MARSEILLE — Ponant celebrated the inauguration of its newest expedition ship, Le Lapérouse, in unexpected waters: at the port of Hafnarfjordur, Iceland.

The world’s only French cruise line, and increasingly targeting the Canadian market, Ponant is one of the leaders in the booming expedition cruising segment. And one of the early leaders, according to Navin Sawhney, CEO, Ponant USA, who visited Toronto earlier this year on a trade mission. The company, founded in 1988, embarked on expedition cruising in 1999. “No one had thought of luxury expeditions in such detail,” said Sawhney. The cruise line launched Le Boreal in 2010 and it was an immediate success.

Ponant CEO and Co-Founder Jean Emmanuel Sauvée – Photo Credit: Studio Ponant L. Patricot

Now with the launch of Le Lapérouse – greeted as she sailed from Hafnarfjordur by Le Soléal, another Ponant ship, also positioned in Icelandic waters – Ponant debuts another sure-fire hit with the debut of Le Lapérouse’s The Blue Eye, a multi-sensorial underwater lounge, the first in the world.

Located in the hull below sea level, and designed in collaboration with Jacques Rougerie, an architect and member of the Académie Française, The Blue Eye uses integrated digital screens to project live images captured by three underwater cameras. These entirely non-intrusive underwater projectors allowing the observation of the sea world without any risk for the ocean life. The Blue Eye also offers a unique sound experience captured by hydrophones, providing a “natural symphony of the oceanic world”.

The Blue Eye, onboard Ponant’s new Le Lapérouse – Photo Credit: Studio Ponant L. Patricot

During the inauguration passengers watched French free diving champion, Aurore Asso’s aquatic ballet through The Blue Eye’s two portholes.

Part of the Ponant Explorers series, Le Lapérouse is 430 feet long with 92 cabins and suites, all with balconies). The new ship is designed to explore the most remote areas of the world with the utmost respect for the environment, says Ponant.

The fleet will be completed by five others sister ships from the Ponant Explorers series, with construction already underway. Le Champlain is set to depart on its maiden cruise in October 2018, Le Bougainville and Le Dumont-d’Urville will be delivered in 2019, and Le Bellot and Le Surville in 2020.

Ponant CEO and Co-Founder Jean Emmanuel Sauvée onboard Le Lapérouse – Photo Credit: Studio Ponant L. Patricot

On his Toronto visit back in February Sawhney noted that close to 90% of Ponant’s bookings come through the trade. With a high-end product like Ponant, and price points to match, “people need an expert to tell them this is the right way to travel.”

About 40% of Ponant’s passengers are French-speaking. Some 30% are from North America and another 15 to 20% are from Australia. The rest of the cruise line’s passengers come from the UK, Latin America, continental Europe and Asia.

So far only a very small fraction of those bookings come from Canada, but with the help of agents as well as Vanessa Lee and her team at Cruise Strategies, which represents Ponant in Canada, Sawhney said he was looking to boost volume from this market. “We plan to increase it quite rapidly.”