Your Journey

Day 1 Paris

Board your barge at 2 pm and cruise through the heart of Paris with wonderful views of the city’s landmarks.

Day 2 Paris – Auvers-sur-Oise (42 – 48 km)

Cycle and area much loved by impressionist painters and where Van Gogh is buried.

Day 3 Auvers-sur-Oise – Beaumont sur Oise, Royaumont, Chantilly, Creil -  Pont-Ste-Maxence (43 km)

Follow the Oise River past the abbey of Royaumont to the famous castle of Chantilly, horse racing circuit and royal stables.

Day 4  Pont-St-Maxence – Compiegne (44 – 54 km)

From Pont –St-Maxemce cycle to Compiegne whose enormous woods were the favourite of French kings. The gardens of the Chateau de Compiègne are worth a visit.

Day 5 Compiegne – La Clairiere, Tracy, Ourschamps, Noyon - Pont L'Eveque (42 – 51 km)

First up today is  l’Armistice de la Clairière -the forest clearing and the carriage where the First World War armistice was signed. Continue on through Tracy and  the forested trails of Ourchsamp and Noyon.  Cycle back to the canal at Pont L'Eveque where the barge awaits.

Day 6 Pont L'Eveque - Haudival by barge, Haudival to Peronne (47 – 56 km)

Cruise along the Canal du Nord which was built to replace the older canal of St. Quentin,  Cruise to Haudival and commence cycling through gently rolling, open countryside to the town of Ham, then along the River Somme to Peronne. 

Day 7 Day in Peronne

Rest day.  Your barge will be moored just outside the charming town of Peronne, which is yours to explore, with its intimate square and church as well as a castle and the fascinating Grande Guerre museum.

Day 8 Peronne - Ytres -  by barge  Ytres - Moeuvres  (40 – 52 km)

Continue cycling along the River Somme and then  through open and rolling landscape to Ruyaulcourt.  At the end of WW1 this area was the frontline of the battle around the Somme.  Cruise through the long (4.3km) tunnel dividing the watershed between the Somme and the Scheldt rivers.  Mooring is in Moeuvres.

Day 9 Moeuvres – Cambrai -Arleux - Pont Malin (47 – 50 km)

Today we visit Cambria, once a Roman provincial capital and an important destination for pilgrims. This lively provincial town has splendid historic monuments of the city fortress.  Continue to the marshlands of Chantraine and rural Arleux from where your barge will take you to the lock of Pont Malin.

Day 10 Pont Malin – Doornik ( 47 - 51 km)

The barge follows the Canal du Grand Gabarit for a few hours.  Start from Denain on a long and lovely day of cycling through former mining towns with beautifully preserved heritage from around 1900. Cross into Belgium then through the ‘white land’ to the charming little fortress town of Antoing. Limestone has been mined here since the Roman times. Today’s destination is Doornik (in French: Tournai), one of the oldest cities of Belgium, that was destroyed by a German air-raid and has since been rebuilt especially the Notre Dame Cathedral.

Day 11 Doornik (Tournai) – Oudenaarde (45 km)

You are now in the Flemish region. The destination today is Oudenaarde, in former days a French/German border town which was subject to much conflict. It is also known as the town of the tapestry weavers.

Day 12 Oudenaarde –Ghent (45 km)

Ride to the lively university town of Ghent and a major centre for cloth traders in the 13 and 14 centuries. This former wealth is evident in the many patrician residences, Lakenhal (former trading centre) and St Baafs Cathedral.

Day 13 Ghent – Bruges (34 – 44 km)

Cycle the pleasant countryside of western Flanders all the way to Bruges. Wander its old centre, which dates from the Middle Ages, and is almost completely intact.

Day 14 Bruges

Day free to explore Bruges. Take a cruise on the beautiful canals.

Day 15

Tour ends in Bruges at 9 am.