An escapade in the heart of Melanesia
Cruises › South Pacific › Ponant
Featured Voyage
Sixteen nights across the top of Melanesia, from Darwin to Fiji. Arnhem Land and the Torres Strait, then Milne Bay in Papua New Guinea, the reefs off Gizo, the Florida Islands, and the volcanic Banks group in northern Vanuatu. Almost every landing is by Zodiac.
From $13,820 per person · solo from $19,820
Why This Ship, Out Here
Le Jacques carries about 180 guests. She is small enough to enter lagoons and anchorages the larger ships cannot reach, which is the whole point of a route like this one, and she carries Zodiacs for landings where there is no pier at all.
Solo fares are listed beside the per-person price for every grade, so you can see the supplement rather than be told about it. The cheapest solo berth here is $19,820.
The Journey
The Top End capital, tropical and closer to Asia than to Sydney, and the gateway to Kakadu.
Galiwin’ku in Arnhem Land, a Yolngu community known for its bark painting and its songmen.
The administrative heart of the Torres Strait, a pearling port between Cape York and Papua.
A small mission island in Milne Bay, its stone church and cricket ground left from a century of English missionaries.
A sandbar islet off Gizo ringed by one of the richest reefs in the Solomons, with several hundred fish species on a single drift.
A sheltered anchorage in the Florida Islands, where a cruise ship wreck lies half swallowed by jungle at the water’s edge.
Owaraha, a small island east of Makira where custom dancing and shell money still order village life.
The main settlement of the Santa Cruz group, far out towards Vanuatu and among the least visited corners of the Pacific.
A drowned volcano in the Banks Islands whose crater wall is breached, letting a ship sail into the caldera itself.
A small island off Espiritu Santo with a few dozen inhabitants, white sand and water clear enough to read the reef from the tender.
A sheltered lagoon on Espiritu Santo, the blue holes and white sand that make this the most photographed coast in Vanuatu.
The black island, two active volcanoes at its centre and lava lakes that glow on the cloud above them at night.
The gateway to the Yasawa and Mamanuca islands, where the beaches everyone pictures when they picture Fiji actually are.
Scroll for the full journey
The Fare
A French ship, most of it in. Here is exactly where the line sits.
Your stateroom, all dining aboard, house wines, beer and soft drinks with lunch and dinner, and the Zodiac landings that make these itineraries possible.
Airfare, travel insurance, shore excursions and personal expenses. Air is the largest single cost on a route this remote, so we price the whole journey with flights before you commit.
Your Ship
About 180 guests, French at heart, and built to go where the big ships cannot.
Ponant build small, and it is the reason to sail with them out here. Le Jacques takes about 180 guests, carries a fleet of Zodiacs, and calls at islands where the only way ashore is off the back of the ship.
Every Stateroom on This Sailing
| Stateroom | Solo | Per person |
|---|---|---|
| Deluxe Stateroom Deck 3 Waitlist | $17,900 | $12,540 |
| Prestige Stateroom Deck 4 | $19,820 | $13,820 |
| Prestige Stateroom Deck 5 | $20,780 | $14,460 |
| Prestige Stateroom Deck 6 | $21,920 | $15,220 |
| Deluxe Suite Deck 3 | $30,350 | $20,840 |
| Deluxe Suite Deck 4 | $30,350 | $20,840 |
| Deluxe Suite Deck 5 | $30,350 | $20,840 |
| Deluxe Suite Deck 6 | $30,350 | $20,840 |
| Prestige Deck 5 | $40,890 | $27,870 |
| Prestige Suite Deck 6 | $42,990 | $29,270 |
| Privilege Suite Deck 5 | $45,110 | $30,680 |
| Privilege Suite Deck 6 | $45,110 | $30,680 |
| Grand Deluxe Suite Deck 6 Waitlist | $49,520 | $33,620 |
| Owner's Suite Deck 5 Waitlist | $85,480 | $43,650 |
Fares are per person, cruise only, for the 4 September 2027 departure, pulled from Ponant direct. Solo is the total for one guest; per person is based on double occupancy. Waitlisted grades are shown greyed and cannot be booked. Where a solo fare reads On request, Ponant has not published a single rate for that grade and we will confirm it for you. Other departures price differently; the dates below carry their own fares. Airfare is arranged separately.
Departures & Fares
| Departure | Solo | Per person |
|---|---|---|
| 4 Sep 2027 | $19,820 | $13,820 |
Each fare is the lowest bookable stateroom for that departure, solo total and per person based on double occupancy, pulled live from Ponant with waitlisted grades excluded. Every departure carries a $100 onboard credit per person as an Elevida amenity. Airfare is arranged separately.
The day by day above follows the 4 September 2027 departure.
Ready When You Are
From $13,820 per person, solo from $19,820, and our planning from first question to the flight home.
Fares are per person, cruise only, for the 4 September 2027 departure as published by Ponant, including any Ponant Bonus. Airfare additional. Waitlisted grades cannot be booked. Fares are capacity-controlled and may change or be withdrawn without notice. Elevida Luxury Journeys is an independent affiliate of Travel Planners International.