Total Discretion
How to Buy a Used Cruising Catamaran Workshops
Before You Make an Expensive Mistake
Next Workshop-July 2026
Small-group, interactive and tailored to attendees
Receive Workshop updates and prority access when places become available
The Mistake Most Buyers Make
Catamarans aren’t simple purchases.
You’re not just buying a hull — you’re buying a collection of interconnected systems operating in a corrosive, constantly moving environment.
Engines. Rigging. Sails. Electronics. Batteries. Plumbing. Refrigeration. Safety equipment.
On top of that, many boats have upgrades that were:
• Installed at different times
• Completed to different standards
• Incomplete or poorly executed
• Significant design or structural issues
Listings rarely show this clearly.
That makes comparing boats difficult — and easy to get wrong.
Then you take all of those systems... and shake them at sea.
Clarity early beats damage control later.
The purpose of these workshops is to help future catamaran owners better understand what they're really buying before travel costs, surveys, negotiations and emotions start influencing decisions.
Process & Framework
That's why early, structured thinking matters.
Understand the lifestyle, the boats, the buying process and the ownership realities before travel costs, broker pressure, emotions and sunk costs start influencing your decisions.
Catamaran Mentor workshops are designed to help future owners better understand the journey from dream to ownership.
Depending on the workshop, topics may include:
• Lifestyle realities and cruising goals
• Planning and preparation
• Budgeting and ownership expectations
• Catamaran selection
• Assessing listings
• Refit considerations
• Surveys, negotiations and contracts
• Common mistakes buyers make
• Real-world ownership lessons
The goal is to help you become a more informed catamaran buyer.
To understand the important topics, ask better questions, conduct better research, and make decisions with greater confidence. Ultimately, I want to help you build the skills and awareness to become a better shopper, researcher and future owner.
Buying a Catamaran is Not a Small Purchase!!
You've likely worked hard for this.
Built a business, saved for years, sold a property, or spent a long time planning the transition into a new lifestyle.
At this stage, the risks are real — and the mistakes can be expensive.
The purpose of these workshops isn't to rush the process.
It's to help you slow down, understand more, ask better questions and make decisions with greater clarity and confidence.
What You Dont Hear About Online
Many of the most expensive problems aren't discussed publicly.
Owners don't always share negative experiences.
Issues are often handled privately.
Manufacturer NDAs, confidential settlements and private repair agreements can mean significant structural issues remain largely out of public view for years.
Repairs are sometimes completed quietly — and sometimes not at all.
Surveyors dont understand model specific structual issues as much as they should!
The result is often a gap between the listing, the sales pitch and the long-term ownership experience.
One of the goals of these workshops is to help future owners better understand some of the realities, trade-offs and risks that aren't always obvious when comparing boats online.
Real Buyer Examples
$12K issue identified before closing
Outcome: Approximately $12,000 identified and used during negotiations.
$50K+ structural issue identified early
Outcome: Significant issue discovered before the buyer became financially or emotionally committed.
Bulkheads repaired — but not properly
Outcome: Buyer identified the risks early and walked away before proceeding further.
These aren't hypothetical examples.
They're real situations where better understanding, better questions and earlier investigation helped buyers make more informed decisions.
Confidence doesn't come from hope.
Start developing the same decision-making skills, research habits and assessment mindset I use with my consulting clients — well before you commit to a boat.
What My Leopard 48 Taught Me
My Leopard 48, Coco, was advertised as "like new."
What I didn't fully appreciate at the time was how much work, upgrading and refinement would be required to turn a production catamaran into a serious long-term liveaboard.
I learned that solar, a watermaker and a generator are often only half the story.
The real lessons came later.
Lessons about:
• Comfort and livability
• Redundancy and backup systems
• Power generation, storage and charging
• Tools, spares and self-sufficiency
• How small failures become maintenance workloads
• The difference between a prepared cruising boat and a project boat or ex charter boat
• Structural upgrades and long-term ownership considerations
Many of these lessons are difficult to understand from listings, specifications and marina dock walks alone.
Throughout the workshops, I'll use my own Leopard 48 as a real-world example — sharing the upgrades, mistakes, successes and ownership lessons learned over seven years and more than 12,000 nautical miles of cruising.
This is the education I wish I had before buying!!
How The Workshops Are Structured
Interactive discussions.
Real-world examples.
Questions and answers.
No fluff. Just practical lessons, ideas and decision-making frameworks you can apply to your own catamaran journey.
Each workshop is intentionally limited in size to encourage discussion and allow attendees to ask questions relevant to their own situation.
Designed to be practical, interactive and tailored to attendees — not just another presentation.
The Buyer Journey
Define your objectives.
Understand your options.
Research effectively.
Assess thoughtfully.
Make better decisions.
Move forward with greater confidence.
That's the journey these workshops are designed to support.
Working with Brokers or Sellers (with out getting pushed)
Buying a catamaran isn't just about understanding boats.
It's also about understanding the buying process.
Brokers, sellers, negotiations, surveys, contracts and due diligence all play a HUGE role.
Throughout the Catamaran Mentor workshops, we'll discuss practical topics such as:
• Questions worth asking
• Common buyer mistakes
• Negotiation considerations
• Surveys and due diligence
• Contracts and purchasing processes
• Real-world lessons from successful and unsuccessful purchases
Sometimes a single question can save thousands of dollars.
Sometimes it can help you avoid the wrong boat altogether. Or make a 150K mistake!1
The goal is not to create professional negotiators.
The goal is to help future owners become more informed, confident and prepared buyers.
Cruising Costs
One of the biggest surprises for many new owners isn't a single expensive failure.
It's when multiple systems just keep on failing. My refit cycle training explains why some purchase deceioins will set you up for two years of upgrades and repairs and 150K.
Standing rigging.
Sails.
Batteries.
Electronics.
Watermakers.
Refrigeration.
Engines.
Individually, most of these costs are manageable.
Together, they can quickly overwhelm an unprepared budget.
Throughout the workshops, we'll discuss ownership costs, budgeting considerations and the realities of maintaining a cruising catamaran over the long term.
Because understanding the purchase price is only part of the story.
Understanding the ownership journey is just as important.
Why learn This From Me
Peter Rollo — Catamaran Mentor
25+ years business experience
MBA New Zealand
12,000+ nautical miles offshore aboard my own Leopard 48
Like many future cruisers, I packed up my old life to pursue the dream of catamaran ownership and long-term cruising.
I don't sell boats.
I help future owners become more informed buyers and avoid expensive mistakes.
