I am properly envious of your catamaran adventure and expect that if you can afford to rent it you are deemed competent enough to bring it home in one piece. My guess is that a catamaran is preferred for renting due to its lack of a keel which on a single hull sailboat protrudes deeply into the water and is always seeking a reef upon which to ground. There was an unfortunate example of this in the marina on Maui where snorkelers were told the tale of the unfortunate sailor who avoided the fees associated with renting a marina slip only to have the wind and currents uproot his anchor and drive the boat aground on the reef where it remained for a long time incurring fines on a daily basis (the boat may since have been recovered, I do not know). My own sailing experiences were few and confined to sailing a little Sunfish on a New Jersey reservoir but the thrill of riding the wind is pure exhilaration.