Ponant Cruises

Adding a French touch of elegance to your next vacation.

Ponant taught me that France not only makes some of the best desserts on the planet, but they’re also pretty great when it comes to designing cruise ships.

Ponant is all about ultra luxury French expedition cruising, where amazing service meets small ships, refined dining, unique itineraries and features you won’t find anywhere else. This is still a niche cruise line and probably not the first name that comes to mind when you think about ultra luxury. Well, that might change after you read our guides. Ponant operates 13 ships across four classes, carrying between 12 and 264 guests. Yes, one of their sailing ships carries only 12 passengers, meaning it has fewer than ten staterooms onboard. Now that’s ultra intimate cruising.

Their ships are known for excellent service, with crew-to-guest ratios approaching 1:1 on the smaller vessels. That’s an incredible level of attention, ensuring that someone is always available to help with anything you need. The fleet is diverse and includes Sailing Ships, Sisterships, Explorers and the Icebreaker. Sisterships and Explorers feel closer to traditional ocean ships, even though they carry just 184 to 264 guests. The Icebreaker, though, is the real star of the show.

There is only one ship in the Icebreaker class: Le Commandant Charcot. Seriously, this ship is a technological marvel and Ponant's crown jewel. As the toughest passenger vessel ever built, it’s the only cruise ship in the world that can actually reach the North Pole. Yes, it sails through frozen seas and reaches the place Santa Claus calls home. It’s also a stunningly modern and luxurious ship, with an indoor swimming pool, spacious staterooms and excellent restaurants.

Your all-inclusive fare covers your stateroom, Wi-Fi, all meals and dining venues, most alcoholic drinks and all entertainment onboard. Some premium beverages cost extra and shore excursions are optional, but you could stay onboard for days and still have the best vacation of your life.

Onboard activities remain simple but fun, which is standard for ultra luxury cruise lines. You’ll find heated pools, a spa, fitness centers, saunas, theaters for lectures and movies, piano bars and cooking demonstrations. And we can’t forget the spectacular Blue Eye underwater lounge on the Explorers class. It’s a bar below sea level where you can sip wine while watching the marine world around you. It’s awesome.

It’s hard to find something Ponant doesn’t do well. This is a luxurious, romantic cruise line for couples and for anyone who wants to experience the very best cruising has to offer. If a genie appeared before us and said we had to choose one cruise for the rest of our lives, we’d pick the expedition to the North Pole on Le Commandant Charcot.

Maybe you can go in my place. And maybe Famvia is the genie you need to make all your cruise dreams come true.