kasr

On 5/31/2023 at 3:01 AM, Jim_Iain said:

Thanks for the well written review.   We will be taking our first Ponant cruise in September on Le Bellot .     We have good friends from Australia that sail them all the time and love the product.  Before we committed to flying half way around the world and find the Ponant product was for us we decided to do a teaser 8 day cruise.   

 

I'm hoping many of the negative events of your cruise were one offs and not consistent.  You have indeed opened our eyes.   At least Iain speaks French so may be of assistance. 

Hi, you'll find Ponant cruises in Australia/NZ quite different to Europe, as they are 90%+ English-speaking passengers. Antarctica cruises are about 75% from experience, but a lot of the Ponant expedition team in that area are Australians or New Zealanders too.

We have just booked Hobart-Lyttleton and Lyttleton-Auckland back to back in Jan 23. We've been given a deck 4 cabin for the first leg, and deck 3 for the second. I was wondering if anyone has had this before as my question is what happens with the change over - do we have to take our bags off and check back in later in the day - or will they move our stuff for us (as P&O have done for me previously)?

I've already booked to do this itinerary (in reverse) in October 2023. It sold very quickly as it will be the 2023 Chairman's Cruise hosted by Sarina Bratton - quite a lot of the passengers pre-booked it on this years Chairman's Cruise.

I'll let you know how it goes when I get back! 😁

On 2/4/2022 at 6:18 AM, VirgilB said:

This article is about 2 years old and much has changed since, but worth a read.

https://cruise-arabia.com/2019/11/24/paul-gauguin-cruises-triples-fleet-size-with-new-order-from-fincantieri/

Comments on these new ships?

Hi, we did a couple of trips on Le Laperouse when she was new in 2019 around Australia/NZ. The Explorer-class ships are great, with a maximum of about 180 pax, but often travelling with 150 or so (some of the cabins are joined to make the suites). Good facilities for a small ship, including pool and spa. Very good marina at the rear (the whole back deck lifts up and over the rear of the ship and becomes a docking pier). Only 2 eateries, a formal restaurant with some external seating, and a grill by the pool. Very good viewing decks at the front. Carries about 12 RIBs for excursions/transfers. Cabins are small but beautifully appointed. Hope that helps!

Ponant Yacht Club is the best loyalty program I've struck. We initially booked 2 cruises, and got our Major status cards before the first cruise - which meant free laundry and some discount at the shop etc on our first cruise with them.

When we then booked 3 more, we were elevated to Admiral for having booked cruises 3 and 4, so got that higher level of discount (7.5%) off the 5th one despite booking all at the same time. We will also have the Admiral level of discounts etc on cruises 3 and 4.

I recently boarded Le Laperouse in Cairns, and Ponant were strict with boarding times (the Captain greets each passenger as they board so he can't stand around all day!). We were allowed to drop our bags off a little earlier (3pm) and went and had a beer at a bar next door. As there are only 150 passengers to check in and board they whip through it quickly once they start.

Hi all,

My wife and I did 2 cruises earlier this year on Ponant's Le Laperouse (first of their smaller "Explorer" series ships, one from Cairns to Sydney and then through the Sub-Antarctic Islands off the bottom of New Zealand, and were very impressed. The cabins were small but beautifully appointed, and the service was generally excellent.

The Expedition staff were particularly good (mostly Australian on these itineraries), and the crew did their utmost to ensure the passenger got the best possible experience (we had 3 changes on the Sub-Antarctic cruise due to weather, but they always found an alternative). The Captain was very determined to get us into the zodiacs, once spending 4-5 hours at Lady Musgrave Island to find a spot where it was safe to transfer to the boats.

The include wines can be a bit hit and miss (although I believe their standard champagne has changed from Henri Abele to Piper Heidsieck in the past month, which would be an improvement for mine). The included drinks package is pretty comprehensive, but you can upgrade for EUD20 a day to a package with higher-end spirits and wines if you want.

For those booking B2B cruises, it's worth noting that Ponant will credit you with their first loyalty tier for the first cruise (rather than after the second like most programs) which means your laundry will be included. Unlimited Wi-Fi is also now included. After 2 weeks in the Sub-Antarctic my bill when I got off was EUD17... and I had to get a haircut to use up the last of the on-board credit.

