The Knysna 550 catamaran goes on public show for the first time at the Annapolis Sailboat Show, 15 to 18 October 2026. It is a 55 ft semi-custom cat from Knysna Yacht Company in South Africa, about 20 tonnes light, sold in two versions. We are not going to Annapolis and we have not seen or sailed the boat. Everything here comes from the Knysna 550 base specifications on the builder's page, the show listing and the press reports. What we can add is what those numbers ask of two people, because our offshore miles are on a 12.2 m cat.
What Knysna has published
The builder's base specification for the 550:
- Length overall 16.82 m, beam 9.06 m, draft 1.50 m.
- Light weight 19,754 kg. Maximum loaded weight 25,631 kg.
- Mainsail 133.8 m², genoa 62.64 m², mast height 23.95 m.
- Two 80 hp engines and 1,000 litres of fuel.
The design is by VDS Marine Design and follows the Knysna 500. The Cruising World launch report describes wave-piercing bows, and bulkheads, panels and partitions chemically bonded to the hulls and deck. The Annapolis show listing puts the Knysna stand on Dock K2 and gives the weight as 19.6 tonnes, with three or four double cabins that each have their own head, a raised and protected helm, and a choice of shaft drive or saildrive. The boat is shortlisted for World Multihull of the Year 2026 and is a Cruising World Boat of the Year 2027 nominee.
One number does not agree. The show listing and the press reports give 1,000 litres of fresh water. The builder's page gives 700 litres. We don't know which is right for hull one.
Sky Lounge or Solar Explorer
The 550SL has a raised lounge above the cockpit. The 550SE gives that space to solar panels. The Cruising Compass report says the array is meant to supply almost all the energy the boat needs, and the Multihulls World premiere note lists hybrid propulsion as an option on the SE next to the two 80 hp diesels.
We could not find the wattage of the SE array, the size of the battery bank or who makes the hybrid drive in anything published so far. Until they are out the claim can't be checked.
If we were choosing, we would start with the Solar Explorer. Mā Tori runs on 700 W of solar into a 540 Ah lithium bank, and the hard bimini is the platform for the panels. The detail is in our Fusion 40 review. A boat drawn with the roof set aside for panels has that sorted before the first owner asks. For the Sky Lounge we would ask what it weighs and how high the boom ends up above it, because somebody still has to reach the mainsail.
What 20 tonnes means for a couple
Our boat is 12.2 m long and 7.0 m wide, draws 1.1 m and has two 29 hp diesels. We have not published a measured weight for her, so we won't compare tonne for tonne. The Knysna is 4.6 m longer and 2 m wider, draws 0.4 m more and has 80 hp a side. This is where that shows up with two people aboard.
Sail handling
A 133.8 m² mainsail on a 23.95 m mast is work for a powered winch, so what matters is what you do when the winch or its power supply stops. The sources don't say how many powered winches the boat has or where the lines lead. On Mā Tori one electric winch in the cockpit does the hoisting and reefing with the lines led aft, and a light boat means modest sails and modest loads on the gear. A 20 tonne boat has bigger sails and bigger loads, so look at the winch sizes, the clutches and the backup. Our catamaran reefing guide gives baseline wind speeds for a 40 footer. A boat this size needs its own numbers from the designer.
Getting on and off a dock
The engines are a long way apart, which helps. The hard part is distance. The bow cleat is nearly 17 m from the stern cleat, and one person covers both while the other steers. At the show, stand at the raised helm and check how much of each corner of the boat you can see from it.
Berths and haul-outs
Plenty of marina berths and travel lifts were not built for a 9.06 m beam. We don't have a list of which yards in Fiji and New Zealand can lift one, so ring them before you plan a season around a haul-out. Where the boat sits for the summer is in our South Pacific cyclone season plan. The 1.50 m draft is shallow next to a monohull, and it is still 0.4 m more than we draw, which will rule out some of the skinny anchorages a smaller cat gets into.
Payload
The gap between the light weight and the maximum loaded weight is 5,877 kg. A full 1,000 litres of diesel is about 840 kg and the water is 700 to 1,000 kg, which leaves roughly 4 tonnes for the crew, the tender, ground tackle, spares and food. A light 40 footer has to watch everything that comes aboard, and this one is drawn to carry it. What we don't know is whether the Sky Lounge, a generator or hybrid batteries are inside the light figure or on top of it.
Semi-custom sits between owner-built and production
Our boat is one of about 60 Fusion 40s, moulded professionally and finished by different hands, so the owner-built against production question is one we know. Production boats are consistent. Owner-finished boats vary, and on those the survey does the job the badge would otherwise do.
The Knysna is neither. It is built by one yard, which Cruising Compass says was founded 25 years ago and is now run by its second owner, who is also the lead boat builder. The structure should be the same from hull to hull. The fit-out won't be. Owners specify the joinery, fabrics, appliances and technology with the build team and pick the drive type. Every 550 will be a different boat inside, and whoever buys one second hand is buying the first owner's choices.
A small yard building limited numbers has a smaller pool of buyers than a Lagoon does, the same as our Fusion. The specification of the individual boat counts for more than the model name. The builder's page marks one 550 slot as sold. We don't know how many more are.
Hull one is also the first of a new model. Ask whether it has been weighed, and whether it got to Annapolis on its own bottom or on a ship.
The price, as far as it is published
When we looked in October 2026 the builder's page listed 550 build slots from USD 1.75 million to USD 1.975 million, the last with a November 2026 launch date, and one slot marked sold. Some of the launch dates on that page have already passed, so it may be behind. We don't know what is included at those prices or what the Solar Explorer and hybrid options add. Confirm the current price and specification with the builder.
For scale, one 550 slot is close to six times what we are asking for Mā Tori. If the 550 is out of reach, the rest of the market is in our guide to the best cruising catamarans under $500k. For a buyer in the States the country of build also changes the landed cost, and that is in US boat import tariffs.
What we don't know
- How it sails. We have not been aboard and we could not find an independent test.
- The Solar Explorer's solar wattage, battery capacity and hybrid supplier.
- The winch layout, and whether two people can reef from the helm.
- What hull one weighs against the published light figure.
Prices, specifications and show details change. Check the builder's current page and the show's own listing before you travel or pay a deposit.
Questions people ask about the Knysna 550
When does the Knysna 550 make its debut?
At the Annapolis Sailboat Show, 15 to 18 October 2026. The show lists the Knysna stand on Dock K2.
How much does the Knysna 550 weigh?
The builder gives 19,754 kg light and 25,631 kg at maximum load.
What is the difference between the Knysna 550SL and 550SE?
The 550SL Sky Lounge has a raised lounge above the cockpit. The 550SE Solar Explorer gives that space to solar panels.
How much does a Knysna 550 cost?
The builder's page listed build slots from USD 1.75 million to USD 1.975 million in October 2026. Confirm the current price with the builder.
Has the crew of Mā Tori sailed the Knysna 550?
No. We are not at the show and have not seen or sailed the boat.
Keep reading: what to look at on any boat before you pay is in the Catamaran Buyer's Pack, what a few tonnes does at sea is in the Fusion 40 against Lagoon 42 comparison, and our bluewater catamaran for sale is the boat this was written from.