Four apartment-style staterooms • Only a few departures each season • Family-owned barging since 1982
On the first afternoon we collect you in Brugge or in Brussels and bring you to the Aurora, moored on a canal in Brugge, the city they call the Venice of the North. Champagne and petits fours are waiting, your stateroom is made up, and for the next thirteen days your hotel travels with you.
The route reads like a shelf of art and history books. Ghent and the Van Eycks. Oudenaarde and Tournai, with the oldest belfry in Belgium. The deep locks and tunnels of the Canal du Nord, the war memory of the Somme, Napoleon’s palace at Compiègne, the château at Chantilly, and the village where Van Gogh painted his last canvases. Then the Seine itself, past the Eiffel Tower, to a mooring in the middle of Paris.
The Aurora makes the miles easy. Her four guest staterooms are closer to small apartments than boat cabins, and above deck there is a sunken jacuzzi, a fireplace, a bar that opens to the water, and a chef’s kitchen you are welcome to lean into. Unpack once. Everything else is handled.
The Aurora is built around one idea: space. Her four guest staterooms are described by her owners as apartments, and the word fits. Each has a king bed (two convert to twin beds), a console, chairs, a chest of drawers and a large closet, its own TV with Netflix, individually controlled air conditioning, and a big ensuite bathroom with two washbasins, an extra-large shower, heated towel bars, and terry robes. Above deck she carries a main salon with a fireplace and library, a semi-circular bar that opens between inside and out, a covered terrace with a granite dining table, a customized sunken jacuzzi with a sofa facing it, a roof deck for stars and scenery, and an open-plan kitchen with bench seating where you can watch the chef work. A large bay window disappears into the wall between the deck and the salon, so the whole living space opens to the water.
These comments are from FCBC guests and are not attributed to a particular barge. Source: French Canal Boat Company.
The questions guests actually ask before their first barge trip. If yours is not here, call Kim at 888-229-2315.
Large, by barge standards. Each of the four staterooms has a king bed (two of them convert to twin beds), a console and chairs, a chest of drawers and a big closet, a TV with Netflix, and its own air conditioning control. The bathrooms have two washbasins, an extra-large shower, a vanity, heated towel bars, and terry robes. You are still on a boat, so ceilings and corridors are boat-sized, but the Aurora gives her guests more room than almost anything else on the canals. You never share a bathroom with other guests, and housekeeping refreshes the staterooms daily.
This is the question almost every first-time guest is too polite to ask. The honest answer is that it feels like being looked after, not watched. The Aurora’s crew, including your captain and your chef, have their own quarters and their own rhythm. They read when you want conversation and when you want the deck to yourselves, and after a day or two most guests stop thinking about it entirely.
A Private Charter is the entire barge and crew for your group alone: $72,000 for six guests, $80,000 for seven, or $96,000 for eight. A cabin booking means you join a departure by the stateroom, $24,000 for two guests or $18,000 for single occupancy, and share the barge with up to six other guests. Cabin departures on the Aurora run with a minimum of two staterooms booked. With only a few departures each season, tell us early which you want.
The days are more varied than most barge routes because the route keeps changing character: a Flemish art city one day, a canal tunnel and a Gothic cathedral the next, then a war museum, a royal palace, Chantilly’s art collection, and Van Gogh’s village. Between outings there is the jacuzzi, the roof deck, the library, the towpath, and a chef’s kitchen to watch. If you need a packed schedule to feel like you are on holiday, a barge can feel slow. If you like the idea of settling in, thirteen days is the point, and the arrival in Paris is a finish most trips cannot match.
It is uncommon, but on a route this long a lock closure or low water can occasionally change how far the barge travels on a given day. The published itinerary is a sample, and when conditions require it the crew rebuild the day around the same towns and visits by road. We would rather you hear that from us now than be surprised by it. Travel insurance is a sensible backstop for the things none of us control.
The Aurora sails one way, turns around, and sails back, so paired departures mirror each other: one runs Paris to Brugge, the next Brugge to Paris. The stops and visits are the same in reverse order. If arriving in Paris by water on your final cruising day matters to you, choose a Brugge to Paris departure.
Three things. It is thirteen days instead of six nights, so it cruises real distance: two countries, five rivers and canals, and a genuine sense of a journey. The sights lean toward art and history rather than vineyards: the Van Eycks, two UNESCO belfries, the Somme, Chantilly, and the impressionists’ Oise valley. And it is the only cruise in our fleet that ends moored in the heart of Paris.
For the Brugge to Paris departure, we pick you up in Brugge or in Brussels, both easy to reach by air or rail, and bring you to the barge. At the end of the cruise we transfer you to your drop-off point in central Paris. On the Paris to Brugge departure it works the other way around: pickup in Paris, drop-off in Brugge. Both transfers are included. The travel day is easier than most trips you have taken: one suitcase, one meeting point, and the crew takes it from there. Kim can also help you plan Brugge or Paris nights on either side of the cruise.
Yes, it is possible to drive and park at the boarding ports. Get in touch and we will give you the specifics for your departure point.
Every meal is cooked fresh aboard by the Aurora’s chef, and her open-plan kitchen has bench seating facing the granite counter, so you can watch the cooking or join the conversation while it happens. The route adds its own flavors along the way: Belgian breweries, the mint candies of Cambrai, and Chantilly, the home town of whipped cream. For wine and bar specifics, ask us when you inquire; we are finalizing the published inclusions list.
