Even if the Canal du Midi (near Toulouse) is the most famous river cruise in France, there are many more options to relax on a barge (called péniche) in one of the French rivers.

There are 113 nautical bases for river cruising, covering about 5,000 miles of waterway. Most of them are located in the Eastern part of France. The South West is also very nice with the Lot or the Canal du Midi. We have tested for you the navigation on the Mayenne river, located near Angers in the Loire Valley.

 

This type of tourism is for travelers who want to go slow and enjoy life ; maybe around a glass of rosé wine with some cold cuts ; or taking a sunbath on the deck of a boat.

Your journey is about getting cooler in the river, passing locks and strolling villages along the way. At night, you’ll find a pontoon either in the nature or in a small river port.

Everything you need is onboard including a kitchen, a bathroom and bikes.

This is a really nice way to discover the French countryside!

France Just For You

Experts in self-drive tours in France

Travelers Reviews

5.0
Matt from Australia
A "Pinch Me" Tour. Expertly organised. We just spent the most wonderful month in France on our honeymoon curated by Laura and Emilie in such a way that we felt we experienced the very essence of France. From the Loire Valley, through the Biarritz area, the Basque region and finally to Provence. The itinerary gave us so many "pinch me" moments that …
Debbie
Emilie is amazing. Going to Normandy has always been a dream of my husbands and luckily for us we found Emilie to plan our trip. Our hotel in Paris for the start of our trip was located perfectly. Within walking distance of so much for our first two days before we picked up the rental car she had arranged for us. Then onto Normandy and the Loire …
Pamela
We just returned from a fantastic three weeks in Southwest France. I highly recommend the services of France Just For You, we could never have planned the trip ourselves as well as they did. Laura did the planning and gave us an amazing itinerary, and was available at a moment's notice when we had a plane cancellation on our flight to Bordeaux and …
Kathy
My wife and I were planning a special trip to Provence and although we didn't want a canned tour, we did want support to ensure we didn't miss out on experiences we simply weren't aware of. In our search we got lucky and found Emilie. She interviewed us in advance so she could customize the trip to our desires and interests and ultimately created …
Jim
If you want to experience France, but are hesitant because you don’t speak the language, this company is for you. Emilie will prepare an itinerary that is so detailed that even the most inexperienced, non-French speaking traveler will be able to navigate France. Her attention to detail is so incredible that almost everything sitiuation you …
Carolyn
We had a truly remarkable adventure across France. France Just For You created an amazing itinerary that captured the essence of France. Their planning and support made the trip effortless and enjoyable. Each B&B offered a home like atmosphere and allowed us to meet people across the many different regions of France. We were able to experience so …