Marrying cutting-edge environmentally-sensitive technology with plenty of creature comforts, Ponant’s Le Commandant Charcot will blow Arctic cruise lovers away.
There’s little doubt that demand for polar cruise expeditions has never been higher. Responding to the growth in Arctic itineraries, expedition cruise specialists Ponant has developed a fleet of custom-built vessels, the most anticipated of which is the Le Commandant Charcot, a specialist high-polar vessel.
Featuring a hybrid electric engine powered by LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas), Ponant‘s Le Commandant Charcot recently left the Vard shipyards in Romania and is now completing its next stage of construction in the Søviknes shipyards in Norway, with delivery expected in April 2021.
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The vessel’s inaugural season will take her 270 guests to far-flung polar destinations in absolute luxury, many accessed for the first time. Guests will be able to experience the Arctic, including the very furthest north one can travel, the Geographic North Pole, as well as the far reaches of the Antarctic, much of which still remains relatively unexplored, while travelling in luxury on one of the world’s most environmentally sensitive ships.
The new vessel will also offer several unprecedented experiences, including being able to view these icy panoramas from a hot air balloon, exploring remote coves by electric hovercraft, assisting scientists, or, for the qualified, diving beneath the ice.
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The Le Commandant Charcot will be the first hybrid-electric ship running on LNG, a major innovation that marks Ponant’s commitment to sustainable tourism. In addition, the PC2 Polar Class ship is designed to safely sail in extreme polar regions while consuming the cleanest energy available.
In addition to its coveted itineraries, Ponant has announced that the Le Commandant Charcot will be made available to the scientific community. With laboratories, equipment, dedicated staterooms, and personnel, the ship will offer a platform for observation, research, and analysis, thereby participating in the global effort to study and conserve the poles. Thanks to its cutting-edge technology, Le Commandant Charcot will be able to access remote areas that were previously difficult for scientists to reach.
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