Worth noting that both my cruises were conducted entirely in English, as there were only a handful of French speakers aboard - French Polynesia will be bi-lingual so all announcements will be in French first. There is some feedback on forums that French-speaking passengers tend to get more attentive service, but I couldn't fault the service.

There will be a couple of degustation-type dinners where everyone is served at once, these can be quite lengthy affairs.

Suffice to say we enjoyed Ponant enough to have booked 2 cruises back to back on Le Boreal next May sailing around the British Isles!

Bon Voyage!

Worth noting that it also includes your mini-bar in the cabin. Depending on the cruise type, there may be special events with higher quality champagnes and wines. There is also always a 'cocktail of the day' to try!

I'm on the Ponant Le Laperouse cruise this weekend, I'll post a review of the Sub-Antarctic cruise when I get back!

I've just got off Le Laperouse on a Great Barrier Reef Chairman's Cruise. I think the ship and style of cruise (and location) will dictate the observance of the dress standards. I wore a suit jacket and bow tie to the first Gala night (due to the Food & Wine theme there were 5 Gala dinners on the cruise), but didn't bother with the tie after that, as less than half the men were wearing one. The fact it was an expedition cruise on the smaller ship, and in the tropics, meant there wasn't a dinner suit/tuxedo in sight.  

In fact the ties were almost outnumbered by colourful hawaiian shirts - some worn under jackets. The ladies were always well dressed, but there weren't too many ball gowns, just very smart outfits dressed up with jewellery.

The high proportion of Australian passengers (over 2/3rds) probably swayed the result, as we tend not to be as formal as European or American passengers!  Things may well be different on a Mediterranean cruise style itinerary though.

Hi terry&mike: Absolutely loved your article as it brought back some delightful memories for us. We travelled on Le Lyrial in Feb 2016. Our cruise was the last of the season, finishing off in Montevideo after South Georgia. We didn't get to the Falklands. However, the naturalists were all going home too, so it was quite a party atmosphere aboard towards the end of the cruise.

Ponant is the only cruise line we have ever been on, as the thought of being on a ship with a few thousand of your closest friends did not appeal. We've done now 5 cruises with them and have another 6 booked. Yes, it is a bugger to have to plan far in advance.

We are stepping aboard the brand new ship Le Laperouse, in Iceland in a few weeks time. Hopefully it gets launched on time! Then later in July, we'll be aboard Lyrial again in the Med, sailing around the Greek islands and eventually to Venice. This will be a very different sort of cruise compared to the mostly expedition ones we have done so far.

The Ponant experience for us has been very good. Our first cruise was from Boston to Montreal in 2012. Ponant was still VERY French then, with only us and a few American travel writers as the only English speakers on board. We did get to feel the French snootiness a bit. My 1 year of high school French only helped a little. But, we persevered. Each cruise since then has been much better in that respect, with English speaking lectures and attempts at putting English speakers together on the same Zodiac's. Our Antarctic cruise had almost 50% Aussies. The most recent cruise in Alaska had many English speakers, but Aussies was the single biggest group after the French. A lady from Ponant told me last week that Aussies are the next biggest group of travellers on Ponant after the French. Anyway, rambling on...

Thank you again.

Cheers

Hi Wendai,

We're booked on 2 cruises on Le Laperouse early next year - I'd be interested in your feedback on the ship from your Iceland cruise?

Thanks kasr for the new update. We'll be on Le Laperouse.

 

Ponant recently announced a pre-cruise extension with 2 nights in Queenstown which will include most of the sightseeing of Celebrity's overland package, so now we have the full monty [and it's even more surefire than Celebrity, because we aren't dependent on getting into Milford Sound for the interior package and we won't miss Dusky and Doubtful Sounds if the weather cooperates]. Very glad we found this cruise. [DW says I can visit Australia with my 'next wife.' After 44.5 years of marriage she means in my widowhood, not divorce :D]

Sounds great, you will love Queenstown, it's one of the best spots in the world to visit. Dunedin is nice too, it has a very Scottish feel and is very picturesque.

When is your cruise leaving Dunedin?

Re Ponant cruises

We are booked on a new Ponant cruise in February going Sub Antarctic, from New Zealand. Its the first one snd in a newly delivered ship. Its an adventure cruise so no celebrity stuff. We will have 180 passengers. Going to be exciting, and scary if seas rough!

