
TESTIMONIALS
When a customer is unsure about the purchase of MiniCat, we ask him to read the MiniCat reviews. They speak for themselves. They give great feedback about our boats from real customers, such as owners of MiniCat inflatable boats. Some input helps us improve our boats further, and some are lovely comments. Read a small selection of MiniCat reviews here; it may help you decide to purchase our fabulous sailing catamaran. There is also an active online group of MiniCat owners on Facebook; search ‘MiniCat Owners’, and you will be able to read lots of discussions and recommendations from active Minicat owners with experience with this unique small sailing boat.
DAVE KING
After testing the new and coming 520 Explorer I just wanted a word and a nod to Martin & MiniCat, without getting to sound like the salespersons, these things (MiniCats) are epic, the opportunities limited only by the imagination and they really function as we`ve all imagined. I covered over 60km with ease, in variable conditions yesterday with about 200kg loaded plus me. For expeditions or just plain family outings, these boats have to generate some real buzz ! So happy with how this boat is turning out !
CHRIS WALTERS
“I bought my MiniCat 420 a couple months ago. I don’t have room to store a rigid hull HobieCat, but this thing I can stuff just about anywhere. I have much easier beach access now as well. I can launch from beaches that you couldn’t get a normal Hobie into.
The fun factor is 10/10.
Sailing by yourself in sporty winds is a hoot and sailing with 3 other adults is also fun! I bought the Code Zero and the older Spinnaker to practice more advanced sail techniques to transfer to larger boats.
Based on where I live in a land locked state in the US (Salt Lake City, UT), this boat has allowed me to get out on the water in our lakes and reservoirs much more often than the few times a year I travel to the coast to do off-shore sailing on larger vessels.”
ELA AND MIKE KLOOSTERMAN
My wife and I recently purchased a MiniCat 420 Emotion from Great Lakes Watercraft in Michigan, and we couldn’t be happier with it. We have owned and sailed a number of different sailboats in the past, both small boats and a cruiser / liveaboard. The MiniCat is by far the most fun we’ve ever had on a sailboat. In addition to the thrilling sailing experience, the reality that we can throw it on a plane and sail anyplace in the world and then return home and store it in our spare bedroom is incredible. What a great value.
Thank you, MiniCat! See you at Lake Como!
PETER HAMLIN
I’ve had my Guppy for the summer and love it. It’s reasonably fast. It does great on beam reaches. When the wind gets to around 8+ knots it feels pretty zippy. But, right, bigger boats and rigid-hull cats pass me,
In light winds, the Guppy will move, but not like a rigid-keel cat with a jib of course.
The Guppy is incredibly stable. I haven’t pushed it but have probably been in winds up to 15 knots (it’s nominal limit). It will start to really move, but for me it stays flat on the water (I weigh 200 lbs, so that’s part of it) and is very easy to handle.
The Guppy fits into my Mini Cooper, goes together in 15 minutes without rushing it, and is lots of fun to sail.
I bought it without being able to test it first and have had no disappointments.
The Guppy is perfect for me — the larger MiniCats would perform better but are heavier and take a longer time to set up.
THEO
There are no words to describe the feeling! Especially as I have waited so long to be back at sea again. The MiniCat 420 is very fast and easily maneuverable. I cannot thank Ivano at Mystic Point Water Sports enough for all his patience and passion in making this a reality for me.
JEROME NOLLET
In two packs you can take the MiniCat as luggage on an intercontinental plane, and with all that it is still a sporty and exciting sailing boat.
Being a Cat is also useful on a lake with shallow grounds. I have sailed in ponds, rivers and seas, in the small boat section there is none better that the MiniCat 310. Fabulous.
Thank you to Red Beard Sailing for an excellent service.
MEGAN SHANLEY
We were nervous to take the plunge and buy our first sailboat. We don’t have a ton of space and did not want to invest in a car to tow/towing but wanted to have fun sailing. When we found the MiniCat we were so excited!
We have now taken our MiniCat in our Subaru across the country and it’s easy to put together and practice our sailing. I also have to add that Alex and the crew at Red Beard Sailing were super helpful with all our questions and needs. 5 stars all round.
FERNANDO RIVERA
For a long time I have dreamed to own a sailboat, but don’t have the space to have a towable one. Storage and transport were major concerns since I live an hour and half from the nearest suitable lake. I learned about MiniCat and was completely amazed about it’s features. Alex at Red Beard Sailing did a good job taking me and my family for a demo sail and the deal was closed the same day. We own a MiniCat 420 Emotion and it’s our dream turned into reality.
