[Seaworthy News 696 - updated Jan. 3, 2023

Due to Covid,
PASSENGER SERVICE ON FREIGHTERS IS SUSPENDED INDEFINITELY,
except on the ARANUI and Bella Desgagnés

Aranui 5 2023 - Schedule and Rates 2023 - Discovery Cruises Promotion 2024 - Schedule and Rates By popular demand, Bora Bora will be added to the Marquesas cruise. Voyage Experience brochure Vessel and Accommodations brochure

Marquesas, Tuamotu and Society Islands brochure and itinerary.

Society and Tuamotu Islands brochure and itinerary

Pitcairn, Tuamotu and Gambier Islands brochure and itinerary

Austral and Cook Islands brochure and itinerary

For more information, please check our main page on the Aranui cruises, Registration Form

To request a reservation, please print, complete, scan or picture and email back the Registration Form, indicating your preferences. When we confirm holding a cabin in your name, to make the reservation a deposit for 25% of the fare would be required by a bank transfer, or by check payable to Maris USA Ltd. in USD (copy via email, we’d process it electronically).

The Pitcairn Story

Located halfway between Australia and South America, the Pitcairn island remains one of the most remote and undiscovered tourism destinations in the world. It is a British Overseas Territory that has some legal autonomy and is often considered the world’s smallest country by population of approx. 50 descendants of the HMS Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions.

Bounty Bay, where the remains of the HMS Bounty lie

After all possessions were removed and lugged up the aptly named Hill Of Difficulty, the vessel was run ashore and set alight so that no trace of her would remain visible from the sea. A village was established on the lower plateau, situated above the bay, and named Adamstown, after the last surviving settler, while Fletcher Christian is fondly remembered as the founder and first leader.

Fletcher Christian’s 1789 uprising against Captain William Bligh on the HMS Bounty inspired a 1932 novel Mutiny on the Bounty, several movies, and even a musical. Clark Gable played Christian in the 1935 film, Marlon Brando in 1962, and the star-studded cast of 1984’s The Bounty featured Anthony Hopkins as William Bligh, Daniel Day Lewis as John Fryer, Laurence Olivier as Admiral Hood, Liam Neeson as seaman Charles Churchill and a young Mel Gibson as Christian.

Pitcairn Island was sighted on July 3, 1767 by the crew of the British sloop HMS Swallow, commanded by Captain Philip Carteret. It was named after Midshipman Robert Pitcairn, a fifteen-year-old crew member who was the first to sight the island.

Two decades later, after overthrowing Captain Bligh and sailing first back to Tahiti where 16 out of the 25 sailors and mutineers decided to stay on the island, Christian then sailed with the remaining eight crewmen, their Tahitian wives and several Tahitian men, and arrived on Pitcairn in January 1790. The island’s location had been charted inaccurately, making it an attractive hideaway option. A British navy ship searched for months for the rogue crew to no avail. However, the mutineers who stayed on Tahiti were captured and brought back to England to face justice. The Pitcairn settlers weren’t discovered until 1808, but by that time they were only survived by mutineer John Adams. The island’s early history was bloody, with many feuds and violent deaths. Now Pitcairn Island is peaceful and its fifty families, many of them descendants of that infamous Bounty crew, welcome visitors to their idyllic tropical home.

Registration Form

To request a reservation, please print, complete, scan or picture and email back the Registration Form, indicating your preferences. When we confirm holding a cabin in your name, to make the reservation a deposit for 25% of the fare would be required by a bank transfer, or by check payable to Maris USA Ltd. in USD (copy via email, we’d process it electronically). For more information, please check our main page on the Aranui cruises,

Thanks to the support received from our customers, as well as from the steamship lines and media, including the following comments, today's Maris is one of the leading independent freighter cruise specialists:

	"Maris is sailing with fair winds and following seas under your command." John Carrick Editorial writer Sydney, Australia Sep/1999

	"Q: It has always been my dream to take a long voyage on a cargo ship. Can you tell me if this is possible any more? - A: Maris in New York offers such voyages on a daily basis." Sunday Times London Jul/2001

	"Maris Freighter Cruises website, as well as the newsletter which illustrates itineraries, ships, prices etc., is a good place to learn about this type of cruise and travel." New York Times May/2003

	"We are very appreciative of the work you have undertaken on our behalf for many years and the effort you have put into making our passenger service a success ... Our sincere and grateful thanks." Richard Mellor P&O Nedlloyd London Jan/2005

	"As a faithful reader of your Seaworthy News publication, I wish to compliment you and your staff on the informativeness and thoroughness, setting forth in honest and detailed manner descriptions of this means of travel." Martin Ems Retired Manager Passenger Services, American President Lines - Feb/2007

	"I just wanted to send you my thanks for the beautiful news publication you produce all these years. I hope you'll keep freighter travel as your primary focus always, as it sets you apart." Alison Senter (Member since '95) New Lisbon, NJ Jan/2010

	"Since 1971, when my three young children and I travelled up the West Coast of Africa, I have had the pleasure of occasional freighter voyage. A wonderful way to see, and enjoy the peace of the watery parts of, our world. Thank you so much and your family for choosing to run your freighter cruise agency." Jean Washington San Diego, CA Apr/2016

	"Hopefully, when the dust (and Covid) has settled, we'll be able to envisage a new adventure. With renewed gratitude for your unfailing support and guidance, kindest regards." Jacques Carrio Vienna, Austria Oct/2020

Become a member of Maris Freighter Travel Club Int'l - or give a gift membership Take advantage of the knowledgeable advice that comes from our vast experience, starting by reviewing the recommended pages.Find the freighter and voyage that's right for you and, for each booking, you will receive a discount of up to $800, depending on the steamship line and voyage.

Due to Covid, PASSENGER SERVICE ON FREIGHTERS IS SUSPENDED INDEFINITELY, except on the ARANUI and Bella Desgagnés You'll also receive our online newsletter called Seaworthy News, featuring passenger firsthand stories and news, issued periodically as it happens. It's a well-illustrated e-mail publication often being the only one available anywhere for many of these voyages.

$59 Membership - Subscriptions are on pause - The same low price (in USD) is valid internationally. By placing your order, you agree with our Terms