A look into a luxury expedition cruise with Ponant

We comfortably flew from Manchester Airport to Terminal 3 at Paris Charles de Gaulle where we found a concierge desk for Ponant guests – we were already feeling exclusive. The team there explained where the check-in desks were for our onward journey to Longyearbyen, and tagged our luggage for us. They also explained that there would be a buffet breakfast provided after security, something we were very excited for because we’d heard all about the famous Ponant croissants!

Tip: Terminal 3 is used by charter airlines and some long haul flights, so it’s a much smaller terminal with only nine gates. It makes more sense for Ponant to use it and it adds to the already growing sense of exclusivity.

Check-in was a breeze, and we boarded on time; we were finally heading for Longyearbyen.

The seats were comfortable and the meals were provided with fine silverware and glassware. The beverages were flowing throughout our four and a half hour flight; the service was exceptional and a sign of things to come. Compared to low cost airlines operating the same aircraft with four crew to 180 passengers, there were six crew for 160 passengers. Everything went very smoothly before landing in the Polar Bear Kingdom.

Landing was something else. The scenery was breathtaking even though the airport was like a tiny shed! We stepped off the airport, went through the terminal building with no customs or checks, and straight onto our transfer – straight to our adventure.

Tasting excellence

The ship, L’Austral, is a typically French ship, oozing class and refinement. We had plenty of time to explore everything this beautiful vessel has to offer – and one thing I enjoyed more than most were the onboard culinary experiences we gorged ourselves in.

It was love at first taste. After settling in on the first night we were treated to a show-stopping four-course meal: A soup course, tender octopus for entree before beef for mains and a delicious chocolate dessert. Ponant push gastronomical boundaries on their ships.

I enjoyed breakfast in different settings on each of my days on board. Some days we decided to eat breakfast in our suite – or outside our suite. We donned our complimentary parkas and sat on the balcony to enjoy delicious pastries and freshly ground coffee as incredible icy, snowy scenery passed us by.

Other days we sat by the outside pool; again we had our parkas fully zipped up to enjoy the mountain views! Breakfast on Ponant, with all that beautiful scenery and those beautiful pastries, was truly something to behold! Different scenery at each breakfast, same attention to detail from the Ponant chefs. 

Lunch was always something to look forward to. The buffet offered brilliant options every day and was the perfect way to refuel before and after any excursionary activities. There was fresh wild salmon with a choice of marinades, Norwegian meatballs accompanied by a fresh Norwegian salad; whole salad buffets, freshly made pasta.

Other days we enjoyed a sit-down meal in the ship’s restaurant, with local venison a personal highlight.

If breakfast and lunch were good, dinner was extraordinary every night. Expedition cruising has gone past shivering in your sleeping bag and eating gruel out of a camping tin. We dined in absolute luxury every night, enjoying two gala dinners on board.

The farewell gala dinner was particularly delicious; seven courses featuring scallops, duck, chicken and steak! 

Encountering the Arctic

Spending a week in the Arctic is something I’ll never forget. From our first Zodiac stop on the second day to sailing away from the sea ice as we voyaged back home – it was absolutely magical. On our first full day at sea we visited a sight of outstanding natural beauty – a beach with a famous hunting lodge. In the 1930s a lone woman lived there, hunting whales and bears for five years! You really don’t think about the human side of an Arctic expedition before you go, but the stories and culture from that corner of the world is fascinating. 

Another whaling spot, Bamsebu, was similarly fascinating but horrific – a spot where over 500 whales were slaughtered as late as the 1970s. All the whale skeletons remain on the beach – haunting.

One afternoon, the ship docked into the small settlement of Ny Alesund. This was quite surprising actually! Not only was it the first time the ship was actually docked all week, but this was the world's northernmost settlement. We wandered from the ship up the main road to the museum and the post office, to send a postcard home!

The natural wonder was obviously a huge highlight. We sailed by Zodiac right up the Magdalena Fjord; some walruses, seals and even seal cubs swam alongside our boat while others snoozed on the beach around 80m away. We navigated icebergs and zoomed right past active glaciers with kitty waites and other Arctic seabirds flying overhead; plenty of seals were gliding about in the water too.

One day we sailed deep into the pack ice on the ship in search of polar bears. The silence and stillness – apart from the ship chewing through the ice –  was absolutely beautiful. Unfortunately, no polar bears!

We sailed up to beaches and met herds of reindeer up-close. They were much more curious than I imagined, and not-at-all intimidated by 100-or so of us in bright red parkas staring and snapping photographs of them. We took a stroll along another beach to observe the different types of flora we could find. We were with the fabulous onboard naturalists – and that’s what I’ll talk about in the next section.

Enjoying the hospitality

The expedition staff on board L’Austral were superb. They hosted a Q&A Session on the first night in the Observatory Lounge where we learned all about reindeer and whales. We also spoke to two guides from Greenland and Svalbard about their culture, childhood and their different ways of life. We enjoyed evening shows from the brilliant entertainment staff; a show in the lounge followed by music and dancing and midnight photos on the marina deck showing the glacier in the midnight sun.

The Ponant service staff were fantastic, the spa staff were always on hand as we enjoyed the Hammam steam room and other spa facilities. Nothing was too much trouble for them, they were absolutely amazing!

On the final day we left the ship at 9am by tender. We boarded the English-speaking coach and enjoyed a tour of Longyearbyen, which included meeting the working dogs out at a camp and learnt all about their lifestyle with pancakes and coffee to accompany. 

It was the perfect end to our Arctic adventure – an adventure I’ll never forget. 

If you want to experience Ponant's expedition luxury, call a dedicated Panache Cruises connoisseur on 0161 513 8200.