Cruising World – May 2018

down coamings are another

pleasant surprise; they can be

positioned upright when sail-

ing and then lowered to con-

vert into comfortable daybeds

once the hook is down and the

refreshments served.

Down below, there are

three accommodations plans

from which to choose. For

a big family, there’s a four-

cabin layout with twin double

staterooms forward and aft.

Alternatively, you can opt for

a forward owners cabin with

the twin doubles aft. Our test

boat had the layout I’d prefer,

with the forward stateroom,

a generous double cabin aft

to starboard and a dedicated

utility room/workshop

to port.

With all three layouts, the

main saloon is remarkably

open thanks to the rig place-

ment for the deck-stepped

mast, which is well forward.

This means the compres-

sion post down below is also

positioned forward. The com-

promise here is that it removes

a bit of room from the own-

ers cabin, but the trade-off, I

think, is worth it (after all, the

double berth is appropriately

sized, and you don’t need the

extra area if the space is pri-

marily used for sleeping or

lounging anyway). Plus, when

the double doors for the cab-

in are opened, the entire floor

plan is open as well.

The saloon in all three

versions is identical, with a

navigation station, straight-

line galley and head to port,

and a dining table with a

U-shaped settee and a sec-

ond head to starboard. A trio

of windows in both sides of

the hull bathe the interior in

plenty of natural light.

As with the interior layout,

there are also three rigs from

which to choose: a standard rig

with a full-battened mainsail,

a performance rig with a taller

mast and tricked-out sails, and

a third option with an in-mast

furling main. Our test boat

during sea trials on Chesapeake

Bay was equipped with the

third choice. To be honest, the

rather shapeless sails were less

than impressive, but in a breeze

SEA TRIAL

WIND SPEED

10 to 22 knots

SEA STATE

Choppy

SAILING

Closehauled: 8.6 knots

Reaching: 9.6 knots

MOTORING

Cruise (2,800 rpm) 7.9 knots

Fast (3,150 rpm) 8.5 knots

SPECIFICATIONS

JEANNEAU SUN

ODYSSEY 440

LENGTH OVERALL

42’7” (13 m)

WATERLINE LENGTH

41’5” (12.64 m)

BEAM

14’ (4.29 m)

DRAFT

7’2”/5’2” (2.2/1.6 m)

SAIL AREA (100%)

972 sq. ft. (90.38 sq. m)

BALLAST

5,027 lb. (2,280 kg)

DISPLACEMENT

18,874 lb. (8,561 kg)

BALLAST/DISPLACEMENT

0.26

DISPLACEMENT/LENGTH

119

SAIL AREA/DISPLACEMENT

21.9

WATER

87 gal. (330 l)

FUEL

53 gal. (200 l)

HOLDING

26 gal. (100 l)

MAST HEIGHT

60’6” (18.4 m)

ENGINE

45 hp Yanmar

DESIGNER

Philippe Briand/Jeanneau Design

PRICE

$360,000

Jeanneau

410-280-9400

jeanneau.com

For a complete guide to Cruis-

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may 2018

cruisingworld.com

74

BOATS & GEAR

H

ot on the heels of

launching the Sun

Odyssey 440 last fall,

Jeanneau this winter brought

a big sister — a stunning

49 -footer — to Miami’s

International Boat Show for

its North American debut.

Like the 440, which won

accolades from our Boat of

the Year judges following the

U.S. Sailboat Show in An-

napolis, Maryland, the Sun

Odyssey 490 features Jean-

neau’s creative cockpit and

topside design that includes

uncluttered side decks that

slope down to meet the cock-

pit sole. On the 440, the

cockpit table is offset to

provide a clear path from

the transom to the compan-

ionway. On the 490, it’s the

companionway that’s slight-

ly offset to port to achieve the

same end. On both boats, seat

coamings fold out to create

spacious spots for lounging. A

double backstay, whose ends

terminate inboard on the tran-

som, leaves the corners of the

cockpit open for the helms-

MEET THE BIG

SISTER

that topped off at better than

20 knots, we managed speeds

of over 8 knots, and as the

wind softened into the 10-knot

range, we still recorded a de-

cent 5-plus knots of boat speed.

The dual helms were light and

totally responsive, and our

overall opinion was that the

440 would be one hell of a boat

to steer with either the stan-

dard or performance sail pack-

age. The last thing you want to

do with a hull this fast and slip-

pery is put a governor on it.

It will be interesting to

see if other builders adopt or

create something similar to

Jeanneau’s innovative cockpit

and deck layout — imitation,

as the old saying goes, is the

sincerest form of flattery —

but there’s no question it’s a

fresh, smart take on one of the

most important features on any

cruising sailboat. Whoever said

there is nothing new under the

sun hasn’t had a look at the Sun

Odyssey 440.

Herb McCormick is CW’s

executive editor.

BILLY BLACK

The Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 490

enjoys a nice brisk sail off Miami,

where it debuted last winter.