Every year, the team behind Multihulls World runs what has become one of the most respected awards in our corner of sailing: the Multihull of the Year.
It’s not a trade jury handing a trophy to whoever spent the most on their stand at a boat show, and it’s not decided by a panel of advertisers with a vested interest. Readers vote. Sailors vote. People who actually use these boats, dream about them, argue about them on pontoons at the end of a long passage — they vote. Which is exactly why it means something.
What the competition is actually about
The process starts with a panel of specialist journalists from Multihulls World magazine, who draw up the shortlist from boats launched between the 2025 and 2026 editions of the Miami International Boat Show.
That eligibility window matters: you won’t find any optimistic renders or “available to order” promises on the list. Every nominated boat has to be genuinely in the water, tested, and available. It keeps things honest.
From there, it’s over to the public. Six categories cover the full breadth of the modern multihull world — split between sail and power, and across size brackets:
- Sail: under 45 feet, 45 to 55 feet, and over 55 feet.
- Power: under 45 feet,45 to 60 feet, and over 60 feet.
You vote in each category, and your ballot only counts if you complete them all. No cherry-picking your favourite and leaving the rest blank.
The results are announced on 22 April at the International Multihull Show in La Grande-Motte, which is one of the better excuses to be on the French Mediterranean coast in late April.
A strong field, and no easy category
The FP44 is nominated in the Sail Under 45′ category, which on paper sounds like the accessible end of the range.
In practice, it’s anything but a walkover. Its fellow nominees include the Astus 26.5 and the Tricat 8.50 — both folding trimarans with a loyal following among sailors who want performance and portability in the same package. Then there’s the Lagoon 38, which barely needs an introduction given how many of them are out there crossing oceans. The Seawind 1160 XL brings an Australian bluewater pedigree, built for serious passages rather than marina hopping. And the Excess 13 is there for anyone who thinks a cruising cat should also be genuinely quick under sail.
It’s a thoughtful, varied shortlist, and the FP44 has no right to assume anything.
Why the FP44 earned its place on the list
Being nominated at all says something. The jury doesn’t pad the list for the sake of variety — boats make the cut because they’ve done something worth noticing.
The FP44 is, at its core, a boat designed for offshore cruising over distance. Not day sailing, not marina living — actual bluewater work, with everything that entails in terms of seakeeping, sail handling in deteriorating conditions, and living aboard for weeks at a stretch. The hull has been optimised to give natural acceleration rather than the heavy, reluctant motion that can make some cats feel like you’re pushing them rather than sailing them. It tracks well across all points of sail, holds its course without constant correction, and gives you real feedback at the helm — a quality that sounds basic but is surprisingly easy to get wrong.
On deck, the thinking has clearly gone into short-handed use. The helm position gives excellent visibility over the rig and over the water ahead, the sheets and halyards are logically led without unnecessary complexity, and tacking or gybing in a bit of wind doesn’t require a full crew on deck to manage it. For anyone planning to sail as a couple, or with one experienced person and a few less experienced friends, that kind of practical layout matters enormously on passage.
Down below, the FP44 offers more light and more usable space than its 43.5 feet would suggest. The panoramic windows keep the connection with the sea alive even when you’re cooking or sleeping, which sounds like a small thing until you’ve spent time on a boat where you feel buried below decks. The cabins are genuinely comfortable, and — perhaps most tellingly — the storage has been taken seriously. Anyone who has cruised a catamaran for more than a fortnight knows that storage is where the romance meets reality.
What perhaps matters most, though, is that this isn’t a boat you’re being asked to imagine. Owners are already out there on FP44s. Early sea trials by international press were positive across the board. The gap between what Fountaine Pajot promised and what they delivered appears to be a small one, which in this industry is worth saying clearly.
How to cast your vote
Voting is open until 18 April 2026. Head to the Multihulls World website, enter your name and email address to keep the ballot fair, and make your picks across all six categories. It takes a few minutes, and it’s a genuine way to have a say in what gets recognised as the standout multihull of the year.
If you think the FP44 deserves it, now’s the time to say so!