The “I’ve done Bora Bora, now show me the real Polynesia” brief has stopped being a rarity in your inbox.
Aranui Cruises is a Polynesian family-owned shipping line that has run since 1954, out of Tahiti. It began as a freight service to isolated island communities, then in 1984 put paying passengers aboard a working cargo ship… and the mixed cargo-passenger model has been its signature ever since.
Today the fleet is one ship, the Aranui 5, with a second, the Aranoa, launching March 2027. This is small-ship travel: 103 cabins, no more than around 200 passengers a sailing, and a crew that’s close to 100% Polynesian. The front of the vessel carries up to 3,000 tonnes of freight to islands that order everything from a fridge to a car to a horse. The rear is fitted out to a four-star-hotel standard.
So your client sails a genuine supply run, going ashore with English-speaking guides while the crew unloads. Roughly 20 departures a year, every two weeks, all year round, all round-trip from Tahiti. Not a conventional cruise line, and it doesn’t pretend to be.
The Only Way In
Several islands on the itinerary have no airport… Tahuata and Fatu Hiva in the Marquesas, and Rapa down in the Australs with its 500 inhabitants. For those, a passenger ship is the sole practical way in. That’s the moat. When a client wants access no fly-drive or resort booking can give them, Aranui isn’t one option among many… it’s frequently the only one. The Marquesas earned UNESCO World Heritage status in July 2024, which gives the sell a credential your client can look up. Sole access plus a heritage tick is a strong position for a considered, high-value booking.
Who Suits This One
- The repeat cruiser who’s run out of “new” on the big lines and wants an experience, not a ship
- The soft-adventure or expedition client who wants remote access with a comfortable bed at the end of the day
- The client who’s done Tahiti and Bora Bora and wants the Polynesia behind the postcard
- The client who wants a story to tell, not just a tan… Marquesan tattoo heritage, island dance, Gauguin and Jacques Brel both buried on Hiva Oa
- The 60-plus client, where a senior discount applies
Not ideal if: your client wants a classic big-ship holiday. No casino, no kids’ club, limited big-ship entertainment… and because it’s a working freighter, the schedule serves the islands’ supply needs first. Some landings are by tender or local boat, so it needs a reasonably mobile client. And it’s a fixed 13-day, 12-night structure, not something you can trim to a long weekend.
The Practical Bit
It’s all-inclusive once your client is aboard, so your quote stays clean: they add international flights, and the rest is covered. Three meals a day, a bottle of wine per four people at onboard meals, daily guided excursions, cultural performances, and one resident lecturer per sailing giving around three talks. Fares sit in the four-figures-per-person range for a standard cabin, so this is one considered booking rather than a volume play. Half the Aranui 5’s cabins have a balcony.
On trade support: the line has a UK-facing contact, Deborah, for sales and marketing help, and they’re Paris-based with barely an hour’s time difference. Route enquiries through the standard supplier channel rather than direct to France. There’s also a loyalty programme for repeat cruisers, some of whom come back a fourth time.
The Real Talk Bit
This is a higher-involvement sell, not a quick turnaround. It’s long-haul (around 22 hours flying from Europe via a US west-coast stop), a fixed itinerary, and a four-figure fare per head. Newer agents can absolutely book it, but go in knowing it needs a full consultation and a client who’s sold on the concept before you quote. Worth testing with the right enquiry rather than pitching cold.
The Timing
Two reasons to have Aranui on your radar now. The Marquesas UNESCO listing (July 2024) is fresh enough to anchor a pitch. And the second ship, the Aranoa, launches March 2027 dedicated to the Austral Islands… an even more remote archipelago, Rapa included on select departures… which doubles capacity and opens a route that’s been near-impossible to sell any other way. The 2028 sailing schedule is due out shortly too.
Agent Fast Facts
- Core destinations: French Polynesia… the Marquesas (UNESCO-listed), the Tuamotu (Fakarava, Rangiroa), the Society Islands (Bora Bora) and the Austral Islands including Rapa, all round-trip from Tahiti.
- Trip types: 13-day/12-night all-inclusive small-ship expedition cruises on a working cargo-passenger ship; a shorter 5-day Pitcairn sailing on select departures.
- Client sweet spot: Soft-adventure and expedition-minded clients, repeat cruisers wanting something different, and the 60-plus traveller after the real Polynesia beyond Bora Bora.
- Booking USP: Polynesian family-owned since 1954, near-100% Polynesian crew, and often the only regular passenger service to islands with no airport.
The full training’s in the Agent Hub if you want to go deeper before you pitch it… the recording and the supplier contact details are both there. Keep this one in your back pocket for the client who tells you they’ve seen everything.
