My husband and I are interested in a possible barging trip in France. I have contacted a company, but they will not answer questions until I provide a phone number (I did give them my email). Before we continue the process, I'm asking if anyone has done one of these tours in the past year or two since I am curious as to whether the suggested price is approximately $7,000 per cabin or per person?
Thank you.
There are so many types. Are you referring to biking trips or food/wine trips? I watched the RS show on the latter, and it seemed appealing, until I saw the prices.
You didn't mention the duration, but the food/wine trips that I checked into were six days and upwards of $10,000. each.
I'm not ready for that. Good luck researching.
Yeah, I'd love to do one of the barge trips. But I no longer own a home, so cannot mortgage against it. For wife and myself, it would be $20,000/7 nights. That's pretty much what we spent on 4 separate trips, for 20 or more days on each trip.
Rick is no longer going "thru the back door". He's doing a lot of far ritzier things.
Paul, maybe there's a "back door" to the barge? Loved your comment.
To make a comparison, you'd need to specify where in France and the duration of the cruise. Also, prices should be given in Euros.
On the Dordogne River and many other rivers, with local operators a 5-day/4-night cruise with a cabin and meals included starts at €200 per night per person (excluding the high season). Of course, it can cost more depending on the services offered.
With $7,000, I could almost buy the barge. :-)
Some past comments on barge tours…
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/france/canal-barge-vacations-in-france
This was 25 years ago, but we rented and piloted our own boat on the Canal du Midi. It was my husband, my mother-in-law, and me on an English narrowboat, equipped with kitchen, dining space, sleeping room for at least 4, head, shower, and a diesel motor that never went too fast. Big boats flying Netherlands flags passed us regularly, sometimes leaving a wake (which you’re supposed to not do), but we weren’t there to set any speed records. The boat came with a couple of bicycles lashed onto the roof, but they had rusty chains and didn’t roll very smoothly, and a three minute attempt to ride alongside the canal convinced us that this was going to be a journey by water only, and not at all by bicycle.
As we picked up the boat at Narbonne, with local kids jumping into the canal right where our boat was moored, we were informed that there was a strike in effect by the lock workers, but that we could be operate them ourselves. That never became an issue; we never reached a lock at our casual pace, so going as far as Carcassone was never realized. One of the most memorable parts of the trip was hearing some bells, which got louder and louder. We then saw a sheep running along the side of the canal, with a bell clanging from its collar. Another sheep ran right behind it, and then another, and another. For 10 minutes, we were treated to a huge parade of running and galloping sheep, bells ringing the whole time.
I can’t begin to recall what it cost, but it was affordable, and we were even less well-off financially then, than we are today, and it wasn’t anywhere near tens of thousands of dollars. I’d thought that the company we used, Minervois Cruisers, had long-since ceased operations, but searching on them just now, it appears they’re still in business, going by Minervois Leisure as well as Minervois Cruisers, but apparently rent out a gîte, in addition to a narrowboat. A quick scan appears to show the weekly rate for the gîte, but I missed seeing any details about the boat.
If you want a barge cruise with an attentive crew, it sounds like you’ll pay for that. Yachts are yachts, even if they’re barges. But for do-it-yourself barging (narrowboating), here’s what I found - but again, I haven’t checked all the current details:
https://minervoiscruisers.com/media/canals_and_rivers/index.php
Of course, prices may have gone up considerably since our trip ;-)
As an example, this French company founded 50 years ago offers 82 cruises on various rivers in France. Prices and full itinerary details are provided:
This includes breakfast, drinks, lunch and dinner, accommodation in an air-conditioned double cabin with a shower and toilet, free Wi-Fi on board, and the listed entertainment and excursions.
About 4 or five years ago we rented and piloted our own canal boat in France. The cost was reasonable and a lot of fun. We did it with three couples on the Canal du Midi. It does require some physical effort. You go very slow. We had three cabins, each with their own bath. I think the company was Le Boat!
Thank you all for your responses. The cost is what I thought, although I couldn't imagine there would be a $7,000 fee per person! The trip (barge, wine, food) sounds wonderful, and it's something I have considered for years. However, II could travel many places for that amount of money.
