The Bali Catspace is a 40-foot catamaran that’s built around one clear idea: make life onboard feel easier and more spacious than you’d expect at this size. It’s not trying to be sleek or sporty. It’s trying to feel like a bigger platform once you’re actually living on it. More usable lounging space, a more social layout, and fewer bottlenecks when everyone is moving around at the same time.
Check this review of Bali Catspace by Jasmin from Boataround
What the Catspace feels like in real onboard life
The Catspace wins through layout. Bali’s signature concept is the open-plan cockpit and saloon: when the aft door is opened, the boat turns into one continuous “loft” space. In practice, that means meals are easier, people don’t split into “inside vs outside” camps, and the boat stays social even when someone is cooking. It’s a simple idea, but it changes the rhythm onboard more than most spec-sheet features.
Source: facebook/balicatamarans
Another practical advantage is how many usable “hangout” spots you get without feeling disconnected. The Catspace naturally spreads the crew out between three zones depending on sun, wind, and mood — aft cockpit, forward lounge, and flybridge — which reduces crowding and keeps the boat feeling relaxed.
Outdoor living: flybridge and forward lounge
A flybridge on a 40-footer is the Catspace’s headline feature, and it’s not just a marketing trick. It gives the skipper a great view and makes steering comfortable, but it also becomes a proper social area. On calm days, it’s often the best seat in the house: breezy, elevated, and with panoramic visibility.
Up front, Bali takes a different path from most cats in this size range. Instead of trampoline nets, you get a solid foredeck with a forward lounge. Some people will miss the classic “lying on nets above the water” feeling, but the forward lounge is undeniably usable. It feels safe, it’s comfortable for lounging, and it tends to stay drier than you’d expect.
Interior: open-plan, bright, and built for groups
Inside, the Catspace is designed to keep people together. The saloon is bright with large windows, and the galley setup is meant for real use: cooking without being separated from the rest of the crew. One detail that matters more than it sounds is provisioning practicality — the fridge/freezer capacity on many Catspace setups is noticeably more generous than what you find on some other 40-foot cats, which makes food planning and storage less of a daily compromise.
The interior vibe is modern and straightforward rather than “luxury yacht.” In this context, that’s usually a positive: surfaces that handle wet gear, heavy use, and constant traffic without you worrying about every little mark.
Cabins and bathrooms: strong layout, realistic expectations
Most Catspaces in fleets come in a 4-cabin / 4-head configuration. For groups, that’s the appeal: four proper cabins and four separate bathrooms keeps routines smoother and reduces the usual friction points. The cabins themselves feel comfortable for the size, including the forward cabins, which tend to feel less compromised than the “pointy bow” cabins on some competitors.
The trade-off is the bathrooms. In the 4-head layout they’re typically compact wet-baths, so you’re showering in the same space as the toilet. Some crews won’t care at all. Others will notice it every day. If there’s one expectation to set correctly before stepping aboard, it’s this.
Sailing and handling: comfort-first, not sporty
The Bali Catspace sails fine for what it is, but it’s not a performance catamaran. The overall feel is stable and relaxed rather than sharp and “eager,” and in lighter winds it’s normal to motorsail sooner than on more sail-oriented designs.
The flybridge delivers comfort and visibility, but it also shapes the rig: the boom sits higher, which can make some sail handling less convenient compared to lower-profile cats. And like many tall, spacious cats, you can feel more wind influence when manoeuvring in marinas in stronger conditions. None of this is a dealbreaker — it’s simply the cost of the Catspace’s comfort-driven design choices.
How it compares to other 40-foot cats
In the same size and budget range, the Catspace is the clear pick when the priority is living space and social flow.
A Lagoon 40 tends to feel more traditional in layout, often with a slightly more “yacht-like” interior impression and clearer separation between zones. A Nautitech 40 Open usually appeals more to sailors who care about steering feel and sailing performance; it often gives up some of that “floating apartment” vibe in exchange for a more sail-oriented personality.
The real choice isn’t “which one is best.” It’s whether the priority is performance under sail, or comfort and easy group living. The Catspace is unapologetically tuned for the second.
Pros
The Catspace mainly wins on liveability. The open-plan cockpit and saloon make it feel larger than many 40-footers in everyday use. The flybridge adds a genuinely useful extra hangout zone, and the forward lounge is comfortable and feels safe, especially for kids or less confident guests. In the common 4-cabin / 4-head layout, it’s also an easy boat for groups because everyone gets their own space, and the galley/fridge setup makes provisioning simpler.
Cons
The main compromise is the bathrooms: in the 4-head version they’re typically compact wet-baths, which some crews will notice every day. It’s also comfort-first under sail rather than sporty, and some people miss the trampoline nets because the solid foredeck changes that classic cat experience. In strong wind, it can feel a bit more “pushy” in marinas due to windage, and the open layout is social but gives you fewer quiet corners on the main deck.
Who the Bali Catspace suits best
The Catspace makes the most sense for crews who want a social boat with lots of usable lounging space, and who value comfort at anchor and easy onboard routines more than sporty sailing. It’s especially well-suited to groups who want the simplicity of four cabins and four bathrooms on a 40-footer.
It’s a weaker match if bathroom space is a major priority, if a sportier sailing feel is the main goal, or if trampoline lounging and a traditional deck plan are non-negotiable.
If the priority is a comfortable, group-friendly holiday boat that feels bigger than its length suggests, the Bali Catspace delivers exactly that.