Traveling with HAA on this voyage includes the Harvard Study Leader, a separate tour director exclusively for Harvard travelers, all shore excursions and gratuities, private cocktail reception, 1 hotel pre-night and day of touring in Colombo prior to embarkation, and hotel / airport transfers.

Date
Feb 27, 2025 - Mar 13, 2025
Trip Type
By Sea

Group Size: Le Lapérouse can accommodate up to 184 passengers for this voyage. Harvard Alumni Travels has reserved a limited number of cabins on this regularly scheduled PONANT voyage. Harvard passengers will be joined by various travelers from independent registrations.


Price: Starting from $12,310 per person double occupancy

Activity Level
3

Trip Overview

Beginning with a circumnavigation of Sri Lanka and ending with an exploration of India's west coast, this voyage spans centuries of fascinating history in the central Indian Ocean. Glimpses of the rich cultural heritage of Sri Lanka in the Buddhist temples of Colombo and the ancient site of Sigiriya, are followed by encounters with the natural world in the wildlife preserve of Udawalawe National Park and the tea plantations of Koggala. Learn of the spice trade and the colonial rule that it gave rise to in Sri Lanka's southern port city of Galle, a dominant theme of the voyage as you sail to the pepper, clove, and cinnamon producing Malabar Coast, where Vasco da Gama established a trading post in Cochin in 1502, and where subsequent Portuguese traders and missionaries made Goa the center of their administration, leaving a legacy of colonial architecture that is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. The voyage concludes with two days in cosmopolitan Mumbai, where the legacy of British rule is evident everywhere, but local customs dominate from bustling Crawford Market to the worshippers at the Banganga temples.

Schedule by Day

  • Feb 27: Depart from U.S. for Colombo, Sri Lanka on independent flights
  • Feb 28: In transit
  • Mar 1: Arrive / Pre-night in Colombo
  • Mar 2: Colombo / Embark
  • Mar 3: At Sea
  • Mar 4: Trincomalee
  • Mar 5: Hambantota
  • Mar 6: Galle
  • Mar 7: At Sea
  • Mar 8: Cochin
  • Mar 9: Cochin
  • Mar 10: At Sea
  • Mar 11: Marmugao (Goa)
  • Mar 12: At Sea
  • Mar 13: Mumbai / Disembark / Return to U.S.

Pricing

Category

Double Occupancy

(Per Person)

Single Occupancy

(Per Person)

Deluxe Stateroom - Deck 3 

$12,310 $20,620
Prestige Stateroom - Deck 4 $12,600 $21,160
Prestige Stateroom - Deck 5 $12,780 $21,940
Prestige Stateroom - Deck 6 $13,020 $21,940
Deluxe Stateroom - Deck 3,4,5,6 $15,170 $25,910
Prestige Suite - Deck 5 $15,810 $27,100
Prestige Suite - Deck 6 $16,100 $27,630
Privilege Suite - Deck 5,6 $16,330 $28,060
Grand Deluxe Suite - Deck 6 $16,620 $28,600
Owner's Suite - Deck 5 $23,160 $43,760

Accommodations

  • One-pre night on Mar 1, 2025 in Colombo, Sri Lanka
  • Eleven-night cruise aboard the deluxe Le Lapérouse

Extensions

To be Announced

What to Expect

Activity Level 3

Busy pacing may include multiple hotel changes plus internal flights or long drives. May involve exposure to the outdoors, full days of touring, and walking up to two hours.

The program begins on Saturday, March 1 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Most flight options from both the US East and West coasts will require two calendar days to travel to Colombo. Consequently, guests should plan to depart on February 27 to ensure arrival on March 1. There are some options out of Boston, NYC, and Los Angeles that will get guests to Colombo in one day, but travel from other major cities in the US will require two days.

Study Leader(s)

Gardiner Professor of Oceanic History and Affairs

Mode of Travel

The exclusively chartered, five-star Le Laperouse is one of four ships in the recent Ponant Explorers expedition yacht series and represents an extraordinary fleet of the most innovative cruise ships in the world.

For More Information

Please email haatravels@harvard.edu or call our office at 800-422-1636 or 617-496-0806.