Compagnie des Iles du Ponant’s Le Ponant is due to reach the French Mediterranean coast this weekend and will head to the yards in La Ciotat for a check-up and some light refurbishment following its hijacking off the coast of Somalia three weeks ago.

‘The crew wasn’t harmed and the ship didn’t suffer any real damage,’ said Jean-Emmanuel Sauvée, head of the company. He added that the three-masted vessel would receive some improvements that had been planned for the autumn.

After that, Le Ponant will sail to Naples, where she will resume her planned schedule on May 5.

‘Only four cruises were cancelled, of which three were charters,’ said Eric Lustman, CIP’s commercial director. ‘All our customers were very understanding and supported us. For two of these cruises, sailing was switched to a land tour. The others have postponed their charter to the autumn.’