Lagoon 380 Buyer's Guide, Specs and Used Prices

How the Lagoon 380 became the default first catamaran

Ask a multihull broker which boat they have sold more times than any other and a surprising number will say the Lagoon 380. Lagoon, then part of Construction Navale Bordeaux and owned by Groupe Beneteau since 1995, launched it at the turn of the millennium and kept building it until 2019. Around 1,000 hulls left the factory, a figure that makes it one of the most produced cruising catamarans in history and, until the Lagoon 42 came along, the brand's single biggest seller.

The reason is not glamour. VPLP drew a boat that fits a slip most monohull sailors can imagine paying for, sleeps two couples in privacy, and is simple enough for a husband and wife to run without crew. Charter companies loved it because it was cheap to build and hard to break, and that charter history is exactly why so many are on the used market today. If you are shopping for a Lagoon 380 for sale, you are shopping in the deepest pool of any catamaran under 40 feet.

Original 380 or 380 S2, and why the badge matters less than you think

In 2003 Lagoon refreshed the boat as the 380 S2. The changes were evolutionary rather than structural: larger hull windows that brighten the cabins, a reworked galley, repositioned shower bulkheads that enlarge the head compartments, more storage, and a double helm seat so the skipper has company at the wheel. The hull, rig and basic deck plan stayed the same.

Because the S2 ran for some sixteen years, the label covers boats with very different equipment. Late boats often came with better electronics, more solar capacity and the square-top mainsail option, while early S2 boats look a lot like the originals. In practice you should judge a Lagoon 380 by what has been replaced since it left the factory rather than by the sticker on the transom.

• 1999 to 2002: original 380, smaller hull ports, single helm seat
• 2003 onward: S2 with bigger windows, revised galley and larger heads
• Later production: improved equipment packages, same hull and rig

What 38 feet and a 21-foot beam actually buy you

The numbers are modest by modern catamaran standards: 37 feet 11 inches overall, 21 feet 5 inches of beam and a draft of just 3 feet 9 inches. Light displacement is about 16,000 pounds. That shallow draft is a genuine advantage in the Bahamas, the Florida Keys and the Chesapeake, where the 380 can tuck into anchorages that deeper monohulls cannot reach.

The 21-foot beam is also narrow enough that a few marinas will squeeze the boat into a wide single slip rather than charging for a double. That is not universal, but it is far more common than with a 25-foot-wide 45-footer, and it is one of the quiet reasons the 380 remains cheaper to keep than its newer, beamier replacements.

Bridgedeck clearance is generous for the era, so the 380 slams less in short chop than its compact dimensions suggest.

Inside the hulls: owner's version against the four cabin charter plan

Two layouts dominate the brokerage market. The four cabin version puts a double berth in each corner and shares two heads, one per hull. It sleeps eight adults in privacy and is the configuration almost every charter fleet ordered, so it is the most common boat on the used market and usually the cheapest.

The three cabin owner's version gives the entire starboard hull to a master cabin with a desk or office space and a separate stall shower. For a couple who cruise alone and host guests a few weeks a year, it is the one to find, and it typically commands a premium of $20,000 to $40,000 over a comparable charter boat.

The saloon follows the classic Lagoon pattern of the period, with vertical coachroof windows, a dinette forward and the galley on the bridgedeck. The navigation station is the weak spot. There is little room for modern electronics and almost no space to spread a paper chart, so most owners move the business end of navigation to a plotter at the helm and treat the inside station as a phone and laptop desk.

Under sail, with honest expectations

Nobody buys a Lagoon 380 to win races, and you should not expect it to point like a monohull. With a strong breeze near the beam it will reach 10 knots, and in good downwind conditions with a gennaker some owners see bursts into the low teens. Typical passage averages in a decent breeze run 6 to 9 knots.

Upwind is where the fixed mini keels and modest sail plan show. The boat does not hold much speed when pinched closer than about 50 degrees apparent, which translates to roughly 55 to 60 degrees true. Below about 10 knots of wind most cruisers will start an engine, and that is not a character flaw, it is how this boat is meant to be used. A sprit and a lightweight gennaker or screecher make a real difference in light air and are worth paying for on a listing.

Older boats lack a winch at the helm station, which turns furling the genoa on starboard tack into a chore because two lines share one winch. Adding a second winch, or an electric primary, is a common and worthwhile upgrade.

Small diesels, small tanks and what that means for cruising range

Most boats carry twin diesels of roughly 18 to 21 hp from Yanmar or Volvo Penta driving saildrives, with 28 to 29 hp engines on many hulls. On one engine the boat motors at roughly 5.5 knots burning about 2.5 liters (two-thirds of a gallon) per hour, and on both engines it cruises at 7 to 8 knots. Running on one engine in calm water and alternating between hulls is a common way to save fuel and balance engine hours.

Tankage is the one specification that genuinely limits long-range cruising. Diesel capacity is only about 53 to 58 gallons depending on the source and configuration, split between two tanks, and fresh water is about 79 gallons. Four people burn through that water in a few days without a watermaker. If you plan to cruise beyond the reach of marina hoses, budget for a watermaker and possibly extra jerry can storage for fuel, or buy a boat that already has both.

Electrical systems on early boats are basic, so a boat that already has lithium batteries, solar, an inverter and LED lighting is worth several thousand dollars more than one that does not.

Buying a 20-year-old Lagoon: where age shows first

A large share of the boats on the market are now 15 to 25 years old, and most have spent some of that time in charter. Build quality is typical of mass-production cruising catamarans: practical rather than refined, with interior finishes that wear fast under heavy use. The structural questions are more important than the cosmetic ones.

Interior bulkheads on the 380 are bonded to the outer hull skins and tabbed on the inner sides, and there have been reports across the Lagoon range of bulkhead separation. A good multihull surveyor will look closely at bulkhead tabbing, the forward crossbeam and the area around the mast compression post. Moisture readings on the balsa-cored deck, especially around hardware and stanchion bases, are equally important.

Saildrive diaphragms and seals have a fixed replacement interval regardless of hours, so ask for documented service. Rudder bearings, steering cables, the coachroof window seals and hatch frames are other classic wear points. None of these items is a deal breaker by itself, but together they can add $15,000 to $30,000 to the real purchase price of a neglected boat.

The ownership budget most sellers do not mention

Annual costs for a privately used Lagoon 380 in the US typically run $18,000 to $38,000 excluding depreciation. Insurance for an older catamaran in hurricane country has become the most volatile line item, and some underwriters now ask for a recent survey and named-storm plan before quoting. Berthing is the next big variable and depends heavily on whether your marina charges the 380 as a wide single or a double.

Two small diesels, a simple rig and no lifting keel or daggerboards keep mechanical costs predictable. Plan on antifouling every one to two years, saildrive service on schedule, standing rigging replacement roughly every ten to twelve years, and new sails every eight to ten seasons of active cruising. Because so many 380s exist, parts and know-how are easy to find in almost any cruising port in the Caribbean and the Mediterranean.

Resale and the logic of buying the most common catamaran

Values have held up remarkably well. A 380 bought for $200,000 a decade ago and kept in good order often resells for something close to that number, because demand for an affordable, proven catamaran has outrun supply ever since the post-2020 boom. Recorded sales sit around a median of roughly $230,000, with asking prices from about $150,000 for tired early boats to just over $300,000 for well-upgraded late owner's versions.

The newest boats, from 2015 to 2019, carry less premium than you might expect because buyers compare them with ex-charter Lagoon 40s and Leopard 40s. Buy condition and equipment first, layout second and year third.