![]() The boats are designed with a stylish and comfortable country house elegance, with a crew of 6 to attend to you in a relaxed and informal style. ![]() However on the larger boats there are specific sailings which allow you to book individual cabins within a cruise. The majority of sailings are sold as full vessel charters, for which the itinerary and excursions can be personalised. This is one of those rare products that unless you know of it already you wouldn’t know to ask for it – something truly special and once experienced a) never forgotten and b) desperate to be repeated!įor all lovers of luxury, intimate travel, boutique high end accommodation or river cruising on a personal level, this is the ideal option.īelmond, synonymous with luxury train journeys such as the Venice-Simplon Orient Express and Northern Belle, as well as stunning hotels worldwide, has a fleet of barges converted to hold 4-12 guests in true luxury on several rivers in France. The other new barge Lilas will operate from the 2018 season in north-east France, between the Vosges and the Rhine valley, via the Canal de la Marne au Rhin, Strasbourg and the Canal du Rhône au Rhin.Have you ever considered meandering along the waterways of southern France on a luxury barge, converted from an original working boat? No? Nor had I until I was invited to travel with Belmond on one of their “Afloat in France” barges on the River Saone. One of two current additions to the fleet, Pivoine will start operating in 2018 in the Champagne region of France, cruising on the river Marne. Napoléon was launched in May 1991 as a passenger vessel. The woodwork was carried out by British ships’ carpenters in Belgium. The hull was purchased in Belgium and converted in a small shipyard in Bruges. She was one of the last commercial barges to have been built. Napoléon was converted from the hull of a commercial freight-carrying barge built in Belgium in 1963. She was the first of the Belmond Afloat in France fleet. In 1986–1987, she was converted and refurbished as a passenger-carrying barge. She began her working life as a cargo barge named ‘Cura’ and was later renamed ‘Mars’. She was brought to France and was converted by Afloat in France to carry passengers in 1992.Īlouette was built in 1908 at Ouderkeek in the Netherlands. This meant that she became the largest size of barge able to fit into canal locks. She was later lengthened to 38.50m in order to increase her tonnage and her cargo capacity. Hirondelle, originally named Vios, was built in 1928 in the Netherlands as a 27m cargo barge with a 5.5m beam. She was converted for passengers in 2001 and made her first cruise in spring 2002. At 160 metric tons, she is the largest size of barge capable of navigating the network of older canals in France.Īmaryllis was designed in conjunction with La Fluviale, a boat company in Saint-Jean-de-Losne. She was initially registered as a British ship, but has sailed under the French flag since 1996. ![]() She underwent conversion into a passenger vessel, employing Belgian steelworkers and British joiners. During World War II, she was commandeered by the German army and ordered to the island of Corsica. Hotel barges Fleur de Lys Ĭonstructed as a freight vessel at Oostkamp in Belgium in 1941, Fleur de Lys once plied the waterways of Europe with a varied cargo. In 2017 Pivoine (Peony) was added to the fleet, to start operating in 2018, along with another newly built barge, Lilas (Lilac). They are regularly referred to with 'Belmond' in front of the actual registered name. In 2004 five barges were acquired by Orient-Express Hotels, which in 2014 changed its name to Belmond Ltd.
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