Ponant inaugurated Le Commandant Charcot at a ceremony in Le Havre, France, where the ship's namesake, French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charcot, had set off for Antarctica.
MedCruise welcomed the re-establishment of cruises between Greece and Turkey following the Greek government's decision to lift the ban on ships visiting Greek ports after calling at Istanbul and Kusadasi.
The ban on international travel is set to be lifted in November for fully vaccinated Australians, however cruising from Australia is still in limbo.