Eric Macklin walks the new 52-foot Bali at its American premiere — 4,700 watts of solar, a 48-volt lithium heart and a galley good enough for a chef.
Wind whipping across the docks at the Annapolis Boat Show, Eric Macklin takes a few minutes to introduce S/V Bali 5.2 — the 2026 Bali 5.2 making its debut in the American market. Bali owners already know the brand’s signature moves: the tilting aft door, the opening forward door, the solid foredeck. What this walkthrough does is show how the 52-footer builds on them.
Access and flow, on both sides
Macklin starts where a lot of catamarans compromise: the climb to the flybridge. Instead of a single narrow spiral, the 5.2 offers wide steps on both sides, identical port and starboard, with handgrips and a shroud to grab. In a running seaway, he notes, that redundancy is a genuine safety feature — and he calls the flow up to the flybridge best-in-class.
Forward, the solid foredeck returns: no trampolines, all usable space, and strongly built. Paired with the front door, it becomes an extension of the saloon rather than a place you only visit at anchor. The enormous scupper is the quiet engineering story here — Macklin says a boarding wave that filled the foredeck would drain in under twelve seconds.
A 48-volt boat
The systems package is where this hull feels current. A CNC-cut solar array wraps the boat and covers the flybridge top — 4,700 watts in total, fitted so precisely that it doesn’t disturb the lines. On a sunny day, Macklin says, those panels will fully recharge the lithium bank every single day.
That bank is 48 volts, which he calls the holy grail, and the air conditioning is 48-volt DC — meaning it can run all night without the generator, for a genuinely quiet boat at anchor. When power is needed, a 22 kW generator in its own dedicated room feeds the inverters to charge the bank. Everything — pumps, lighting, electrical — runs through a MuxSan control system at the nav station, alongside the instruments and generator start panel.
Living aboard
The owner’s side carries a king bed and, unusually for a 52, a walk-in closet. The galley earned its keep during the show: a chef prepared canapés in it for guests on the float. Double basin, oven, eye-level storage, generous counter space — “as good as a galley can get,” in Macklin’s words.
Finishes have moved up too, with curved wood edgings, concealed lighting and tidily integrated air-conditioning ducts. The saloon table drops to coffee-table height so the space converts from dining to lounging, and with the aft door open and the windows slid back the whole area reads like a covered porch.
Macklin’s personal favorite feature is aft: a tenderlift rated to 1,000 lb, enough for a substantial dinghy. Lowered into the water, it doubles as a swim platform — a beach off the back of the boat.
Where the model sits
For context, YachtSite currently shows two active Bali 5.2 listings:
| Active Bali 5.2 listings | 2 |
|---|---|
| Asking range | $965,000 – $1,749,000 |
| Median asking | $1,357,000 |
As Macklin says at the close, there is more to this boat than a short video can cover — he’s happy to share details directly.