2 0 1 82 0 1 82 0 1 82 0 1 82 0 1 82 0 1 8BOATS & GEARjune/july 2018cruisingworld.com88
A
t a press event
during the Miami
International Boat
Show last winter, the Lagoon
50 was described by a compa-
ny spokeswoman as being “the
most open-minded catamaran
on the market.” That’s a state-
ment that could be taken in a
number of ways.
First, there are the multiple
social areas encompassed by
the boat’s 48-foot-5-
inch LOA and 26 -foot-
7-inch beam. There
are dining tables in-
doors and out, lounge
areas astern and for-
ward. Overhead, the fl ybridge
offers more room to gather or
get away. The crew could sun-
bathe on cushions that store in
a locker built into the Bimini,
or take a seat by the wheel
and help out with the sailing,
though, to be honest, with au-
topilot, a self-tacking jib and
electric winches at your fi nger-
tips, it’s possible to keep things
simple. Then again, roll out
the optional genoa and sheet
it home, and things can getsporty, real quick.
We tried a little of both in
some breeze after the show.
With a reef in the main and the
self-tending jib trimmed home,
coming about required turn-
ing the wheel and adjusting
the traveler using the nearby
electric Harken line drive.
Later, with the big ( optional)
headsail set, well, I was happy
to have a couple of extra sets of
hands to help sort out
steering, blowing one
sheet and trimming
the other, and keeping
track of the high-aspect
square-top main. For
the record, beating in about
15 knots of breeze, the speedo
ranged from 5.6 to 6.2 knots;
with the genoa unfurled and on
a reach, the GPS read 9 knots
and change.
Open-minded could also re-
fer to the range of layouts avail-
able. The cat we sailed featured
an owners suite in the starboard
hull with an island-style double
berth aft, a head with separate
shower in the bow and a walk-
in dressing room inboard andjust forward of the compan-
ionway to the saloon. Portside,
there were cabins fore and aft
with en-suite separate head
and shower. Instead of a dress-
ing room, there was a cavern-
ous storage space inboard. If
desired, the port heads could
be reconfi gured to create three
single-stall heads with show-
ers, and the storage space could
be transformed into another
double cabin. And if an owner
chose to forgo a master suite, a
six-cabin, six-head layout is also
available, though to me, 12 crew
even on a 50-footer seems tight.
All that room for variation
below translated into abundant
living space above. Stepping
aboard from the optional fold-
down swim and tender plat-
form, a long couch spanned the
transom, with storage on the
port end and a barbecue on the
other that can be spun around
so you can cook either from
the cockpit or transom stairs. A
teak table was forward to port,
located nearby the L-shaped
galley just inside the saloon.
With both its leaves open, thetable seats 12. Opposite was a
cushioned couch alongside a
fridge, ice maker and sink.
Entering the saloon, you step
into the cook’s domain, with
L-shaped Corian counters to
either side of the sliding glass
door. To port, there was sink,
cooktop, oven and microwave;
to starboard sat a fridge, freez-
er and storage. Ahead, an island
offered yet more locker and
counter space, and it served
as a transition to a raised liv-
ing area that was a step higher
than the rest of the bridge-
deck. A full-size nav station was
to starboard. Forward of that,
a U-shaped couch wrapped
around the front of the saloon.
In the center, there was a clev-
er table arrangement: Upright,
it was for dining; tipped aft and
lowered on its hinged legs, it
rested against the island (which
also housed a retractable fl at-
screen TV) and became a place
to set cocktails or popcorn on
movie night.
There was yet more seating
on the foredeck, where another
U-shaped couch (forward-
facing this time) surrounded
another small table. The build-
er designed the center saloon
window so it lowered to let in
the breeze or so crew inside
and out could converse.
The 50 comes standard with
a pair of 57 hp Yanmars. The
boat we sailed was powered
with optional 80 hp Yanmars.
The option list included a num-
ber of other upgrades, includ-
ing an 11 kW Onan genset,
which brought the price tag to
just about 1.07 million euros
(roughly $1.32 million, depend-
ing on currency fl uctuations).
Lagoon has bigger boats
in its range, but they’re de-
signed with a captain and crew
in mind. The 50 is meant for
the owner and mates who’ve
outgrown their 45-footer but
still want to go off voyaging
on their own, and can do so
thanks to a networked plot-
ter and autopilot, a bow thrust-
er, a self-tacking jib and power
winches. When it comes down
to what’s possible, it pays to
keep an open mind.Mark Pillsbury is CW’s editor.AIDED and ABETTED
The all-new VPLP-designed LAGOON 50 takes full advantage of the latest technology to
keep sailing simple.BY MARK PILLSBURYBILLY BLACK