Christmas in the Marquesas Islands

Marquesas Island adventure cruiser, the Aranui 3, has announced its special Christmas 2014 cruise featuring three very different French Polynesian archipelagos – Marquesas, Tuamotu and Society  – culminating with a Christmas Day treat on Bora Bora.

Guest speakers will include the highly regarded French Polynesian expert from the French Marine Protected Areas Agency, Sophie-Dorothée Duron. Departing from Papeete, Tahiti on 13 December 2014, guests on board the mixed passenger/cargo vessel will be treated to a fourteen-day tour of the stunning Marquesas Islands, on an awe-inspiring itinerary that has been created to climax with a memorable Christmas Day on Bora Bora.  The vessel boasts 86 fully air conditioned cabins as well as the capacity to carry more than 2000 tons of freight.

rices for the Christmas departure, 13-26 December 2014, start at £3,306 per person sharing a standard twin bedded outside cabin with private facilities including all meals with wine, all land-based sightseeing excursions and taxes.

Flights to/from Papeete, Tahiti are not included in these prices.  Air Tahiti Nui fly to Papeete with prices from around £1,560 per person return from London.

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UK author and film producer, Peter Crawford, will be guest lecturer on board the Aranui 3’s two-week voyage to the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, departing from Tahiti on 4 February 2012.

Peter, who spent three years travelling through the Polynesian islands, researching his book ‘Nomads of the Wind’ and producing an epic five-hour, award-winning television series for the BBC, has a special passion for the Marquesas Islands, which he enjoys sharing with other travellers.

During the 14-night voyage on board Aranui, Peter will entertain passengers with extracts from his films and pictures from his book. He captivates audiences with descriptions in English and French of how he and his film crew ‘turned back the clock’ to recreate the remarkable Polynesian voyages of discovery. Passengers gain a real insight into the unique island way of life that flourished long before the arrival of Europeans who came to Polynesia in the wake of Captain Cook.

The most remote archipelago in the world, the French Polynesian Marquesas Islands are best known for their wild beauty, cultural heritage and welcoming people.

The custom-built, state-of-the-art Aranui 3 is the only ship to sail the 2,200 mile round trip from Papeete to all six inhabited islands in the Marquesas. Departing every three weeks, all year round, it acts as a lifeline to inhabitants, delivering everything from beer to bulldozers and cement to sugar to the isolated islands.

Described as ‘the freighter to paradise’, the cargo carrier doubles as a passenger ship, providing comfortable accommodation in 86 fully air-conditioned cabins, including 10 large suites with balconies. Two lounges, a large dining room serving French and Polynesian cuisine, a swimming pool and gymnasium, plus a full programme of lectures on Marquesan history, culture and art are also part of the experience. English is spoken on board and all presentations are given in both English and French.

At each South Pacific island destination, passengers are taken ashore by wooden whaleboat or barge and welcomed by locals with flower garlands, dancing and music. Four-wheel drive jeep safaris take participants through spectacular mountain scenery to explore mysterious, unspoiled jungles and to experience the fascinating and individual culture of each of the islands.Visitors to the Marquesas witness pearl farmers harvesting rare black pearls from giant oysters. They travel through the mountain spires of Ua Pou, described by Robert Louis Stevenson in 1880 as ‘volcanic needles like the pinnacles of some ornate church’. They marvel at the restored Me'ae Te Iipona in Puamau, one of the most significant ancient temples in French Polynesia, famous for the largest stone tiki in the region after the mysterious figures on Easter Island.

Prices for the February 2012 departure start from £3100 (Euros 3511) per person sharing a standard twin bedded outside cabin with private facilities including all meals with wine, all land-based sightseeing excursions and taxes.

Flights to/from Papeete, Tahiti are not included in these prices. Air France and Air Tahiti Nui fly to Papeete (via Paris and Los Angeles), with prices from around £1750 pp return.

For further information visit www.aranui.com

French Polynesian Marquesas Islands

The most remote archipelago in the world, the French Polynesian Marquesas Islands have long been an inspiration for artists, writers and adventurers who come for the region’s wild beauty and cultural heritage. Aranui 3, the only ship to sail the 2,200 mile round trip from Papeete to all six inhabited islands in the Marquesas archipelago, has just released its 2012 and 2013 dates and prices, including some special discounts.

Departing every three weeks, all year round, the Aranui 3’s 14-day adventure cruise follows in the footsteps of Paul Gaugin, Herman Melville and Robert Louis Stevenson, to name just a few of its famous visitors. Famous 19th century French artist, Paul Gaugin, painted his last picture on Hiva Oa and is buried in Calvaire cemetery overlooking Atuona, capital of the south Marquesas group. The Paul Gaugin Cultural Centre was opened in 2003 to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the painter’s death and features numerous reproductions of his work and writing from his famous Tahitian period.

American writer, Herman Melville, best known for writing Moby Dick, was held by a group of notorious cannibals in 1842 in the deep Bay of Taipivai on the island of Nuku Hiva. He escaped his captors to tell the tale in his first book, the best seller ‘Typee’. And in 1888, on the north side of the same island, Robert Louis Stevenson landed at Hatiheu on his voyage on the Casco. His impressions of the islands are recorded in the classic 19th century travel book, ‘In the South’Seas’.

Aranui 3 offers travel in comfort. Doubling as a cozy passenger ship as well as a cargo carrier, she features 86 fully air-conditioned cabins (including 10 large suites with balconies) and can carry over 2000 tons of freight. Two comfortable lounges, a swimming pool and gym and a full programme of lectures on Marquesan history, culture and art are all part of the experience. English is widely spoken onboard and all presentations are given in English and French.

The vessel, which has been in operation since 2003 delivers regular supplies from bulldozers and beer to boats and brake pads to the islands’ remote valleys, some of which are totally secluded and have no road access to the main villages.

While the ship’s crew loads and unloads cargo at each island destination, passengers are taken ashore by wooden whaleboat or barge and welcomed by locals with flower garlands, dancing and music. Four-wheel drive jeeps driven by locals then take participants on spectacular safaris over the mountains to explore mysterious, unspoiled jungles and to experience the fascinating and individual culture of each of the islands.

Highlights of the voyage include the restored Me'ae Te Iipona in Puamau, one of the most significant ancient temples in French Polynesia, famous for the largest stone tiki in the region after the mysterious figures on Easter Island. Visitors are also impressed by the plethora of traditional handicrafts being kept alive within the islands, such as the tapa cloth on Fatu Hiva, which is produced by islanders from tree bark and painted with the designs that their ancestors wore as tattoos.

Prices for 2012 start from £3100 (Euros 3511) per person sharing a standard twin bedded outside cabin with private facilities including all meals with wine, all land-based sightseeing excursions and taxes. However, during 2012, three departures on board the freighter-cum-passenger ship are being offered at a 10% discount: 17 March, 9 June and, for seniors aged over 60 only, 22 September, bringing the starting price down to £2805 (Euros 3183) per person sharing a twin cabin. For those planning ahead to 2013, there is a 10% early booking discount on sailings between January and March 2013 for bookings received by 31 December 2011.

Flights to/from Papeete, Tahiti are not included in these prices. Air France and Air Tahiti Nui fly to Papeete (via Paris and Los Angeles), with prices from around £1750 pp return.

For further information about adventure cruises, visit http://www.aranui.com/ or The Cruise Line