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Paul Gauguin Cruises Policy—As of 3/15/20 |
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NEW!—Announced March 15th
Given the Covid-19 coronavirus health crisis, Paul Gauguin Cruises has announced to stop operating its entire fleet from March 15, until further notice.
Teams are mobilized in order to best manage the cancellation of future cruises, at least until April 19. You will be contacted personally from Paul Gauguin Cruises, who will offer you a Future Cruise Credit, valid over a period of 18 months to allow you to reschedule your cruise. Once this period of crisis has passed, we will be ready to resume our activity, more mobilized than ever to offer you exceptional travel experiences.
Announced March 12th
Paul Gauguin Cruises has been informed that the French State and French Polynesian authorities have decided to suspend all cruise calls in French Polynesia until April 11, 2020. We will be communicating with our guests booked on affected sailings and will be sending out notices and updating our travel advisory as Paul Gauguin plans are introduced.
Announced March 10th
We understand the concerns of our loyal guests and our travel partners as this dynamic situation with COVID-19 globally continues to unfold. Paul Gauguin Cruises' top priority is the safety and security of our guests and our crew. It wants to share an update as to how it is managing the situation.
Paul Gauguin Cruises has exercised diligence working with governmental, medical, and industry partners to implement a strict medical protocol across our ship in conjunction with our parent company, PONANT. It has been monitoring the situation and in constant contact with international authorities to preserve the health of their passengers, crew members and islands they visit.
It has implemented enhanced protocols including sanitation processes with the strictest conditions and procedures ever set in place. None of our guests or crew members currently on board or recently disembarked has suffered nor is suffering from COVID-19, and our ship is currently sailing the islands French Polynesia.
These reinforced guidelines go far beyond the cruise industry’s current procedures. Since the start of the epidemic, PONANT/Paul Gauguin Cruises has taken exceptional precautionary measures made possible thanks to the small size of the ships and extensive quality medical facilities aboard: equipment to do clinical analyses, a laboratory for biological and blood analyses, X-rays, etc.
The company also collaborates with the best world experts in epidemiology, like the Institut-Hospitalo-Universitaire Méditerranée Infection headed by Professor Didier Raoult, international specialist in infectious diseases. Paul Gauguin is also ready to implement additional procedures fleetwide if necessary, with just 3 hours’ notice.
It has also implemented health screenings since February 26th. At the embarkation port for the m/s Paul Gauguin, every single person – guests and crew members – must pass through a mandatory screening, conducted off the ship prior to boarding, to thoroughly check their temperature and passport stamps.
A formal ban on boarding from March 2, 2020, applies in three cases to any passenger (guest or crew member):
1. Who passed through China (including Macao and Hong Kong), South Korea, Iran or Italy (even a transit airport) 30 days prior to embarkation.
2. Presenting with a temperature above 100.4°F (38°C) at the time of embarkation and who passed through Taiwan, Singapore, or Japan (even a transit airport) in the last 30 days.
3. Presenting with a temperature above 100.4°F (38°C) and considered at risk by the medical team of the company according to the protocol relating to information provided in the compulsory health questionnaire, associated symptoms, last frequented geographic area, etc.
And, Paul Gauguin asks all passengers to download, print, and complete a health questionnaire, the questionnaire accessible via this link, and submit it to Paul Gauguin Cruises officials at the pier before boarding. With this reinforced protocol now in place, passengers can only board our ships if they are confirmed to be Coronavirus-free.
For sailings that embark in French Polynesia:
The Government of French Polynesia has implemented a travel policy to help ensure the safety and wellbeing of the people and visitors to French Polynesia. For anyone traveling to French Polynesia between March 9 and March 31, 2020, before boarding a flight into French Polynesia, all passengers regardless of their nationality and prior travel history, must present a medical certificate within 5 days of departure, certifying their condition of good health, completely free of any signs of viral infection. It is required that passengers should procure this medical certificate prior to their flight.
If you are flying on Air Tahiti Nui, please click here to review the updated Coronavirus Travel Policy of Air Tahiti Nui, The Americas, dated March 10, 2020. Guests traveling on Air Tahiti Nui, can download, print, and complete the health form at this link and present when checking in for your flight to Papeete, Tahiti, at the Air Tahiti Nui counter in Los Angeles.
For Fiji to Bali and Bali to Fiji sailings:
Click here for information from the U.S. Embassy in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu.
Update on our March 28, and April 11, 2020, voyages: Paul Gauguin plans to operate these itineraries as close as possible to the original itinerary. It is a dynamic situation, and the Captain will make changes as necessary as it is notified of any updates from the ports.
With all of this in mind, it has decided to adjust our payment and cancellation policies for Paul Gauguin Cruises on upcoming sailings to offer our partners and guests a policy with more flexibility and greater assurance.
For March 28, April 11, June and July 2020 sailings: if you prefer to cancel your booking completely, Paul Gauguin will issue a Future Cruise Credit for the amount of the cancel fee, less any fees imposed by the airline/hotels. The Future Cruise Credit will be valid for cruises through 2021 aboard the m/s Paul Gauguin. Cancel fees amended to 10% (cruise only fares) for cancellations received 31 days prior to sailing for departures through the July 29, 2020, sailing. For those guests currently booked on a private charter, please address any questions directly with your charter host agency. Paul Gauguin’s policies concerning Future Cruise Credits, cancel fees, and fees concerning airline/hotels are not applicable to private charters.
Announced March 5th
Due to the current travel climate, Paul Gauguin is amending their final payment policy for June and July 2020 voyages aboard the m/s Paul Gauguin: Final payment will now be due 60 days prior to the sailing date for all June and July 2020 voyages.
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