Aluminum is great for a hardcore fishing boat, very tough and very little maintanance. The downside of Aluminum hulls is they are loud in the water, and they conduct heat very well, so they are cold in Northern waters. I'd say for your use, Aluminum wouldn't be the best choice. That leaves fiberglass, and wood, though there aren't many commercially built choices in wood.
I also think for a couple that will primarily be taking day trips, a 22-24' boat will be more then enough for a comfortable day trip. The 26-28' boats are more for a family of 4-6 taking multiple day trips. The bigger boats are a little bit more comfortable in a slight chop, but they are still small boats. There is a good saying among boaters that the bigger the boat, the less it get's taken out. A C-dory 22 is a nice little boat, albeit the flat bottom provides a rougher ride than a semi-V.
In my highly biased opinion <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> I think the best choice in the size range your looking for is the type of boat I'm building, a Tolman Skiff
http://www.fishyfish.com/paulhail/paul.html Unfortunately there aren't any commercial builders of them. Even the 24' Jumbo is light for it's size, and hence fuel economic, and provides plenty of room to lay it out any way you want.