SPYROS PSYCHOGIOS
“I just bought and enjoyed for a small period of time up to now (August 2016) the 420 evoque and there are two aspects I’d like to share:
– The boat is more than a beach toy. The structure is perfect and solid; a simple construction but of real high quality. Although the first attempt to assembly takes really more than the promised 30 min, after some practice (2 or 3 times) when you finally see and understand all connections, details and the mistakes that you need to avoid (especially when raising the mast), the preparation of the boat becomes really easy. The sailing is perfect and can give you a range of emotions between pure fun and challenging sailing (depending on the winds that you will sail). It seems like that the boat itself includes a learning curve which makes it even more interesting and creates an anticipation feeling to sail again and again. Although very simple to handle, gives you the opportunity to play and start testing limits (sail in stronger winds, on one float etc.). It can be a boat for beginners (can be really fast though even with a small breeze) up to a more challenging and demanding game that you can play with for hours and hours.
– The team behind the boat is composed by real professionals who are more than interested to satisfy their client. The boat initially received (I purchased a demo boat at a discount) had a fault on one of the floats, which I only identified when tried to assembly during vacations far from home in Athens. Contacted the team and explained the problem; they reacted fast and sent me a replacement float (as part of the boat ‘s guarantee) within 4 days directly at the place of out vacations (far from Athens, the initial place of receipt). A great thanks to Petra and the team for their understanding, assistance and quick reactions. “
GABRIELE BRENTEGANI
“After a few days testing the Minicat I only can say that I don’t like it…I LOVE IT!! So safe, performing greatly and easy to sailing, even for a single person. And this is the link to my first (of many) video, I hope you enjoy it: visit link
SVEN NIK
GRAHAM CLARKE
“My experience of the MiniCat 420 so far…
We purchased our MiniCat 420 in early September 2012. Delivery was very quick – only 3 days from CZ to the UK!
We have used the boat 3 times so far, but intend to get sailing again when the weather improves.
The Good Points – Easy to sail even for a beginner, it is very fast and picks up in even a gentle breeze. The boat is well built and good quality components used throughout. Out of all the inflatable cats out there I would say that the MiniCat is the best value for money and has the best design features.
The fact that all the attachments for building the boat are connected which means you don’t lose things on the beach. Boat is easy to clean and dry off after use.
The Bad Points – Takes more time than 30 minutes to setup (The cable connections could be colour coded to help find the correct connection. The mast for one person is difficult to raise with the sail connections in place. I would recommend buying a good electric pump to help speed up inflation of the hulls as they are large and hold a lot of air. The boat is quite heavy and bulky once built (again a lot for one person).
I certainly would recommend buying one of these boats if you want to get out onto the water with the family and don’t have much storage space when not in use.
Thanks again Petra for your help and advice during the sales / delivery process.”
STEPHEN NOAR
I just wanted to write to tell you how delighted I am with my MiniCat 420.
I was somewhat apprehensive about the purchase, wondering how easily she’d fit on my 20 metre Aquastar. In fact stowage is no problem – I leave her derigged with the tubes deflated and frame assembled. Takes just a few minutes to get her ready to sail.
And how she sails! A proper little craft. She is so light that sailing in light airs is great fun, and in any sort of breeze, WOW!
As a matter of interest, I gave my 16 year old daughter, who had never sailed before, an hour’s experience on the 420. She then took me ashore from the anchorage – about two kilometres in a Force 3 – for breakfast and back out to the boat again without any help from me. She is hooked!
STEPHAN HAHLE
I have owned my MiniCat 310 for one year now. I must say the assembly is not at all complicated, in fact it’s quite self-explanatory. I watched one or two assembly MiniCat videos on YouTube, then it almost went by itself. I can assemble now in 20-30mins depending how hard I pump. I sail completely alone without any difficulties, but maybe next season I will upgrade to a MiniCat 420.
MANUEL HOFFMANN
I am very happy with my Minicat 310. The purchase was fast and uncomplicated with very good guidance! It is very easy to assemble and transport. Here in the Ecuadorian Pacific even with low winds we have near the beach waves up to 1 metre and the boat is very stable. Thank you MiniCat.
BOB WALKER
“I Love My MiniCat 420. I have sailed a SuperCat 17′ for over 30 years and found it heart breaking to sell it. I needed a boat that would be less expensive to keep, easy to store and transport as well as fun to sail. Looking on the internet I found a number of inflatable catamarans to choose from and I began to compare cost and features. Some were not more than toys and some were too big for my needs.
