Are you curious about Compagnie du Ponant?

We tried to book with Ponant recently but gave up.

They did not respond to direct enquiries.

They did not respond to persistent enquiry from our ta.. well they responded of course but couldn't provide any useful info.

We wanted a btob quote.. ie what discount? ..

Reply.. don't know/can't say.. book and we will think about it was the reply.

There was a prospective off ship add on trip.. must be booked and paid by 60 days before sailing for it to run.

We asked within the 60 days ( ie after the payment deadline) .. will it run ? We don't know was the reply.

We say …we can't/ won't book the whole thing unless we know…please tell us what is happening

Reply.. silence

Unbelievable marketing and management in the very best tradition of "old" french ways

My conclusion is that there was/ is a massive disconnect between the marketing and ship management divisions.

Perhaps the British Merchant bank Owner fails to understand the relaxed sun loving life on the cote de azur ( where the staff …work .. or are supposed to….)

Caveat Emptor...

Have you considered a TA who can handle all these issues for you?

Have you considered a TA who can handle all these issues for you?

Read again, they mentioned using a TA.

That said, some of us don't like to use travel agents for any number of reasons. Frankly I'm confused as to why the poster was expecting a discount, which is what seems to be causing a good part of the problem.

Autocorrect responsible for most typos...

I wondered about posting my comments .. because there will always be folks who extrapolate assumptions and invent conclusions.

I guess if folks want to assume that our ta is a less than competent little small town back water nothing one person five minutes in the game Yada yada yada ...ta… then anything I say to the contrary would be pointless… so I will not.

I'm also now quite sure that we must have it all wrong and that Ponant is truly a paragon of corporate virtue with an impeccable record of customer relations .

Everyone happy now ?

Ciao :mad:

I wondered about posting my comments .. because there will always be folks who extrapolate assumptions and invent conclusions.

 

I guess if folks want to assume that our ta is a less than competent little small town back water nothing one person five minutes in the game Yada yada yada ...ta… then anything I say to the contrary would be pointless… so I will not.

 

I'm also now quite sure that we must have it all wrong and that Ponant is truly a paragon of corporate virtue with an impeccable record of customer relations .

 

Everyone happy now ?

 

Ciao :mad:

...that communication from Ponant corporate is not their strong point. Our TA had a real go around trying to get things straight with them for our Antarctic cruise on the L'Austral in December of 2011. The cruise experience was outstanding and we would definitely sail with them again. Our TA (the owner of 2 agencies) is fortunately a very patient and experienced person. I would have thrown up my hands early in the process no matter how good the deal - and it was really, really good!!!

My advice? Scour the Ponant site because they do a pretty fair job of telling you exactly what the pricing will be and what is included - depending on where you live and what you will using (like included flights or pre/post cruise nights). It also seems they consider back-to-back sailings "Special Offers" and might not have them in all areas or for all sailings. The hassle and inconvenience is worth it - challenging, but worth it. If you have specific questions, you might start with checking my review of the Antarctic cruise.

Good luck.

Sorry I missed that he had used a TA. If I don't post for a while it's because I'll be off flogging myself.

We have recently booked to sail on Le Boreal from London to Copenhagen and only have just found these posts. On reading them cannot wait. :D

I wonder if any other CC's are on this trip?

Hi, SailorUk, go over to our roll call section and see....

Let us know!

Carolyn

We have recently booked to sail on Le Boreal from London to Copenhagen and only have just found these posts. On reading them cannot wait. :D

I wonder if any other CC's are on this trip?

Hi, SailorUk, go over to our roll call section and see....

 

Let us know!

 

Carolyn

Hi Carolyn

Have posted there, and so far no response, but will "wait and see" :)

How was your trip?

Hope it was a good one.

Carolyn

Hi Carolyn

Have posted there, and so far no response, but will "wait and see" :)

How was your trip?

 

Hope it was a good one.

 

Carolyn

Hi Carolyn

Posted both on this message board and on Members reviews.

It is all a dream, now looking for another trip :o

I loved reading about Le Ponant. We booked a b2b 2015 on l'Austral from HongKong to Osaka via an experienced TA from a large company. Great to hear that the more 'exotic' menu items will be available instead of the Americanized menu for the Tauck cruise on l'Austral that we looked at first.

Unfortunately, we already had a very negative experience with Le Ponant's US representative. I was ready to cancel both cruises and look for alternatives because of this person's unprofessional attitude. Good to hear that the ship experience is much more positive than their land based personnel provides.

