This was published 5 years ago
Ponant's new polar exploration vessel to be the world-first hybrid electric icebreaker
Artist's impression of Ponant's new icebreaker.
CRUISE IN STYLE
A reminder that we're now halfway through Choose Cruise Month, organised each October by Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) to help travel agencies and its member cruise lines showcase their cruise offerings. Next week particularly highlights luxury cruising, so if you're thinking about hitting the high seas in style it might be time to jump to it and join the record number of Australian cruise passengers (1.34 million) who enjoyed an ocean cruise in 2017. To contact a specialist CLIA travel agent in your area about the latest deals and cruise companies to suit your travelling style, see cruising.org.au
BREAKING THE ICE
A Regent Seven Seas ship in the Mediterranean.
Ponant has announced that its forthcoming polar exploration vessel will be named Le Commandant Charcot after the notable French polar explorer. The world-first hybrid electric icebreaker will be powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) and have the ability to break through ice floes more than 2.5 metres thick. Pre-bookings for the new icebreaker have already opened, with bookings launching on April 4, 2019, for cruises that will head to rarely-sailed destinations such as the true geographic North Pole, the Weddell Sea, Ross Sea and Peter I Island. The ship launches in 2021.
Phone 1300 737 178. See ponant.com
ART AND GARDENS
Visiting Brantes Castle with Botanica 2.
Botanica World Discoveries has an Art & Gardens of France 14-day cruise-tour between Cannes and Bordeaux departing on May 24, 2019, and hosted by art and design expert Brian Healey, who will give presentations, expert commentary and art tuition to enhance passengers' experience of France. The tour explores the landscapes and gardens that have inspired some of Europe's greatest painters, and visits the French Riviera and Provence before continuing with an eight-day river cruise on AmaDolce that takes in the gardens, chateaux, art and vineyards of the Bordeaux region.
Phone 1300 305 202. See botanica.travel
CRUISE TO CUBA
Seabourn has announced that it will begin sailing to Cuba, starting with a 12-day cruise on Seabourn Sojourn, departing Miami on November 4, 2019. The 11-, 12-, and 14-day sailings in November and December will visit five ports in Cuba overall, calling at three or four on each itinerary, and will feature overnight stops in Havana. Among the ports is late-colonial city Cienfuegos, World Heritage listed for its 19th century architecture; Santiago de Cuba, founded in 1515 and considered Cuba's cultural capital; and Isla de Juventud for snorkelling and diving.
Phone 13 24 02. See seabourn.com
20-20 VISION
Regent Seven Seas Cruises has rolled out its 2020-21 cruises, with 167 sailings visiting 352 World Heritage sites. Among the highlights, Seven Seas Explorer sails to Asia, Alaska, Australia and New Zealand, where it visits ports such as Sydney and Auckland for the first time. Seven Seas Voyager sails into several new ports in Italy and Cabo Frio in Brazil on maiden visits. Seven Seas Mariner offers a 117-night World Cruise from Miami to Barcelona, while Seven Seas Splendor sails to Havana in Cuba nine times during its inaugural year.
Phone 1300 455 200. See rssc.com.au
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