Multicoques

Multicoques, or multihull boats, are vessels that use more than one hull for buoyancy. The most common configurations are catamarans, with two hulls, and trimarans, with three hulls. Multicoques can be sailing ships or motor yachts and range from small recreational craft to large commercial ferries and racing yachts. The hulls are connected by a deck or bridgedeck, allowing a wide beam without increasing the depth of each hull.

Compared with monohulls of similar length, multicoques typically offer greater initial stability from their wide beam, more deck and interior space, and the potential for higher speeds thanks to reduced hull drag and longer waterlines. Catamarans often have a shallow draft that enables access to shallow harbours, while trimarans combine stability with a longer effective waterline. Performance and handling depend on hull design, sail plan, and crew experience; multihulls can be fast, but their behavior in heavy seas or during line handling requires careful management of crosswinds and sail forces.

Disadvantages include higher construction and maintenance costs, more complex rigging on larger boats, and the wide beam that complicates storage in marinas and transport. Some multihulls require larger crews to manage sails and lines, and safety considerations differ from those of monohulls, such as potential for hull-to-hull collision in crowded harbours and the need for proper seamanship when launching or retrieving.

Multicoques have ancient roots in traditional sailing cultures; modern development accelerated in the 20th century with the introduction of fiberglass hulls and advanced rigging. They are widely used today in sailing and power cruising, charter fleets, and racing. High-profile competitions and the rise of fast offshore catamarans and trimarans have popularized multihull sailing, while ferries and workboats employ multihulls for efficiency and passenger space.