I am scheduled to sail on board Le Ponant this fall on Tauck's small ship cruise from Malta to Monaco. I would appreciate any and all information from those who have sailed on this cruise.

http://www.tauck.com/tours/europe-tours/mediterranean-tours/mediterranean-cruise-wmn-2015.aspx

Specifically, I would like to know what to pack, about the highlights of each port, what to do on my extra days in Malta and Monte Carlo, etc.

I will be traveling solo and wonder if anyone else has done this and how you were received by fellow travelers.

Thank you.

I loved reading about Le Ponant. We booked a b2b 2015 on l'Austral from HongKong to Osaka via an experienced TA from a large company. Great to hear that the more 'exotic' menu items will be available instead of the Americanized menu for the Tauck cruise on l'Austral that we looked at first.

 

Unfortunately, we already had a very negative experience with Le Ponant's US representative. I was ready to cancel both cruises and look for alternatives because of this person's unprofessional attitude. Good to hear that the ship experience is much more positive than their land based personnel provides.

A word of warning.

In May I met a couple from Brazil who had recently completed a two month cruise on Le Ponant.

The husband told me that, due to the excellent food, at the end of the cruise he had gained more than 14lb in weight.

A word of warning.

 

In May I met a couple from Brazil who had recently completed a two month cruise on Le Ponant.

 

The husband told me that, due to the excellent food, at the end of the cruise he had gained more than 14lb in weight.

Is that all for 2 mths :D

On our 1st cruise I gained that in week 1 of a 2wk cruise :eek:

We tried to book excursions for our cruise, b2b 2015 on l'Austral from HongKong to Osaka. The website has no online provisions for it like other cruise lines do. Our TA inquired and was told that we should book on the ship. I simply cannot believe this. What is your experience?

There is one ship excursion to Suzhou that I absolutely want to do and I am afraid that it won't happen since most passengers will want to stay in Shanghai. We were in Shanghai a few months ago and saw all the sights on the ship's Shanghai excursions and more. I don't want to do it all over again for big bucks.

We have an answer: (sigh of relief)

Yes, excursions are to be booked on the ship and will take place whether it's one person who signed up or all the passengers.

Overland excursions with nights off the ship and pre- and post cruise extensions must be booked at least 60 days before the start of the cruise.

They only take place if interest is high enough.

I've posted my review or our recent L'Austral b2b cruise in 'other cruise lines' and in the members review section.

I've posted my review or our recent L'Austral b2b cruise in 'other cruise lines' and in the members review section.

Great review--thanks! It's amazing how mixed the reviews are for these ships.

I was looking at the Asia section of cc and read that some of the 'big' ships had issues in Dalian and Tianjin such as chaotic disembarkation due to the Chinese authorities. No such issue whatsoever on our small ship. In addition, we were greeted like honored guests in Korea and Japan.

I am scheduled to sail on board Le Ponant this fall on Tauck's small ship cruise from Malta to Monaco. I would appreciate any and all information from those who have sailed on this cruise.

http://www.tauck.com/tours/europe-tours/mediterranean-tours/mediterranean-cruise-wmn-2015.aspx

 

Specifically, I would like to know what to pack, about the highlights of each port, what to do on my extra days in Malta and Monte Carlo, etc.

 

I will be traveling solo and wonder if anyone else has done this and how you were received by fellow travelers.

 

Thank you.

Booking the Le Ponant, directly with Tauck with a TA, should make the booking process much better with Ponant, correct?

Any signs of wheelchair access on this line? I hate to bother our TA when she's busy arranging another trip for us at present if the answer is an obvious no.

There are often little things that make a ship difficult for wheelchairs. We were on L'Austral. As an expedition ship built for stormy waters, there is a ledge between the cabin and the balcony. The balconies have high metal railings. If you are sitting on the balcony, you cannot see outside except the sky.

I remember that we walked up (or down?) a few steps to go outside during the safety drill. We went down steps to the dining room, but the buffet was accessible via elevator. Our cabin would have been too small to accommodate a wheelchair, but there are larger cabins.

You also need to differentiate between the large sail ship Le Ponant and the other ships of the line. The line is also called Ponant.

Thanks Floridiana. I'll do a bit of looking at their larger ship. We're pretty much booked through next April so no hurry. But the line does sound wonderful.

Always hate to ask because someone will get angry.... and yes I know it is typecasting... but the truth is, that although things are changing, there is still a higher percentage of smokers in France and smoking is a more "acceptable" activity there relative to most of North America. So experiences geared for French vacationers tend to be more tolerant of smoking. Those of us who have strong feelings about not being exposed need to choose accordingly. So can anyone advise about how smoking is managed on these ships, and how feasible it is to avoid if one wishes to do so? thanks