Cruising the Historic Cities of the Baltic Sea – with Smithsonian Journeys with Ponant Le Champlain
7 nights
Departing 3rd August 2026 from Helsinki
In alliance with Smithsonian Journeys.
This cruise is part of a collection of PONANT voyages that are specially-tailored for English-speaking travelers who want to engage with the world. In addition to the usual elements of the PONANT experience, the listed price for these voyages includes transfers to and from the ship, talks and discussions aboard ship by world class experts, and a shore excursion or activity in each port of call that encourages guests to embrace the sights, sounds, tastes, and smells of the local environment and culture.Join PONANT and Smithsonian Journeys for an extraordinary 8-day voyage through the Baltic Sea featuring a specially arranged, exclusive presentation and discussion aboard with former President of Poland and Nobel Peace Prize-laureate Lech Walesa while in Gdansk, Poland.The Baltic Sea has been a thoroughfare of trade since the days of the Vikings. We will visit the great cities that ring its shores and experience a comingling of cosmopolitan life with centuries of rich history.Begin in dynamic Helsinki. Located on a peninsula surrounded by almost 300 islands, the vibrant capital of Finland will charm you with its Art Nouveau architecture.Le Champlain sails first to Tallinn, an important hub for the Hanseatic League in the Baltic Sea around the 13th century. Its Old Town is a UNESCO Heritage Site and retains remarkably well-preserved ramparts, public buildings, merchant houses, and warehouses.You call next in cosmopolitan Stockholm, whose lively Gamla Stan (old town) located on a compact island showcases narrow cobblestone streets lined with 17th- and 18th-century buildings, including the Royal Palace.On Gotland—the largest island in the Baltic Sea—you stop at the beautifully preserved medieval town of Visby, once a stronghold of the Hanseatic League.Klaipeda is your gateway to the UNESCO World Heritage Curonian Peninsula and an opportunity to learn the traditional art of beekeeping or to immerse yourself in the local food and folklore of Lithuania.You sail next to Gdansk, a city with a 1000 year history whose shipyard served as the birthplace of the Solidarity Trade Union in 1980. The wave of dissent arising from the Solidarity movement helped lead to Polish independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.Call at the small Danish island of Bornholm, whose lush farmland and rich herring fisheries share the land with the ruins of a medieval fortress and four of the ancient round churches for which Denmark is noted.End in sophisticated Copenhagen, which displays 800 years of royal history at the stunning Christiansborg Palace, once home to kings and queens and now home to the Danish Parliament.£9,000 pp
Total solar eclipse in the Mediterranean with Ponant Le Boréal
8 nights
Departing 6th August 2026 from Nice
This cruise, will cultivate the art of peaceful travel as well as a family spirit, thanks to its customised activities on board and on shore for youngsters*, with the Kid Explorers Club.
On these summer days, take a journey towards the unexpected, experience the extraordinary and embark on an exceptional 9-day cruise, along Mediterranean shores, with their heady mix of savours, architectural styles and age-old traditions, to seek out a rare phenomenon offered by the sky: the total solar eclipse. Throughout your journey aboard Le Boréal, discover the secrets of this exceptional event thanks to the presence of Joe Rao, meteorologist and eclipse chaser, and Serge Brunier, science journalist, author, photographer and eclipse chaser.Throughout your journey, you will benefit from an excursion included per person per port of call, to choose from a selection offered by PONANT. During this cruise, dive into the teeming waters of the wild Revellata peninsula at the gates of Calvi, explore the pretty villages of Gordes, Les Baux-de-Provence and Saint-Rémy-de-Provence leaving from Marseille or visit the Miró Foundation in Palma.The diversity of experiences on offer promises you intense and varied moments (to discover the full range of excursions, go to the itinerary tab).From Nice, you will set sail for Calvi in the heart of the Balagne region. Between steep peaks and sublime beaches with turquoise waters, you will experience a wild and authentic Corsica. Your ship will set sail towards the southern tip of Corsica, to Bonifacio. A veritable fortress sculpted by the wind and the spray, the “sentinel city” will reveal its historical centre and its long cobbled streets.You will reach Marseille, the oldest port city in France, which is constantly renewing itself beneath the protective gaze of the Basilica of Our Lady of the Guard.Le Boréal will sail to the Roussillon region, close to Spain. The charming fishing port of Port-Vendres will stand before you. Here, you will be bewitched by a unique blend of historic heritage and exceptional natural scenery, its backdrop the lush Albera Massif Mountain range running down towards the coast.You will sail towards Barcelona. Truly an open-air museum, the “prodigious town” reveals an astonishing range of artistic treasures and museums, combining Roman ruins, medieval districts and a number of avant-garde elements from the 20th Century. Further east, you will reach the Balearic Islands, which are anchored off the coast of the Spanish coastline and will be a highlight of your Mediterranean journey. After you have discovered the treasures of Palma de Mallorca, the Captain will take you — if weather conditions permitting** — off the coast of the main Balearic Island, which is the best place to observe this rare phenomenon. You will be captivated by the unique spectacle provided by this 19th total eclipse of the 21st century, during which the Moon will obscure the Sun and reveal the solar corona.This cruise, a veritable invitation to dream big, to be within reach of immensity and to reconnect with pure magic, will conclude in Nice, famous for its interminable riviera.*for children aged 4 to 13 years old**We are privileged guests in these places, where we are at the mercy of the weather conditions. As we cannot control the weather conditions, we cannot guarantee the observation of this total solar eclipse. Nevertheless, the Captain will have room for manoeuvre and will be able to sail towards the most suitable places on the eclipse’s trajectory.£7,600 pp