I came upon the MiniCat 420 and found its quality design and construction plus its hardware and rigging to be a serious sailboat. The price was competitive with other boats but I was not sure about shipping to the USA as well as parts and service. I found a dealer in Budapest who had in stock a display model that was a year old that had never been sailed for a good price and I bought it.
The dealer was also a 420 owner and experienced sailor who was very helpful and knowledgeable. When it arrived there was a minor rigging error from the factory that was replaced right away.
I love the way it sails and how easy it is to assemble and store.
Most of the time I sail single handed but it is comfortable for two people.
MiniCat is a wonderful boat and the company is serious about customer care. I couldn’t ask for more.”
PAUL KLABOST
“…what a great boat, I have my MiniCat at my flat in Spain, I keep it in the cupboard and can now sail even when I’m only there for a couple of days. I’m really surprised how responsive it is to sail and what fun it is… just what I was looking for, but never knew existed! Thanks for your help and the prompt delivery…”
OLIVER KAISER
One of the main points on the MiniCat 420 which impresses me a lot is that it really works out of the box (or the two bags). I was really doubtful on that and did not expect it. There is basically no additional tuning stuff necessary to get this cat run fast on water. Except of course a Gennaker for the 420 would make the whole thing just perfect!! The other crucial point for me to buy the MiniCat was the cool and modern design with its variety of fresh and fancy colour style compared to other inflatable cat brands. But the most mind-blowing point is this awesome MiniCat community which I entered with buying this boat. Minicat does a lot to bring owners and distributors around the world together to exchange on and live their sailing passion. Last but not least: With only a little modification you turn your MiniCat into a tiny yacht which provides sleeping accommodation for up to two persons and allows autonomous multi day yacht trips at seaside.
DILLON SCHROEDER
A few words I have about MiniCat is I was raised on Hobie Cats here on Hawaii from my father. One of the biggest inconveniences is the inability to easily set-up the boat unless a trailer and access to the beach is available. This is why I chose MiniCat! The parts are very well made and setup only takes about 30 minutes and gives endless amounts of hours of fun. The distributor (Sailing Awaits LLC) was very accommodating and I felt like I was getting a boat that I could truly enjoy and I have truly enjoyed it thus far.
DUMITRESCU TEDDY C
“The MiniCat is a little beast. I own a 420 Emotion and never had so much fun with a small boat. It sails perfectly in 2-4 knots winds (to the annoyment of my KiteSurfer friends who have to sit and watch from the beach) and handles itself well in winds up to 20 knots (that requires some sailing skills, due to its low weight, minuscule fins and generous sail area). But then again, if you pull this off, the KiteSurfer friends are getting double-annoyed. Plus, it launches from the beach single-handedly. All-in-all, if you like sailing, there is no excuse not to own one.”
SIMON WESTON SMITH
You have put together a beautiful boat. I have had a trial assembly in the garden and everything fits perfectly. I am looking forward to getting it out on the water.
Just to say again a big thank you for the superbly efficient way you have helped me with this purchase. I hope that MiniCats continue to go from strength to strength.
Best wishes
CIHAN CIHAN
Fırst of all I need to thank the producers of this magic sailing boat. Excellent work! For many years I wanted to buy a sailing boat but here in Istanbul it’s so difficult because of the high marina costs. Then I discovered the MiniCat three years ago and I decided to buy this, I connected to Petra at MiniCat, then we got a sailing boat!
İt’s so simple and east to carry where you go with your car. İ have a Mini hatchback car, when driving outside the town for holidays, my MiniCat comes on the roof, fixed with the cargo belts. İf we are 2 person we can fit it inside of the car. That’s a great choice and solution! After of the summer days, we can store it in our house.
From beginner sailors to experienced ones every user loves to sail with my boat. İt’s very friendly and tolerant with the minimal mistakes. İ’m a sailor from the age of 9 and also instructor but my wife doesn’t know sailing but she manages the boat easily without much difficulty.
I highly recommend MiniCat for anyone who wants a boat for daily sailing. My thanks to MiniCat family again.
RICCARDO PICCHI
“The structure of Minicat is truly exceptional. This is the fifth year that I use my Minicat always at sea with sustained winds and waves. For six months it remains mounted on the beach under the sun and weather. Only now signs of wear begin to appear. I am really satisfied…”
BEN SUTCLIFFE
”…it does exactly what it says on the tin…”
The assembly of my MiniCat is easy and it’s a lot of fun.