The Aurora has wifi throughout the ship, each stateroom has a TV with Netflix, and the salon carries a Bose sound system. Mobile signal along the route is generally good because the barge is rarely far from a town, though it can dip in the more rural stretches of Picardy. Enough for email, photos, and a call with the grandkids.
The sunken jacuzzi with a sofa facing it, the roof deck, the covered terrace with its granite dining table, the semi-circular indoor-outdoor bar, and a salon with a fireplace, a library, and music. The towpaths along much of the route are made for walking and cycling, and several days build in time for both. Ask us about bicycles aboard when you book.
They are part of the show. The Canal du Nord section crosses the hills of Picardy through deep locks and long canal tunnels, real working waterway engineering, and the barge rises and drops as she goes. Locks are easy places to step off and walk a stretch of towpath, then rejoin the barge on the other side.
Yes. Tell us at the time of booking. With four guests at most and the chef herself taking the request, dietary requirements and preferences are handled personally rather than passed down a kitchen line.
No. Dinner is a gourmet event, but the dress code is relaxed: think smart casual, the way you would dress for a nice dinner at a friend\’s home. No jackets required, no gowns, no fuss. Comfortable shoes matter more than anything formal.
Barging is one of the most accessible ways to see rural Europe, with one honest caveat: barges use gangplanks and boat staircases, and moorings range from proper quays to canal banks. The Aurora does not suit guests who need step-free access. If you have any mobility considerations, reach out before booking and we will give you an honest answer about whether she works for you.
On shared cabin departures the minimum age is twelve. Charter the whole barge and younger children can come. Thirteen days is a long stretch for young kids, so tell us their ages and we will help you decide honestly.
Hot spells reach Belgium and northern France too, though summer along these waterways is milder than the south of France. Every stateroom has its own air conditioning control, the bay window opens the salon to the river breeze, and the covered terrace keeps a shaded table outdoors all day.
No, and you would be in good company. Most barge guests are in their 50s, 60s, 70s and beyond. The pace is unhurried by design: the barge moves at about four miles per hour, and there is no packing and unpacking between hotels. You settle in once and France comes to you. Guests who want more activity can walk or cycle the towpath beside the boat; guests who want none can watch it all from a deck chair.
Very unlikely. Canals are flat, placid water, and the barge moves at a slow, steady pace. If you are prone to motion sickness on boats, the canal is about as gentle as it gets. There are no waves and no swell, and there is no rocking at night because the barge moors every evening. If motion sickness has kept you off cruise ships, this is the boat that was built for you.
Yes. You are on flat, calm water in settled countryside, never far from a village. Your hosts handle every lock and mooring. On deck, the usual boat rules apply: mind the rails, wear sensible shoes, and take the towpath at your own pace. Children need supervision on deck, the same as at any waterfront.
Yes. The crews across our fleet speak English, and usually at least one other European language too. And if you want to try a few words at a market stall along the way, the vendors are patient and it usually earns you a smile.
Kim confirms availability directly with the barge owner. A 25% deposit is due when booking, with the balance due 90 days before departure. Bookings made within 90 days require full payment. Your checkout shows the exact amounts and due dates. You can cancel within 24 hours after your initial booking payment and receive a full refund. Contact us within that window. After 24 hours, payments are non-refundable if you cancel, including for illness or inability to travel. You may substitute passengers by contacting us. If the barge owner cancels your cruise for any reason, we will provide a full refund. This differs from a route change where the trip still operates. Read the full Booking Terms and Conditions.
We strongly recommend travel protection for non-refundable trip costs and medical evacuation. Cover and exclusions depend on the policy you buy. Read the policy and check with the insurer; accepting our booking terms does not buy or decline insurance. Read the full Booking Terms and Conditions.
You can cancel within 24 hours after your initial booking payment and receive a full refund. Contact us within that window. After 24 hours, payments are non-refundable if you cancel, including for illness or inability to travel. You may substitute passengers by contacting us. If the barge owner cancels your cruise for any reason, we will provide a full refund. This differs from a route change where the trip still operates. Lock repairs, drought, flooding or unsafe conditions may require an alternative route. A route change does not by itself give you a right to cancel for a refund. If the owner cancels the cruise itself, the full-refund policy applies. Read the full Booking Terms and Conditions.
If the barge owner cancels your cruise for any reason, we will provide a full refund. This differs from a route change where the trip still operates. Read the full Booking Terms and Conditions.
Lock repairs, drought, flooding or unsafe conditions may require an alternative route. A route change does not by itself give you a right to cancel for a refund. If the owner cancels the cruise itself, the full-refund policy applies. Read the full Booking Terms and Conditions.
You may substitute passengers by contacting us. The booking terms do not promise a refund or automatic credit for changing dates. Contact us about a requested change before making other travel arrangements. Read the full Booking Terms and Conditions.
You can cancel within 24 hours after your initial booking payment and receive a full refund. Contact us within that window. After 24 hours, payments are non-refundable if you cancel. Passenger substitutions are permitted. If the barge owner cancels your cruise for any reason, we will provide a full refund.
Other voyages from the French Canal Boat Company fleet. A quick way to compare on the things that matter most: how many guests, which region, and what each week is really about.
Every voyage in the fleet is booked and looked after by Kim directly. See all departures.
Until it is live, call Kim at 888-229-2315, or request the full itinerary to start the conversation.
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Until it is live, call Kim at 888-229-2315, or request the full itinerary to start the conversation.
