Hey Schwendy; I am not a frequent poster (just reader) on here, but I figured I would comment because I was in a similar situation last year. We had one couple (in addition to us of course) in from the get-go and two couples that were iffy. As expected the iffy ones ended up not going. So, what I did was chartered the boat that I was most comfortable with (since I was the captain and most experienced on board) and would serve the 4 of us most comfortably...that ended up being a Lagoon 39'. I had more options because we chartered a sailing cat. That took all the anxiety out of the preparation knowing that I could single hand the boat if push came to shove because it was also our first bareboat charter. So, my advice to you is to charter the boat that you are most comfortable with and will accommodate your COMMITTED crew.. This sounds like its the newer MM 382 in your case. Its easy to obsess about all the different charter companies and models.. It also seems like you may be the only experienced boater so the MM382 may be the way to go. You can always bring a bigger crew on a bigger boat on your next trip. You will be much more comfortable knowing you have a boat that you can easily handle on your first trip. One other note; I found owners time on sailonline.com (not sure if there are powercats on there)and turns out it was Tony's (whose here on TTOL also) boat "Mardi Gras"! Good luck with your decision. My hardest part in planning was drawing the line in the sand with the two couples that couldnt/wouldnt commit.. and after seeing all our pics, I dont think they will have a committment problem next time..