Bali 4.5 Catamaran, Used Buyer's Guide

The Bali 4.5, where the Bali idea began

Every Bali catamaran built since traces back to the Bali 4.5. Catana, a builder known for fast daggerboard cats, launched Bali as a second brand to reach charter companies and private owners at a lower price. The 4.5 was first shown at boat shows in the fall of 2014 and reached North America at Strictly Sail Miami in early 2015, alongside the smaller 4.3 and 4.0. Sailboatdata lists it as built from 2015 to 2021, and the Bali 4.6 that arrived in 2021 is its successor.

The headline idea was radical for a production cat: no trampoline. A solid fiberglass deck runs all the way to the bows and carries a cushioned forward lounge, so the boat effectively gains a second cockpit. Cruising World's Mark Pillsbury described the result as a laid-back cruising machine with lots and lots of cushions, and that remains a fair summary. The 4.5 sold quickly; Multihulls World reported 60 boats built a little over three years into the program.

Catana engineering under the cushions

The Bali 4.5 came from the same yard and many of the same people as the performance Catanas, and it shows in the structure. Hulls, deck and bimini are vacuum-infused and foam-cored. Xavier Fay gave the hulls a chine about 2 feet above the waterline to throw spray and add interior volume, plus a stepped topside that works as a longitudinal stiffener. Below the water the sections are close to semicircular to keep wetted surface down.

Instead of Catana daggerboards, the 4.5 has fixed stub keels attached to watertight recesses in the hulls, and Sail magazine noted that those recesses also serve as gray-water holding tanks. The solid foredeck removes the need for a forward crossbeam because the deck itself stiffens the platform. The trade is weight forward, which the designers offset with a generous sail plan and a mast stepped well aft. Sail reported no squeaks or groans on its test boat, and both magazines praised the fit and finish.

Flybridge or side helm, the choice that splits the used market

Bali offered two helm arrangements, and the one a boat has shapes how it sails and how it lives. The flybridge version puts the wheel amidships above the bimini with a bench for four and excellent forward visibility. To give flybridge passengers headroom the boom sits high, which trims mainsail area and raises weight. Sail's tester also found side-deck access awkward and the instruments mounted at knee level.

The bulkhead or side-helm version puts the wheel to starboard at cockpit level with a seat for two, reached from both the cockpit and the side deck. The boom sits lower, which lowers the center of effort and leaves room for extra sun pads on the cabin top. Sail predicted that most buyers would prefer it. When you shop, decide which you want before you fall for a boat, because converting one to the other is not realistic.

One more design detail separates the 4.5 from later Balis. The boats tested in 2015 used large sliding aft doors with a separate opening window between cockpit and saloon, plus a big front window that lowers at the flip of a switch, rather than the tilt-up garage-style door that later defined models such as the 4.6 and 4.8. There is no forward saloon door; the front window is how air and drinks reach the foredeck.

• Flybridge helm: best visibility, seating for four, higher boom, awkward side-deck access
• Side helm to starboard: lower boom, easier crew work, closer to the aft cockpit
• Front window lowers electrically; aft doors slide on the 2015 test boats

What the Bali 4.5 did on test

The 4.5 surprised testers. Sail magazine sailed hull No. 1 in flat water with 12 to 15 knots of wind and recorded 7.2 knots at 60 degrees apparent, about 7.5 knots on a beam reach and 5.1 knots at 120 degrees. Cruising World, in about 15 knots, made a little better than 6 knots close-hauled, with speeds dipping under 5 on a broader angle. Both editors wanted a furling downwind sail on the bowsprit, and Cruising World suggested the optional square-top main as well.

Multihulls World found the boat picked up speed quickly even in light air thanks to its moderate weight and generous canvas. Bali quotes 11,600 kilograms, or 25,574 pounds, light, which is low for a 44-foot cruising cat with this much furniture. The self-tacking solent makes single-handed tacking trivial, although its cabin-top sheeting angle can curl the leech back on itself and act as a brake. Under power on the test boat's optional 50 hp engines, Sail saw 6.8 knots at 2,000 rpm and 8.6 knots flat out at 3,200 rpm.

Two, three or four cabins on the Bali 4.5

Bali built the 4.5 in several arrangements. The charter boat has four double cabins and four heads with matching hulls. The three-cabin owner's version gives the port hull to a master suite with a wide berth, a sofa and desk and a head with two sinks that Sail said could honestly be called a bathroom. There was also a three-cabin, two-head plan with a shared head in the starboard hull, and a two-cabin, two-head layout.

The saloon is open-plan, with a full galley to port featuring a cooktop and a separate eye-level oven, and a household side-by-side refrigerator with an ice maker to starboard. A forward-facing nav station holds touch-screen controls for the boat's systems. Cruising World found the companionways into the hulls a little tight, which is worth testing yourself if you are tall or carrying luggage aboard.

Generator, watermaker and two engine generations

For a 2015 design the 4.5 shipped with ambitious systems. The test boats had a 225-amp alternator on the port engine charging a 720 amp-hour house bank, an engine-driven Aquabase watermaker rated at 50 gallons per hour, an 11 kW Onan generator and solar panels on the bimini, with Victron digital switching tying it together. The household fridge runs on AC power, which is why the battery bank is so large. Tankage is 800 liters of fuel and 800 liters of water, about 211 gallons each.

Engines changed during production. Early boats came with 40 hp Nanni diesels, which are Kubota-based, with 50 hp Nannis optional; Sail and Cruising World both sailed boats fitted with the 50s. Sailboatdata lists 40 hp Yanmars as the standard engine with 57 hp Yanmars optional on later boats. Parts support is better for Yanmar in most US and Caribbean ports, which is one reason later boats tend to command a premium.

Deck details owners notice

Forward, a horizontal Quick windlass lives under the foredeck seating with the anchor tucked under the pads; Sail recommended adding a cleat to secure the bridle. Aft, stainless davits lower the tender to the water, and once it is down the vertical section of the transom folds down to extend the cockpit by about 2 feet. The aft cockpit has a port-side dinette for six to eight and a lounge to starboard, and the blunt hull ends make boarding from a Med-moored stern simple.

Buying a used Bali 4.5 in 2026

Most 4.5s on the market are now 6 to 11 years old, and many spent their early years with Dream Yacht Charter, which was Bali's US distributor at launch. Recent listings we reviewed included owner's versions kept in Florida and never chartered, a 2015 boat that had crossed the Atlantic with long-term liveaboards, and a 2019 boat sold out of a crewed charter program in St. Thomas. That spread is typical: condition and history matter more than model year.

Expect asking prices of roughly $330,000 to $520,000 depending on year, layout, helm and engines. Budget $35,000 to $65,000 a year to own one, more if you keep the generator, watermaker and air conditioning all running. A boat needing new sails, saildrive seals, a generator overhaul and batteries can absorb $60,000 or more in its first year, so price your offer accordingly.