Swedish Omega 30 came into existence in 1983 at the drawing board of the successful Irish designer Ron Holland, commissioned by Familjebåtar AB in Sweden, who gave him free rein to design a good-looking and well-sailing family boat with timeless lines, without regard to measurement rules.
The new boat quickly became a success due to its well-thought-out layout and, especially, its fine, fast sailing qualities.
Omega 30 sailors have told us that they think the boat sails remarkably well, and that the Omega is an almost perfect small cruising boat.
The Omega balances well on the rudder, is easy to steer, and turns almost on a plate. Therefore, it is a good boat for both completely new sailors and more experienced racing and cruising sailors.
The Omega 30 was quite modern for its time. The jib and self-tacker were standard equipment, which makes it easy for cruisers to sail upwind. Some Omega 30 owners, however, prefer to sail with a genoa, and several have completely removed the self-tacker. Others have instead equipped the boat with a 6–7 m² larger jib because the original jib is too small in light wind.
Upwind, the Omega 30 does not like being forced to extract height. You achieve a much better VMG (combined speed through the water and pointing) by sailing a few degrees lower and letting the sails breathe a little, rather than pulling them too tight.
In this way, the boat is also easier to steer for cruisers. A boat is always more forgiving to steer and faster for less experienced helmsmen when you do not push the boat to its absolute maximum pointing.
The rig is simple and generally easy to handle for cruisers, especially as it lacks the typical backstay of the time. The mast foot has a fixed placement on the keel beam in front of the main bulkhead. As long as the forestay length matches the original, the mast stands correctly, provided the upper shrouds are tensioned very hard and the mast is trimmed perfectly athwartships. At the same time, the mast profile must always have a pre-bend of about half a profile width.
A- and S-versions
Not all sailors were enthusiastic about the aft cabin and its modest companionway, preferring instead a larger saloon. Therefore, the yard later built an S-version with the cockpit and aft bulkhead moved forward into the boat, while maintaining the same cockpit length. This provided extra space to leeward, where the layout was modified with a longitudinal galley along the entire length of the saloon on starboard and a long U-shaped dinette with a fixed table on port. The S-version still retained two aft berths, both open to the saloon. However, the layout forward of the main bulkhead remained unchanged.
High quality with few weaknesses
The Omega 30 is also a well-built and robust boat of high quality with very few weaknesses. The greatest weakness is the original Isomat masts with only one spreader, some of which have broken.
Several Omega 30s have received a new and more stable rig with a better profile and two spreaders when the broken mast profile needed replacement anyway. If the original Isomat mast is still on the boat, it has likely been correctly installed throughout the boat’s life.
In addition, the sliding hatch is designed somewhat unfavorably, so rain and wash water can run forward into the cockpit and drip down into the cabin. This can best be remedied by keeping the sliding hatch covered with a sprayhood or replacing it with a new sliding hatch that seals better against water.
We know sailing families who have had their Omega 30 for many years, so the market is not flooded with used Omegas. We found four Omega 30s for sale in Denmark, with asking prices ranging from 180,000 to 310,000 DKK, but nowadays most owners and sellers are usually willing to negotiate the final price.
Built at Vindö
300 Omega 30s were built over four years, most of them at the famous Vindö shipyard, particularly known for their Vindö cruising boats in fiberglass with beautiful mahogany decks.
Vindö was among the Swedish yards that succumbed in 1989 to the financial crisis in Sweden during the 1980s, which led to a massive devaluation of the Swedish krona. Both Familjebåtar AB and Vindö were known for high quality and also had success with the larger sister ship Omega 34. The sleeker Omega 42, designed by Peter Norlin, was also built at Vindö, while the sister ship Omega 36 was built at Brdr. Börjesons yard.
Children love the aft cabin
The Omega 30A has a small aft deck, under which there is a separate aft entry in the cockpit to the boat’s two aft single berths. The port aft berth is also open towards the salon.
Most children love this semi-open aft cabin on weekend and summer trips because they have a closed, cave-like adult berth to starboard and their own exit to the cockpit.
On port, the 30A has an unusually large and well-equipped L-shaped galley for its time, with a gimbaled stove and oven. In addition, the galley has a pull-out board that provides extra workspace.
The Omega 30A has a sofa berth to port, which can be extended to a double berth with the backrest. At the same time, the salon’s folding table acts as a bed guard for the double berth. Opposite is a shorter double sofa to port, between the large galley and the main bulkhead.
There is a toilet and washbasin to port between the salon and the forward cabin, as well as an open and spacious wardrobe to starboard. The forward cabin can have either a double berth or two single berths. When two singles are chosen, the triangular piece at the head of the double berth can be placed all the way forward between the boat’s two longitudinal shelves above the berths.
The Omega 30 was one of the first cruiser/racers of its time not to have a traditional chart table.
Newer engine and lots of equipment
We found “Kispus” from 1985 on Boatindex.com, where Yachtbroker in Svendborg is selling this Omega 30A for the owner with an expected asking price of 200,000 DKK.
The 30-year age has passed lightly over “Kispus,” which appears neat and well-maintained. The boat has been well cared for and is very well equipped. Notably, the original engine was replaced with a completely new 15 hp Yanmar in 2008 with a new folding propeller. The owner says the engine has always run at least the recommended quarter hour after starting.
In addition, the boat has a large newer cockpit tent, a newer and very well-maintained modern sprayhood with a large window, good cockpit cushions, shore power, electric cooler, and, not least, a cabin heater, all contributing to high comfort on trips in the variable Danish summer weather.
The boat is for sale because the family no longer sails on holidays, as the children do not want to go on long trips. Therefore, “Kispus” is to be replaced with a smaller boat for day and weekend trips.
We looked at “Kispus,” which appears clean, well-maintained, and ready to set sail. The boat was dry, clean, and odor-free below. Even the boat’s brown stove with oven, which almost dates the boat, is very well maintained. This is rare for a 30-year-old boat with original galley stoves.
The salon cushions are in fine condition and show no signs of wear, while the cushions in the aft cabin and forward cabin have been replaced by the current owner family, who have had the boat for seven seasons.
The mainsail is from 1997 but has full-length battens, giving the sail a longer life, and Frederiksen mainsail slides. The boat’s self-tacker has been removed, and it has received a roller jib. “Kispus” also has all desired equipment and full spinnaker gear. It is a boat ready to sail on a trip, without even needing cleaning first.
Omega 30 and the newest competitors
| Boat | Length (m) | Waterline (m) | Beam (m) | Draft (m) | Displacement (kg) | Ballast % | Mainsail (m²) | Genoa (m²) | Weight/Sail Area |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omega 30 | 9.40 | 8.00 | 3.00 | 1.55 | 3500 | 37 | 27.0 | 32.0 | 59.3 |
| Han. 315 | 9.10 | 8.70 | 3.35 | 1.85 | 4700 | 32 | 29.5 | *17.5 | 100.0 |
| BOC31 | 9.30 | 8.69 | 3.39 | 1.80 | 4850 | 21 | 24.6 | **24.6 | 98.6 |
| B33 | 9.75 | 8.85 | 3.42 | 1.95 | 5200 | 25 | 29.0 | 22.0 | 101.9 |
| S33 | 9.99 | 9.04 | 3.35 | 1.75 | 4950 | 30 | 32.0 | 37.5 | 71.2 |