A planned luxury expedition to the North Pole for Russian business leaders and celebrities has been called off because of U.S. sanctions, as reported by the Financial Times. The $8.5 million voyage, set to take place on the icebreaker Le Commandant Charcot, was canceled following the arrest in the United States of a company head who was supposed to act as a broker for the vessel`s charter payment.
Experts note that Arctic cruises are highly popular among affluent Russians. Over 150 Russian-speaking VIP guests were scheduled to embark on this journey aboard the Le Commandant Charcot, a vessel owned by Ponant. Ponant is part of the assets of the Pinault family, known for owning Christie`s auction house and luxury brands such as Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent.
According to the FT, top managers from «Gazprom» and «Yandex,» as well as TV presenters, restaurateurs, musicians, and comedians, were expected to participate in this opulent cruise. While the publication did not name specific individuals, it did mention a planned performance by the band «Leningrad.» The VIP travelers were promised Swarovski telescopes, gourmet meals from Michelin-starred chefs, a heated swimming pool, and the chance to disembark onto the ice at the North Pole. Cabin prices ranged from $70,000 to $200,000. However, Ponant canceled the trip after a Russian crypto entrepreneur, whose company served as the payment intermediary, was arrested in the U.S.
Yury Gugnin was detained by the FBI in New York in June, facing charges of violating sanctions and money laundering. Prosecutors allege he laundered over $500 million and assisted Russia in acquiring sensitive American technologies. Gugnin denies the charges. In the wake of the cancellation, two travel agencies, TRVL from Dubai and Neverend from Moscow, have filed a lawsuit against Ponant, demanding the return of $5.8 million from the total $8.5 million charter cost, with total claims, including compensation for damages, amounting to approximately $7 million.
A cruise to the North Pole is indeed a highly expensive endeavor. A single spot in a modest cabin on the nuclear-powered icebreaker «50 Years of Victory» costs upwards of 3.5 million rubles (approximately $35,000-$40,000 USD, depending on exchange rates). However, as blogger and writer Olesya Kazantseva, who participated in a 2022 cruise (organized for gifted children) on the «50 Years of Victory,» told Business FM, the emotions from such a trip are priceless. She described it as an «unforgettable experience,» a place where «there is nothing,» yet «everything exists,» allowing one to «reset» and see the world anew.
Kazantseva noted that such tourism is not inherently extreme, apart from swimming in the icy waters at the North Pole. She recounted feeling «a thousand needles piercing her body» and experiencing a sense of «dying» when plunging into the frigid slush above a four-kilometer deep abyss. She described the experience as «very cold, very scary, and very cold.» Guards with rifles provided protection against polar bears during shore excursions.
Pavel Konstantinov, a participant and organizer of dozens of Arctic expeditions and a six-time conqueror of the North Pole, emphasizes that nuclear icebreakers like the «50 Years of Victory» guarantee reaching the North Pole regardless of ice conditions, a reliability not always offered by competing European ice-class cruise ships. The clientele for such cruises consists of extraordinary individuals seeking unique achievements, those who are no longer impressed by standard luxury tourism. They become more than mere passengers; they are part of a grand expedition.
Le Commandant Charcot is also an icebreaker and had, until this incident, always reached its destination. However, in this particular case, as the publication ironically notes, the vessel simply never departed for the pole. For these prominent Russian figures, «the ice never broke,» implying that circumstances—specifically, U.S. sanctions—proved more formidable than any natural obstacle.
