PONANT Cruises
PerksFora ReserveExpeditionLuxury
A French line of small ships and expedition yachts, sailing from the polar regions to the tropics.
Your VIP perks for booking with us
- A $100 shipboard credit per person through Virtuoso, up to $200 per stateroom, on all voyages.
- On Le Commandant Charcot, a $200 shipboard credit per stateroom or suite when booked with a Virtuoso advisor.
Virtuoso
PONANT was founded in the late 1980s by a group of French merchant navy officers, and it remains recognisably French: the tricolour at the stern, French officers on the bridge, and a serious approach to bread, cheese and wine. Its ships are small and sleek, closer to private yachts in profile than to cruise liners, with pale contemporary interiors.
The range is broad. The same fleet sails expedition voyages to Antarctica, the Arctic and the Kimberley with naturalists and Zodiacs, and gentler yachting itineraries through the Mediterranean and other warm seas. At one extreme is Le Commandant Charcot, a polar exploration vessel built to push deep into the ice. At the other is the original three-masted Le Ponant, a sailing yacht for a few dozen guests.
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