PONANT EXPLORES THE GLOBE WITH A DECIDEDLY FRENCH ACCENT.

LET’S TAKE A BREAK FROM THE KITCHEN AND BOARD A FRENCH EXPEDITION CRUISE SHIP FOR ANOTHER ADVENTURE ALTOGETHER. HERE’S AN ARTICLE I WROTE FOR CRUISING JOURNAL (WWW.CRUISINGJOURNAL.COM) WITH AN ADDITION TO TALK ABOUT THE CUISINE ABOARD PONANT*

Trust the French to create a Cruise Line that takes passengers to the most remote places on earth and then returns them to a level of luxury France is famous for. We were privileged to sail on a new itinerary for Ponant aboard Le Dumont-d’Urville, one of six identical 184-passenger Ponant Explorers.

“Belize and Honduras: Unexpected Encounters and Nature” sails from Belize City south to Honduras and then wends its way home. For eight fascinating days, we explored jungles, saw Mayan ruins, visited lost tribes on remote islands, watched Red-footed Boobies as they built nests, witnessed the mating of Frigate birds, swam and snorkeled in pristine waters including Belize’s immense Blue Hole—a paradise for skin divers whose deep blue color contrasts with the turquoise water surrounding it. Does it sound like familiar territory to Expedition cruisers? Perhaps. But only if the Captain of your Ship helped every passenger board every Zodiac. Only if you returned to wonderful French cuisine developed by none other than Alain Ducasse, one of the most decorated French chefs of his generation. Only if your ship’s sophisticated décor was created by Jean-Phillippe Nuel, renowned for his elegant and contemporary interiors, a perfect fit for Le Dumont-d’Urville’s sleek, modern exterior. And only if your Expedition Fleet is the only French-flagged cruise line in the world. Ponant is an Expedition Cruise line like no other. Its strategy: “Explore to Inspire”.

* With the exception of the Lead Photo and all food images, the photographs here were all taken by the exceptional Ponant Photography Team aboard our cruise on Le Dumont d’Urville.

 YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SPEAK FRENCH TO LOVE PONANT

But it certainly helps to love French wines, French cuisine, French “joie de vivre” and French style. Yes, the official language of Ponant is French. And you can expect that the largest group of passengers will be French. But every lecture, every briefing, every announcement is also given in English. Every waiter in the restaurants, every bartender, and every cabin attendant speaks the fluent English of their native Philippines. This marks a change from pre-pandemic Ponant which had an entirely French crew. Never once did we encounter any language issues aboard the ship. And for those of us who like to dust off our High School French, this is also a perfect opportunity to do so.

AND HOW WAS THE FOOD?

In a word, Fabulous!  From morning in a choice of two restaurants, one the Main Dining Room, the other the outdoor and more casual Grille, the food aboard Ponant is beautifully prepared and beautifully presented. Every course is a work of gastronomical art.  Of special note, the Pastry Chef aboard Le Dumont d’Urville outdoes himself in creating extraordinary things to eat from your first Croissant in the morning, to the finale to your dinner.  Accompanying all your meals are a selection of wines, all included in your fare, of your choice. Should you wish to step up your wine selection, the ship’s cellar includes some rarer vintages that are yours at a premium. Speaking of drinks, every cocktail is also included in your fare no matter what time you drink it.  Here are some of the wonderful things we ate aboard Le Dumont d’Urville.

“EXPLORE TO INSPIRE” IS THE PROVENANCE OF JOSÉ SARICA, PONANT’S DIRECTOR OF EXPEDITION EXPERIENCE. I HAD THE PLEASURE OF INTERVIEWING M. SARICA.

At age 20, Jose Sarica’s passion for marine mammals—especially Orcas—led him from his native France to the University of Montreal where he completed his studies and earned a Ph.D. in Marine Biology in 2004. Joining Ponant in 2009, he was first a naturalist expert and a member of the Expedition Team. Specialists in the regions Ponant visits, these teams of naturalists are authorities on flora and fauna, geological formations, history, and culture of every one of the 450 ports on the 400 itineraries where Ponant Expeditions sail. José Sarica became an Expedition Leader and then Director of Expeditions until two years ago when he became Director of Expedition Experience. His job is to create new exploration voyages and to constantly seek to improve itineraries the world over. He aims to build explorations where local communities are at the center of the guest experience, taking more time, and limiting long distances—all of which aim to make Ponant explorations even more exceptional, immersive, and as sustainable as possible.

I ASKED JOSÉ SARICA HOW ‘BELIZE AND HONDURAS: UNEXPECTED ENCOUNTERS AND NATURE’ WAS DEVELOPED.