Hi wildlifewarrier, nice to find someone else going on the Sub Antarctic Islands cruise on Le Laperouse! Look forward to seeing you onboard!

Hi,

You will find there's a big difference between Celebrity (I assume Solstice) with 2800 passengers and Ponant (Le Laperouse with 188 pax or Le Boreal with 260ish). Ponant will be able to go into coves and places Solstice can't, and you will be able to do excursions on the ribs - with Solstice only those doing the overland section will get off, otherwise it's just scenic cruising. Ponant will also be "all inclusive", whereas drinks etc will be extra on Celebrity. Ponant will focus on the exploration side of the trip, so you will be more connected with the wildlife etc.

If you do elect to go with Ponant and go via Queenstown (which I highly recommend) you can do Milford as a day trip to guarantee seeing it, and have the option of going in one of the directions by light plane, which is a brilliant trip!

I'm doing Dunedin-Dunedin including the sounds and the sub-Antarctic islands in March 2019 - I'll report back! :-)

BrisbaneGran: Thank you for posting about your upcoming itinerary and writing a blog on your voyage!

We're booked on the Jan. 28, 2019 departure on the same itinerary in the opposite direction--Cairns to Sydney. We will be on Le Laperouse, one of Ponant's new "expedition" class ships. We've not sailed with Ponant before, but prefer smaller ships. We've sailed several times on SeaDream and Starclippers, and are intrigued by how Ponant approaches the small ship experience. We've been to Australia before, but are eager to see these unique islands and reefs.

We've read all the available reviews, and like most features we've seen about Ponant. I'll watch for your blog, and hope you have a wonderful voyage!

Thanks,

Steve

Steve, We’re booked on this cruise as our first Ponant experience, so see you there! It’s our backyard ( we live in Brisbane) so let me know if you have any questions about the islands etc!

Queenie, look forward to your feedback, I’ve got two bookings on Le Laperouse next year (Cairns to Sydney, and Sub-Antarctic islands from NZ). You’ll be among the first onboard!

I note they’ve ordered another two of this class of ship (now 6 in total) and an ice-breaker version, so they’ll have 12 ships shortly.

Going from Sydney to Auckland the prevailing winds should give you a following sea which is much better than banging into the swells! I've crossed Tasman about 5-6 times, and it's never been too rough, but there's no way of predicting how any particular cruise will be until about 7 days out...!

Good morning everyone,

 

We are signed up for a April 15, 2015 Diamond Princess cruise from Singapore to Yokohama that has three port visits in Vietnam: Phu My (for Ho Chi Minh City); Nha Trang (a tender stop), and Chan May (for Da Nang/Hue). I have perused the Cruise Critic port information and associated postings to see what we can expect, problems encountered and suggestions concerning ship's and/or private shore excursions and things to do. We are also signed onto this cruise's CC roll call.

 

Unfortunately, my searching has not uncovered a lot of recent nor relevent information. So, I'm asking any of you (in the know) for any feedback on these ports that may help us plan the best way to enjoy our visits there.

 

Looking forward to your input.

 

Mike

If you're on a biggish ship, you'll berth about 2 hours drive from Saigon (only the Vietnamese officials call it Ho Chi Minh city!) - there is NOTHING at the port so if you don't get the ships bus into the city or do a tour, you'll be stuck on board looking over the mangroves and shipping containers.

Be very careful about private tours here - the traffic is unbelievable and delays of hours can occur (on our visit one of the ships buses was involved in an accident and some buses got back over an hour late to the ship.

In Nha Trang we did a locally organised tour to a local village and a monastery, both quite interesting. Also worth a visit to the slightly strange Marine Biology Museum (not sure of the name but you can't miss it) near the quay where the tenders berth. Tour buses/cabs/ etc are available at the quay (which is about 10-15 minutes out of the main township). Just a note if your tempted to a trip on the cable car across the harbour to the big Vinpearl resort - if the wind gets up in the afternoon the cable car service can get suspended and you'll have a frantic (and probably overpriced) scramble for a water taxi to get back to the ship in time.

Hue/Da Nang I'm not visiting until December/January - I'll let you know if I find anything worth knowing! :-)