Get to the Arctic First in 2025 with Le Commandant Charcot 

PONANT, the world leader in luxury expeditions, has launched sales onboard the world’s only luxury icebreaker, Le Commandant Charcot, to the Baffin Sea for Arctic summer 2025, where being alone on the edge of the world is a promise. PONANT celebrates its innovative spirit by sailing ahead of any other ship on its debut trip on 6 March 2025. There are 13 departures over seven different itineraries, including two new routes to explore the Great North.  

Guests will have a chance to immerse themselves in a unique setting of a boreal spring. Le Commandant Charcot offers an unforgettable encounter as it navigates deep into the ice during the late winter season. These remote Arctic areas, accessible exclusively by this ship, are inaccessible by any other vessel at this time of year.

The early arrival of Le Commandant Charcot provides an unmatched experience for visitors onboard. It enables PONANT to bring crucial supplies to the region’s locals, allowing them to emerge from their winter earlier than usual and have their essentials refilled.

“We will be entering another world that we have never seen before,” explains PONANT Captain Garcia. Exploration takes centre stage in all seven itineraries. Highlights such as Nordic skiing, arctic treks, dog sledding, kayaking, polar diving, and ice fishing, depending on the departure date, provide incomparable closeness to nature.

Guests will get exclusive access to the unique Inuit settlements of Disko Bay and Greenland on certain itineraries. They will meet and interact with people who live and flourish in one of our planet’s most isolated yet equally captivating positions.

“As a forefront authority in luxury expeditions, PONANT not only crafts extraordinary experiences but also takes deep pride in fostering meaningful connections and support for communities,” says Deb Corbett, PONANT General Manager Sales & Marketing Asia Pacific. “Our exceptional capability to arrive ahead of other ships enables us to elevate beyond the commonplace. Not only benefiting our guests but the communities we visit and sparking inspiration within our team to consistently pioneer impactful contributions and forge profound connections with the global destinations we traverse.”

Discover these explorations

Greenlandic Spring and Ice-Covered Disko Bay

A spectacular cruise from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Greenland’s southwest coast, where sheer whiteness reigns supreme. Villages are still trapped in the ice, cut off from the rest of the world.

“By arriving two months earlier than any other ship, Le Commandant Charcot can bring supplies to local communities, particularly fresh produce,” says José Sarica, Director of PONANT R&D Expedition Experience. When Inuit and Mi’kmaq share their spring traditions, encounters take on another dimension.

Another unusual cruise, considering the time of year, explores ice-covered Disko Bay, an immersion in Greenlandic spring. Skiing on trackless snow-covered paths, hiking to breathtaking views of ice cathedrals, discovering Arctic wildlife, or chasing the Northern Lights are all activities that reveal new facets of these territories.

From the St Lawrence to Greenland, the Last Moments of Winter, Saint Pierre and Miquelon – Reykjavik, from 6 to 21 March 2025. 

Disko Bay: Meeting the Inuit & Discovering the Unknown, Reykjavik – Nuuk, two departures on 21 March and 17 April 2025. 

Transarctic, The Quest for The Two North Poles

Summer 2025 will also see the start of a historic expedition across the Arctic in search of the Magnetic and Geographic North Poles, a point only a handful have attained. An interdisciplinary group of 20 international researchers will work together on a significant scientific project aboard Le Commandant Charcot. Talks, round tables, observations, and explanations promise guests a complete immersion in these specialists’ quest to solve some of the Arctic’s greatest mysteries.

Transarctic, the Quest for the Two North Poles, Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen – Nome, Alaska, 5 to 25 September 2025.