Le Dumont d'Urville Review

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Le Dumont d'Urville will be the fourth in Ponant's six-ship Explorer-class of expedition vessels. It's named for Jules Sebastien Cesar Dumont d'Urville, a French explorer and naval officer who explored parts of the Pacific, Australia and Antarctica. The Dumont d'Urville scientific station in Antarctica is named after him.

Like Ponant's other Explorer-class ships, the 184-passenger Le Dumont d'Urville will have reinforced hulls for when it's sailing in polar regions and an aft marina for when it's in tropical destinations.

Standout features on Le Dumont d'Urville will be an aft marina and the underwater Blue Eye Lounge.

The marina, located at the back of Deck 3, gives cruisers easy access to the ship's fleet of Zodiacs, as well as for entering the water (conditions permitting) for swimming, kayaking and paddleboarding.

The Blue Eye Lounge, located under the water line, gives passengers the ability to see passing marine life through two giant windows, as well as on digital screens on which live images filmed by three underwater cameras are projected. Specially developed hydrophones, located beneath the ship's keel, let people in the lounge hear underwater sounds from as far away as 5 kilometers. Plus, the underwater sounds resonate as vibrations on special sofas passengers can sit on.

Other public areas include an infinity pool, a 188-seat theater and a main lounge.

There will be two French restaurants onboard Le Dumont d'Urville, with the main restaurant on Deck 4 fitting all cruisers in one sitting. The second -- a small venue -- on Deck 3, will offer a more relaxed atmosphere and will seat 70.

All 92 cabins on Le Dumont d'Urville have balconies, air conditioning, mini-bar and flat-screen TV with video on demand. Bathrooms have showers and French bath products; suites have bathtubs as well.

Standard rooms are 205 square feet; suites range in size from 291 to 484 square feet. All rooms accommodate two passengers, except Privilege Suites that hold four people.

Le Dumont d'Urville sets sail in 2019. Norwegian shipyard Vard is building the ship.

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Le Dumont d'Urville Cruiser Reviews

Great for Solo Travelers

Le Dumont d'Urville is a beautiful mega-yacht with a modern, minimalist design. Food, drinks, service, cabins, lectures and so forth were all wonderful and included in the price.Read More
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SA789

couple2-5 Cruises

Age 50s

Magnificent Ship, Wonderful Excursions, Excellent Food and Drink

The only real negative, and it's a minor one, was that embarkation was rather chaotic as there had been conflicting information given as to what form was needed in terms of health status.You just had to pick one and Ponant took care of the rest.Read More
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JC Norton

many10+ Cruises

Age 70s

Double Thrill

I also loved the hot dry sauna which felt so therapeutic.The cuisine was great, but more importantly to me, the opportunity to get into the water at every stop along the way was so exciting.Read More
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Mademoiselle de La Mar

couple2-5 Cruises

Age 60s

Wonderful Alumni Cruise

The Le Dumont D'Urville is a new ship in 2019 so the cabins and all the facilities of the ship were new and designed to a high standard.Read More
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dlyons4937

couple2-5 Cruises

Age 70s


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