Bavaria 34 Cruiser Specs, Prices and Layout Guide

Bavaria 34 Cruiser, new model or a 33 in disguise?

Ask two magazines about the Bavaria 34 Cruiser and you get two stories. SAIL presented it in 2017 as a new Farr design that replaced the Cruiser 33 with a sportier profile. Yachting Monthly's Graham Snook, testing it in 2016, said bluntly that it was the same hull as the 32 and then the 33, refreshed the way car makers stretch a model's life with new bodywork and trim. Both have a point, and the published numbers support the overlap: a 9.99 m overall length and 3.42 m beam, identical to the 33.

What is new matters, though. The hull is vacuum-infused, there are twin wheels as an option, the aft accommodation was reworked to fit two cabins, a bowsprit extends the overall length to 10.67 m, and the waterline Bavaria quotes grew to 9.15 m. Bavaria's own site still lists the Cruiser 34 in 2026 as an entry-level sailing yacht beside the C38.

Infusion, and why it matters more than the badge

SAIL reported that the 34 was the first Bavaria to have both hull and deck built by vacuum infusion, with foam core in the sandwich, and that other models were set to follow. Infusion gives a more consistent resin content than hand lay-up and usually a lighter, stiffer laminate. Bavaria's lightship figure is 5,298 kg (11,680 lb), essentially the same as the hand-laid 33, so the gain went into stiffness and quality rather than a lighter boat.

The practical upshot for a buyer is that a 34 is a structurally more modern boat than a 33 of the same size. Testers noticed it: SAIL said the interior stayed silent while bashing through an uncommonly rough test sail.

Three cabins in 32 feet, or the smarter two

Searchers looking for a three-cabin Bavaria 34 have found one of the smallest production boats ever offered that way. Two doubles sit side by side under the cockpit and a third is forward. The price is stowage: the three-cabin boat has only two shallow lockers in the aft cockpit seats and loses the big lazarette, and there is no dedicated chart table.

The two-cabin version is the better buy for most American owners. The starboard aft cabin gets wider, the port side becomes a deep cockpit locker, the head moves aft and grows, and a small aft-facing nav desk appears, sharing its seat with the port settee. Neither layout has a separate shower stall.

Common to both: an L-shaped galley with a single sink, two-burner stove and top-loading fridge, a drop-leaf saloon table under two hatches, dovetailed joinery and solid wood door frames. Yachting Monthly warned that 150 liters of water would be tight for six; Bavaria's current spec sheet lists 135 liters each of fuel and water, so check what a given boat carries.

Single wheel, twin wheels and where the mainsheet lands

Bavaria offered the 34 with one large wheel on a pedestal or with twin wheels. The choice changes the boat more than you would expect. On the single-wheel boat, instruments and the plotter sit on the pedestal in front of the helmsman. On twin-wheel boats, like SAIL's test boat with carbon wheels and Jefa steering, the plotter moves to the aft end of the cockpit table and is harder to read while steering.

The mainsheet is a German system led to the coachroof, out of reach of the helm. Yachting Monthly disliked that on a family boat and found the twin wheels slightly heavy, with no foot braces and the backstay in the way when sitting to windward. Cruising World's judges, sailing a single-rudder boat in 10 to 15 knots, had no such complaints. Their verdict was that the helm answered beautifully.

Elsewhere, the primaries on the coaming are a reach from the wheels, two Lewmar 15s handle halyards on the coachroof, the lifelines are low for tall crew, and the electric windlass with remote is tucked behind the furler. Teak on the cockpit sole, benches and transom platform was standard on SAIL's boat.

Twenty knots on Biscayne Bay

SAIL's test turned into a heavy-air day, with 20 knots and stronger gusts in Biscayne Bay. With a reef in the battened Dacron main, the boat put its shoulder down: 6.6 knots at 45 degrees apparent, 7.3 knots at 60 degrees, and 6.2 knots running at 150 degrees, all in 18 to 20 knots true. The tester's verdict was that this boat can definitely go, but that you need the 6 ft 6 in keel rather than the 5 ft 2 in option to stand up to that kind of breeze.

Under power, the 20 hp Volvo Penta with a three-blade folding prop gave 7.3 knots at 3,050 rpm and an easy 6.2 knots at 2,500 rpm. A 30 hp option exists, and Yachting Monthly's test boat had about 28 hp, which it found plenty for maneuvering.

Cruising World's Boat of the Year judges gave the Cruiser 34 the 2018 Best Pocket Cruiser award. Tim Murphy called it among the most pleasurable sailing experiences of the whole judging week, and Ed Sherman said it was rigged right, with great sails and a comfortable helm.

Older Bavaria 34s, the J&J boats of 1999 and 2008

A search for a Bavaria 34 for sale also turns up two older J&J Design boats that share nothing with the Farr hull. The first Bavaria 34 appeared around 1999 and was a charter favorite: Yachting Monthly's used-boat test of a 15-year-old example lists 10.34 m overall, 4,500 kg displacement, a 29 hp Volvo and a 2016 UK guide price of 37,500 to 45,000 pounds. It is a lighter boat with a traditional woody interior and a forward-facing chart table.

The second is the Bavaria 34 Cruiser of 2008, the first new model after Bain Capital's purchase of the company. Cruising World listed it at 35 ft 2 in overall with 12,540 lb displacement, and SAIL noted an inboard Volvo under the cockpit sole with 40 gallons of fuel and 55 of water. Both are sound, inexpensive boats, but specs, prices and reviews for them should never be mixed with the 2016 Cruiser 34.

• Bavaria 34 (J&J, from about 1999): about 4,500 kg, 29 hp, conventional stern
• Bavaria 34 Cruiser (J&J, 2008): about 12,540 lb, removable sprit for an asymmetric
• Bavaria Cruiser 34 (Farr, 2016 onward): 5,298 kg, infused hull, fold-down transom, two or three cabins

New price, used values and the marina bill

In 2020 the base price was about 81,500 euros before tax, and SAIL's well-equipped 2017 test boat came to $141,000. For a new boat delivered to the US in 2026, expect roughly $165,000 to $215,000 depending on layout, helm and options. Used boats from 2016 onward ask $95,000 to $175,000, with the twin-wheel, two-cabin, deep-keel combination easiest to resell here.

The name works against you at the dock in one respect. Yachting Monthly pointed out that with 34 on the topsides you may end up explaining why you should pay for a boat under 33 ft; quote the 9.99 m length on marina forms. Annual running costs of $8,000 to $16,000 cover a slip, insurance, a haul-out, saildrive service and sail care.