dinette or couch with table?

Do you prefer a dinette or a sofa in your cabin?

  • Dinette table

    Votes: 22 36.7%

  • Sofa

    Votes: 38 63.3%
  • Total voters
    60
  • Poll closed .
water rat

water rat

New Member
Jul 9, 2007
424
Tampa
Just wondering what everyone prefers... I'm thinking about moving up to a used 300 DA down the road, and the models that are 2005 and earlier have two cabin layouts. Either the opposing faced dinette or the "crescent shaped" sofa with a table.

Which do you prefer and why? Just wanting some feedback as to the pro's and cons.

thanks!
 
I had the optional sofa layout on our 2002 300DA,and I spent some time on a 300DA with the dinette setup. The sofa option makes the cabin feel much roomier. Also you cannot fit 4 adults at the dinette. Maybe 2 aduts and 2 small kids. The dinette option also looks a bit dated IMO.
 
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One of the reasons I bought the 290. We never used the inside dinette, just a waste of space. We are either topside or out to dinner.
 
Different strokes for ..... We bought the 310 Sundancer for the dinette. In the spring and fall, up here it is quite cool. There is room for four adults. If we were in a warmer climate, we would always eat in the cockpit..

Robert Blatter
310 Sundancer 2001
 
Sofa. The cabin is much roomier if you take the table out, you can still seat four if you prefer, and you can lay on the sofa if it's just you. The dinette is probably better for eating if you are with more people, but that is rare in our boat.
 
Mine is rather unique to the year. It has a wrap around table. We have had 6 adults around it. It becomes a sofa if you take the table out. Choice is yours. The dinette never appealed to us. Also unique is that our mid cabin has a door. No curtain. Snoring goes through curtains, but not doors.
 
With kids and evening board games I would opt for the dinette. However, my kids are grown and the sofa is more comfortable for lying down and watching TV.
 
Hate the sofa. Love the dinette. It was one of the attractive features of my 310.

Not only do the sofa ones not seat as many, but the table is too small. Also, you get far less storage.

Don't care for the boat "feeling" more open. I like storage and comfort. I can't serve dinner or store things in a feeling.

But you guys are entitled to your opinions even if you are wrong.
 
Dinettes are useless until you get to a big boat bridge boat like Tim's. Don't know anyone who would use them. My previous boat (26') had one. Since the dinette is off-center, when you put everyone in the dinette, the boat lists. If you don't need it, don't get it. You will regret having it.

Best regards,
Frank
 
We liked the sofa (crescent shape) very much on 300 and above models. It makes cabin so much roomier and looks much better. The dinette looks like an old style and we didn’t feel that it would fit many more people. As for sleeping arrangements, it’s smaller in length, but might be just few inches wider. Could work for kids, but otherwise it’s not the best option. Due to the fact that 310 has only dinette option we ruled it out from our upgrade list. As with anything, it a matter of preference and taste.

Just my .02c
 
We opted for the dinette because the table used with the crescent sofa is a wimp. It shows nice in the brochure if all you want it for is a couple wine glasses and a bowl of grapes. If you really want a sofa, drop the dinette table, put in the filler cushions now you've got a sofa that you can put up your feet. The storage below the seats provide a lot of room, and cabin storage in a 300DA for bulky items is minimal.

However, user preference, to each their own...but comparing cabin room of a 300DA to a boat with a wider beam isn't really apples to apples....just my 0.02
 
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I think to make the proper choice you need to ask yourself how often will you use the table in the cabin and how many people vs. how often will you use the bed (this is becides the question on looks and design)? If you need to use table for 4 or more people a lot, then dinette is the winner.

In our case we use the table very rarely, but we use sofa much more. I would agree that having more than 4 people behind the table in sofa style option is an issue.

Each family desires and use are different.
 
On my 340DA we opted for the sofa / table setup. For us with kids and a dog it allowed us the most floor space with the sitting area. Plus, when not using the table ti was great to louunge on to watch TV or to hang. Also, it converted to a berth quite nicely. And there was plent of storgae under the sofa in many places so with the option we did not loose on storage.
 
When we went from the 280 (with dinette) to the 300 the lack of dinette was a big concern - in fact we looked for a 300 with the dinette layout but couldn't find one - as stated above dealers like the couch models because the look bigger with the table out - and while the table is small we do most of our dining in the cockpit anyway - in the 280 my wife 2 small kids and I could not fit in the dinette together anyway (don't know about the 300s dinette size) - for what its worth we ended up being thankful we went with the couch/small table as it gives us max flexibility
 
I went with the dinette.....because I didn't have a choice. :lol:

I have 2 kids and it makes sense for us. With the table dropped and the cushions in, it makes a great area for the kids and their friends to hang out while mom and dad are chillin topside.

I also like having a real area to review charts, set the laptop etc. as well.

To each his own.
 
We had the dinette on our 06 Amberjack 290 and now we have a sofa on our 08 Sundancer 310. The sofa is much better four us, and more comfortable for relaxing in the cabin.
 
Uplate said:
Mine is rather unique to the year. It has a wrap around table. We have had 6 adults around it. It becomes a sofa if you take the table out. Choice is yours. The dinette never appealed to us. Also unique is that our mid cabin has a door. No curtain. Snoring goes through curtains, but not doors.
Click to expand...


You never heard me snore...:smt043
 
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