Catamaran Lagoon 51: Plenty of space, even more comfort and good sailing characteristics
In direct comparison with cruising catamarans of the same size, the new Lagoon 51 looks like a skyscraper. The wide, Lagoon-typical window front, the high flybridge with an even higher, fixed bimini and a width of more than eight metres do not exactly make the new ship from the Beneteau Group look agile and sporty. But this impression is deceptive, as we discover during a test run off Port Ginesta in Spain.
Good sailing characteristics
While YACHT still praised the mast positioned far aft in the test of the predecessor model Lagoon 50, which "finally made a self-tacking jib of a reasonable size" possible, Lagoon now has a completely different concept with the 51 model, with the mast moved as far forward as possible and a genoa. The mast support, which has also been moved forward below deck, is no longer centred in the saloon and allows for a much more open layout and an appropriately sized dining table. "We don't want to build lame ducks, but living comfort is more important than achieving one decimal place more speed," says Quentin Béraut, Product Manager at Lagoon. However, despite the gain in space at the expense of the sail plan, the sailing characteristics of the Lagoon 51 are very passable even in light winds.
Up to six cabins and twelve berths
The test ship was equipped as an owner's version with a large cabin on the starboard side and three cabins on the port side. However, the Lagoon 51 is also available as a charter version with six cabins and up to twelve berths. Surprisingly, however, this is not the main target group of the shipyard, which has already sold 100 boats of the 51 model. "Only 20 per cent of the boats go into charter," says Béraut, "the others to private owners". The majority are probably to people who want to make their new Lagoon 51 their second or even main home on the water. And why not?
Read the test of the Lagoon 51 in YACHT 24/2022 - on newsstands from 16 November.
