Posted: May 06 2007 at 21:55 | IP Logged

Wife and I looked hard at the Chap 290 but went with the 310. To answer your question about sleeping two adults in the forward berth with the table down, the answer is yes. We really liked the 290 but here are the reasons we did not purchase the 290.

1. Bathroom is small

2. No trash recepticle in the cockpit

3. We wanted a permanent forward berth

We really liked the 290 and I do not want to discourage you but if any of the above items are a deal breaker, you may want to conisder the 288 FourWinns. Now as far as having a dealer 60 miles away, that should be a huge concern since you will need thier support to address new boat issues. Its a tough call so I recommend you go look at each one very closely. Good luck

Posted: May 07 2007 at 08:59 | IP Logged

Thanks so much for the reply...

I'm looking at an '03 Chap 300 also...The forward berth is permanent and seems A LOT bigger than the 290??? BUT I like the 290 forward berth setup a little better right now because it "seems" less crowded than the permanent bed on the Chap 300 and FW 298...

Please feel free to email me directly to give me more advice...I can sure use it...

Perry

perryberry@aol.com

Posted: May 08 2007 at 13:33 | IP Logged

I am not sure which berth is bigger. I am 5'9" and can touch the end of the berth with my toes when lying down in my 310. The aft cabin is a good size also and has an open feel to it (no coffin effect). I dont feel the 310 is crowded with the forward bed IMO. We can sit 4 adults in the dinette and 4+ more in the aft with the table setup. The 290 is best for entertaining many guests in the cabin which we do not do. We spend every weekend on our boat so having to drop the table and convert to a bed each night would be too much of a hassle. Another issue with the 290 is the TV placement. We felt it was too far away to watch from the forward berth. The differences are huge between the 300 and the 290 so you really need to get on both to help with your decision. Both are really great boats

Posted: May 08 2007 at 13:36 | IP Logged

This is what our front bed looks like, not that bad eh?

Posted: May 09 2007 at 14:53 | IP Logged

oneboatnut,

I did not mean to offend you (I am thinking I may have done so after seeing the qoute and your pic).  My intent was to present a different view that someone might consider as we also went back n forth on our purchase.  At the time we were looking at the Four Winns 298?, Cruisers 3075, and the Chaps.

Your points are valid on the bathroom (our next boat will have more here) and lack of a trash receptacle (we have considered adding a trash receptacle in the flip up stair by a slight modification).

This may sound cheesy, but my wife (girlfriend back then) and I spent time on each boat going through the motions of a normal boating day.  I believe it helped us choose.

We also considered that there is only two of us and we use the aft-cabin for sleeping.  We rarely ever convert the front to a berth (I guess it could go the other way leaving it it as a berth).  When rafting up for the evening we are often the host boat and utilize the interior seating.  For us, the view of a bed (no matter how attractive) was not something we wanted while preparing meals or entertaining.  This is solely a personal thing - or maybe a personal quirk.

The bed thing has really stuck with us as we think about our next boat.  We find that we desire a stateroom with a cabin door with the other must have, a separate shower in the head.  It looks as if we may be moving out of the express cruiser style and most likely into a sedan bridge boat.