Aranui newie delivered in China

CHINESE builder Huanghai Shipbuilding, based in Shandong, has delivered the newbuilding combi-liner Aranoa to Tahiti-headquartered Aranui Cruises, well ahead of its planned deployment in French Polynesia in early 2027.

Like the company’s current vessel Aranui 5 and previous iterations Aranoa is a modern rarity, a combination passenger and cargo vessel, designed to offer a rare cruise experience while maintaining a supply function for communities in the Marquesas and Austral islands.

Aranoa has accommodation for 198 passengers across 93 cabins, most (62) with a private balcony, and 103 crew. The ship also features two restaurants, two bars, two spa pools, a boutique, a health spa, a fitness centre, and a tattoo salon in line with Aranui’s “first tattoo parlour at sea”.

But the new 11,141 GT, 116-metre ship also has capacity for 48 TEU, handled by a large deck crane, to serve its cargo supply function. The ship was designed by SDARI, the Shanghai Merchant Ship Design and Research Institute, a unit of China State Shipbuilding Corporation, while Huanghai also built Aranui, delivered in 2015.

While Aranui 5 will continue to sail the northern Marquesas Islands where Aranui has been offering cargo cruises for more than 40 years, Aranoa will head south sailing to the remote Australs, an archipelago home to five inhabited islands – Rimatara, Rurutu, Tubuai, Raivavae and Rapa.

“Aranui Cruises is the first to work with the local island communities to create ongoing tourism and this project will help develop the Austral archipelago by providing new economic opportunities and fostering inter-island trade, while opening up the region’s breathtaking landscapes and colourful culture in a sustainable way,” the company says.

The 2027 program will see two passenger-freighter ships visiting all five French Polynesian archipelagos throughout the year. Aranoa is scheduled to commence operation on 6 March 2027, with the inaugural cruise a 13-day voyage to the Austral Islands including a call at Rapa Iti in the far south of French Polynesia.

The vessel will offer a total of 18 cruises in its maiden season, mostly cargo cruises to the southern Austral Islands which include calls at Society Islands’ Raiatea and Bora Bora on the return leg.

The 125-metre Aranui 5 will continue to service the Marquesas Islands with 20 voyages to deliver cargo to the six inhabited Marquesas Islands – Hiva Oa, Nuku Hiva, Ua Pou, Ua Huka, Tahuata and Fatu Hiva – while allowing guests to explore the UNESCO World Heritage-listed region while the Polynesian crew unloads goods for locals, the company says.

This itinerary also features calls at Tuamotu atolls Rangiroa and Fakarava, as well as the famed Bora Bora.