The Iberian Peninsula and Fortified cities of the Atlantic
From Lisbon to Honfleur, PONANT invites you aboard Le Boréal for a 12-day cruise, that will take you along the Portuguese, Spanish and French Atlantic coastlines.
Throughout your journey, you will benefit from an excursion included per person per port of call, to choose from a selection offered by PONANT. On this cruise, you visit the Carteret lighthouse, a structure over 85 meters high built in 1839, from Cherbourg, set out from Vigo to see the legendary city of Santiago de Compostela, the world’s third most important Christian pilgrimage site, and admire iconic works of art at the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao.The diversity of xpériences on offer promises you intense and varied moments (to discover the full range of excursions, go to the itinerary tab).
From the port of Leixões, you will visit Porto. The capital of Portugal's northern region, this “city of granite” is renowned for its wine but also for its remarkable historic centre, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Your journey will continue to Galicia and the city of Vigo, the biggest fishing port in Spain. Not far from here, Santiago de Compostela awaits you. This unmissable pilgrimage destination is home to a number of monuments from the Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque periods, testimony to its illustrious past.
Le Boréal will then head for the capital of the Spanish Basque Country, Bilbao. Between daring architecture and the continuation of its ancestral traditions, you will be able to witness the city’s unique energy.
After a special moment in the wine capital of the world, Bordeaux, you visit the beautiful fortified town of Talmont-sur-Gironde before saluting the Cordouan lighthouse, a guardian of light designed to guide sailors at the entrance to the Gironde estuary.
You then head for the Quiberon peninsula. Here, you will discover a dreamy setting between two seas with breathtaking scenery: on one side, the Atlantic Ocean and its wild coastline; on the other, Quiberon Bay and its sandy beaches.
Le Boréal then sails to Douarnenez, Finistère's most westerly town. The striking wild coastline and sandy beaches make a magnificent natural backdrop to the ocean's crystal waters.
After stopping off in Cherbourg, you head for the pretty Normandy port of Honfleur, where you disembark.
When searching for a luxury yacht expedition cruise, there’s one name above all else that you need to know – Ponant Cruises. Founded in 1988 by former French Merchant Navy officers, Ponant combines succulent luxury with authentic adventures on all seven continents.
From classic Mediterranean itineraries and Caribbean sailings, to bucket-list expeditions around Greenland and Antarctica, Ponant cruises proudly counteract the banality of mainstream voyages with a unique take on the concept of small-ship cruising. It’s the absolute trip of a lifetime.
Le Boréal, like its Sisterships L’Austral, Le Soléal and Le Lyrial, epitomises the unique feel and atmosphere of the ships of the PONANT fleet.
