In January 2025, for the first time ever, an international cruise ship will sail the waters of the Saint Lawrence in the heart of winter.
The Commandant Charcot, with capacity for 200 winter activity enthusiasts, will make four 12-night sailings between late January and early March 2025. Ports of call on the scheduled itinerary include Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Gaspé, Sept-Îles, Saguenay and Québec. Embarkation and disembarkation operations will be shared between Québec and Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon.
To enable passengers to immerse themselves fully in regional offerings in winter, the cruises may include longer stopovers of at least one overnight stay.
"For almost a decade, we have repeatedly promoted unparalleled winterscapes and winter season shore activities with expedition cruise operators," said René Trépanier, Executive Director of Cruise the Saint Lawrence (CSL).
"Our efforts appear, at long last, to have begun to pay off with the announcement of this exciting North American premiere."
PONANT passengers will experience the wonders of the Canadian winter. They will have the opportunity to tent overnight in an Innu community, tour on snowmobile, ride a fat bike on a snow-covered beach and try their hand at dogsledding, snowshoeing or even ice fishing on the Saguenay fjord. They may even be treated to a dazzling display of the northern lights, or aurora borealis, as was the PONANT team this past February at Sept-Îles.
Perce' Rock taken from the wharf in the town, Perce', Quebec (wwing / Getty Images / E+)
When the Commandant Charcot sets out to navigate the ice of the Saint Lawrence in January 2025, she will be embarking on a world premiere journey. A hybrid electric polar expedition vessel powered by liquified natural gas, the Commandant Charcot offers a cutting edge example of a shift to more responsible navigation. The ship's ice breaking capability enables her to operate safely in polar conditions.
"At PONANT, we are particularly attached to the Saint Lawrence region, a region that our ships have visited in summer for a number of years now," said Hervé Gastinel, President of PONANT.
"Our market-leading winter cruises will open the doors to totally novel experiences, unrivalled by any operator elsewhere in the world. The Commandant Charcot will enable us to navigate the ice in complete safety, while providing passengers with an onboard experience nothing short of exceptional. Working together with Destination Saint Lawrence authorities, we have developed an out-of-the-ordinary itinerary. And we are especially eager to share this adventure with our passengers."
Tourism Québec expressed great pleasure in seeing this initiative come to fruition: "The launch of winter cruises on the Saint Lawrence marks a turning point in the history of international cruises in Québec. This announcement aligns to perfection with efforts devoted to promoting upmarket and Indigenous tourism, while transforming Québec into a leader in the winter tourism sector," underscored Caroline Proulx, Minister of Tourism of Québec.
At the scheduled ports of call, the excitement has already started to build. "To look on as the first cruise ship sails up the Saguenay fjord and comes to a stop amid the ice in the Baie des Ha! Ha! - a prime ice fishing location - will make for a unique Nordic experience in one of the most enchanting settings in the world, and represents a dream come true," said Priscilla Nemey, Director, Promotion Saguenay.
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