berth in the port hull and a head compartment to starboard. Unlike most cruisers the bow is dedicated to a bowrider-like cockpit rather than additional cabin space, and there’s an outdoor galley area abovedeck. The cockpit will be a big draw for boaters who enjoy entertaining, as it boasts a huge amount of seating. Base boats start in the neighborhood of $400,000 and even when very well outfitted, it should still fall into our pricing parameters.
See Aquila 32 Sport cruisers for sale on boats.com.
Axopar 45 XC Cross Cabin
With a stated base MSRP of $456,533 (doing a Euro to dollar conversion at the time of this publication) the Axopar 45 XC Cross Cabin delivers the most LOA for the buck by a longshot. It’s by far the biggest boat making this pricing bar, and though cost can build well beyond our mark if you start adding big-ticket optional features, that stock boat price gets you a fully enclosed helmdeck cabin with a settee plus a wet bar, a forward cabin with a queen berth, a bow lounge area, and a customizable open aft cockpit which can be outfitted with an additional aft cabin or seating. It also gets you triple Mercury 300 outboards across the transom. Cool Factor Alert: the forward cabin opens with gull wing doors on either side.
See Axopar 45 XC Cross Cabin cruisers for sale on boats.com.
Beneteau Gran Turismo 36
The Beneteau Gran Turismo 36 has a sporty look and can be had with a pair of Mercruiser 6.2 L 300-hp stern drives, or a pair of outboards up to 700 hp, total, to reach a top-end of around 40 mph. Price can vary quite a bit depending on how it’s outfitted but even a loaded boat will make the grade for this roundup. The cabin boasts a small saloon/lounge and galley area plus two staterooms, one forward and one a mid-cabin, both of which are private. An unusual perk on a boat of this size is the head, which has a separate stall shower rather than a wet-head.
See Beneteau Gran Turismo 36 cruisers for sale on boats.com.
Chaparral 347 SSX
Starting in the low $400,000s, the Chaparral 347 SSX reflects a modern design evolution to big bowriders equipped with cabins and cruising abilities. The boat has a full bow cockpit with forward facing loungers and seating space for five or six people, but it also has a full-beam cabin with a berth, flat-screen TV, and fully enclosed head compartment, all entered via the passenger’s side console. The cockpit is chock full of seating, and a comfy aft-facing settee overlooks the oversized swim platform. This type of layout may deliver a bit less cabin space than some, but it certainly delivers a lot more outdoors space and entertaining areas at the very same time.
See Chaparral 347 SSX cruisers for sale on boats.com.
Cutwater C-32 CB
Cutwater is known for building relatively small but fully featured cruisers, and the C-32 CB is the queen of their flybridge cruiser fleet. This is a convertible style outboard-powered flybridge boat, with a full upper station helm in addition to the enclosed lower station in the cabin. Available in Northwest and Luxury editions it can be outfitted with everything from air conditioning to diesel forced-air heat, and has plenty of room for a cruising family including sleeping quarters for six people thanks to two separate staterooms plus a convertible dinette. Starting price for the standard editions is right around the $400,000 mark so there’s room in the budget for significant optional upgrades.
See Cutwater C-32 CB cruisers for sale on boats.com.
Jeanneau DB/37 OB
The DB line is one of Jeanneau’s newest, and the DB/37 OB is their take on a sporty family cruiser powered by twin 450 hp outboards, inclined towards dayboat use but still fully functional as a cruiser. It features an unusual topsides layout with the helm protected by a hard top but open to the air, a cushioned lounger on the bow, and a broad cockpit that can be expanded with swing-down hullsides to become a yacht-like “beach club.” Down below it has two separate staterooms, one with a pedestal berth forward and a second mid-cabin with a triple-wide berth. Like many modern cruisers it has an outdoor galley and dinette. Pricing will vary depending on outfitting but new models often hover at or below our price point.
See Jeanneau DB/37 OB cruisers for sale on boats.com.
Ranger Tugs R-31 Sedan
While some might call the Ranger Tugs R-31 Sedan a trawler as opposed to a cruiser, in truth it has all the attributes of both and will fulfil the needs for family cruising and then some. Unlike traditional trawlers it can plane and reach speeds over 20 knots with its single-screw Volvo Penta D4 diesel inboard. It also has a two-stateroom layout, an en suite head for the master and a separate day head, a galley and dinette, and it comes jam-packed with standard features for a listed $424,937 MSRP, so you can load up with options and still stay within the budget.
Regal 33 Express
The Regal 33 Express is a classic family cruiser with sporty appeal, and comes in both stern drive and outboard flavors. It has a large mid-cabin with twin berths that slide together to form a queen, and a salon settee that converts into a forward queen berth. The galley is larger than expected, too, with a two-burner cook-top, sink, refrigerator, microwave, and plenty of cabinetry. More about that sporty appeal: the boat doesn’t just look fast, it is fast. With a pair of Volvo V8 350s in the engine compartment it can even break the 50-mph mark and go from zero to 30 in under eight seconds.
See Regal 33 Express cruisers for sale on boats.com.
Sea Ray 320 Sundancer
The Sea Ray Sundancer series is the quintessential family cruiser with a sporty appeal. Available in both stern drive and outboard models, it offers a mid-cabin with a pair of single berths, a forward dinette that converts into a roomy V-berth, a head, and a galley belowdecks. The helm and cockpit feature gobs of seating, and unlike older Sundancers the modern version also features a bow cockpit with a triple-wide lounger. It’s designed to deliver not just the appeal of a sporty boat but also the functionality of a cruiser and the fun of a bowrider — a mission it unquestionably fulfills. Pricing will vary depending on outfitting, but the base boat is advertised at slightly over $411,000.
See Sea Ray 320 Sundancer cruisers for sale on boats.com.
Tiara 34LS
While its cabin is limited to a single stateroom and a private head, the Tiara 34LS will be of interest to small families looking for a top-quality cruiser that promises plenty of fun when used as a dayboat, too. It has a topnotch fit and finish and while fully optioned-out models may break through the $500,000 barrier, base boats can make the grade and there are also plenty of slightly used models on the market. Even in base form these boats are a cut above the norm, with luxurious electrically actuated seating, powered sunshades, an integrated through-hull anchoring system with a windlass, and full Garmin electronics systems.
See Tiara 34LS cruisers for sale on boats.com.
You’ll be the one deciding which of these cruisers is “best,” but there’s no doubt that one or more of them will fit the bill. And best of all, that bill won’t be more than $500,000.
