The extreme luxury travel market is pushing into the final frontier. Ponant opened reservations for a 62-day, unbroken circumnavigation of Antarctica. The voyage departs on January 11, 2028. Tickets start at €121,955. It is the first time a commercial passenger vessel will attempt this specific uninterrupted polar route.
The journey takes place on Le Commandant Charcot. The ship is a PC2-class hybrid-electric icebreaker powered by liquefied natural gas. It leaves from Ushuaia, Argentina. Passengers sail west for 30 days to Hobart, Tasmania. After a short stop, the ship spends another 31 days hugging the eastern Antarctic coast back to Ushuaia, according to a detailed report published recently.
Captains Etienne Garcia and Patrick Marchesseau designed the 23,000-kilometer itinerary. They mapped a path tracing the historical routes of explorers like Sir Ernest Shackleton and Roald Amundsen. This level of extreme travel was previously restricted almost entirely to government research vessels. The ship will cross the Weddell Sea from east to west. It will also reach the massive Ross Sea ice shelf and Mount Erebus.
Guests get extreme isolation mixed with high-end amenities. The ship features the first at-sea restaurant bearing Alain Ducasse’s name. Passengers use 16 Zodiacs for daily excursions. Helicopters, snowshoe hikes, and kayaking are available in the pristine environments. The vessel also functions as an autonomous polar expedition base. It houses two onboard laboratories. Over 100 scientists have used the ship for research since it launched in 2021.
The expedition forces a massive shift in polar tourism. Ponant holds a distinct monopoly on extreme high-latitude commercial exploration. Le Commandant Charcot remains the only non-Russian passenger ship capable of reaching the Geographic North Pole. Opening the deep Weddell Sea to commercial passengers turns a highly inaccessible scientific zone into an active destination for the ultra-wealthy eco-tourism market.