“The idea for this expedition came from Captain Yannick Simon, who had been to Honduras in 2000 aboard Le Ponant, PONANT’s sailing yacht, as a lieutenant. At that time, he discovered magical places and met isolated local communities, including the Garifunas. We tried to return there as early as 2019, but these places where nobody went showed some reluctance. So, Captain Yannick Simon and I decided to meet them to see how we could create together unprecedented explorations in Honduras and Belize. The idea was to explain our vision of the trip, talk about our exploration charter, and our commitments to them and the environment. The word “cruise ship” frightened them, and they imagined floating hotels with over 2,000 passengers. So, we took the time to discuss our travel philosophy, the PONANT DNA, our small-sized exploration ships (less than 200 passengers), and the importance for us that our guests become ambassadors for these remote and little-known regions: we protect better what we know, it’s a fact. The key is to create trust with local communities. We had a specific itinerary in mind, but the beauty of scouting is that you come back at the end with something different and even more exceptional.” Jose Sarica

HOW PONANT DETERMINES ITS PORTS OF CALL

José Sarica explains: “The first step is to draft an itinerary with the help of other experts from various PONANT departments: R&D, local experts, maritime operations, port operations. The second, perhaps the most important step, is to find the right local contact–(the local Destination Management Company (DMC)—to help us organize all the logistics to make this scouting possible. We submit the desired itinerary and our needs—local guides to explore places and find meaningful and immersive activities for our guests, local boat rental if the Captain needs it. They confirm if the chosen places are possible. But it is during the effective scouting…that the magic happens. The trust you create with the DMC and the local communities you meet leads you to discover places that only they know. They become more aware of our needs and what we want to offer our guests, and there, we go off the beaten track. We then discover extraordinary places, real gems with immense exploratory potential. So, it’s really at the end of the scouting mission that we determine the ports of call that will be selected for an exceptional expedition voyage, and in the case of Honduras, completely unprecedented.

WE ASKED JOSÉ HOW THE EXPEDITION TEAM IS PUT TOGETHER

“While scouting, we quickly establish a common thread, a story to tell. On this unprecedented journey, it became clear to me that, in addition to local populations, not a single day is alike. This journey ticks all the boxes. It speaks of coral reefs and dreamy lagoons, but also exceptional fauna and flora. Therefore, we needed to find the right profiles to explain all these aspects to our passengers. Understanding what you see is invaluable, and PONANT places great importance on this educational aspect during exploration voyages. The ‘tour de force’ was to have two local guides from Honduras, fluent in English and French in addition to Spanish, join the expedition team to bring the destination on board and allow guests to share even more with them in their daily experience.”

AND WHAT WERE THE CHALLENGES ON THE BELIZE HONDURAS ITINERARY?

Jose explains: “First, the discovery of Guanaja Island, of which no one had told us. Unfortunately, it suffers from its proximity to Roatan, which attracts mega-ships. When we discovered it, with Captain Yannick Simon, I knew we had a gem in our hands. We met three young people who wanted to highlight the Caracole culture from Bonacca Cay, and they won me over. The pride they expressed and the desire to develop eco-responsible tourism deeply moved me, and I knew we had a unique, immersive, and unprecedented experience for our guests. Second, succeeding in opening the doors of the Cayos Cochinos sanctuary and discovering these fascinating people, the Garifunas, located on the sand islet of Chachahuate in an idyllic setting. Finally, allowing local communities like Cuejo y Salado to contribute to the discovery of their country’s history and discovering mangroves so well preserved that the biodiversity encountered is spectacular and striking. We came out of it humbler.

CRUISING JOURNAL SALUTES PONANT’S COMMITMENT TO EVERY DESTINATION IT VISITS

José Sarica explains “During these scouting missions, we come back so enriched from the experiences lived with the local communities, with this wild, spectacular nature that we want more than anything to create lasting bonds with all these peoples encountered. That’s why, when I am scouting, I am very attentive to environmental and societal projects that can improve the daily lives of these people with the aim that PONANT can contribute financially. For example, we will be able to help the Garifunas of Chachahuate have access to drinking water and also install more solar panels to provide them with more electricity (currently, they only have 2 hours of electricity per day). These project ideas come from my scouting missions, which I then bring to the director of the PONANT CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) department, and he accepts them in most cases. Thus, our ties with the communities are stronger and long-lasting.”

PONANT’S “BELIZE AND HONDURAS: UNEXPECTED ENCOUNTERS AND NATURE” WILL BE REPEATED IN THE FALL 2024.

Ponant’s commitment is to constantly improve their passengers’ experience from one year to the next. In the case of this itinerary, very few changes are planned as feedback from Captains, Expedition Leaders and guests alike has been so uniformly positive. Just this month, meetings will be held at Ponant’s headquarters in Marseille for any corrective actions to improve the guest experience. But as Jose Sarica says “Unfortunately, the only thing I cannot intervene is and that can influence guest satisfaction is the weather!

Don’t miss more updates, news, and reviews about Ponant on Cruising Journal.

Monte Mathews

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