Promising to be more ecological, more accessible and more connected, the Lagoon 51 announced by surprise - or almost - at the beginning of the year is full of promise. The doors of the International Multihull Show had barely closed when the pontoons opened up, releasing the new catamaran for a good day’s delivery trip from La Grande-Motte to Canet-en-Roussillon. And an exclusive test sail under the command of Bruno Belmont, aka Monsieur Lagoon!

Test location: La Grande-Motte to Canet-en-Roussillon
Conditions: 4-8 knots of wind, calm sea

While the milestone of the 6,000th Lagoon produced has already been passed, and the fact that the 600 new catamarans scheduled to leave the three dedicated factories this year won’t be enough to satisfy an extremely dynamic market, no one here is resting on their laurels. But the world leader has a tradition of constantly challenging itself. Did the positive response to the longanticipated arrival of the Aura 51 at its rival Fountaine Pajot push it to react faster? If the answer to the question is elusive, the rejuvenation is difficult to hide. The platform is indeed that of the Lagoon 50, whose mast position has been modified - which is not insignificant from a structural point of view. In order to understand these profound changes, we had the best possible guide in the person of the Bénéteau Group’s Sailing Product Development Manager.

The boom is necessarily very high to accommodate the T-top - access is potentially complicated.
Under gennaker, the Lagoon manages to make the same speed as the wind, if there’s less than 10 knots and the sailing at 60° to the apparent.

Inventing the multihull that doesn’t yet exist

Discovering the Lagoon 51 during a cros...