As seen on Rick Steves' Europe (PBS) and in The New York Times • Ultra deluxe class, new to Champagne in May 2024
On Sunday you are met in Paris in the early afternoon and driven by private chauffeured minibus to Château-Thierry, where the Kir Royale is moored below the vineyards on the River Marne. Champagne is poured on deck while the Captain introduces the crew, and dinner is served on board that evening.
The Kir Royale has an unlikely history for a boat this comfortable. She was converted into a beach landing craft in the Second World War, was sunk, was later refloated, and was eventually rebuilt as a hotel barge. She joined the fleet recently and started work in Champagne in May 2024. Her four suites are each about 200 square feet or more, newly renovated, with his and hers sinks and an oversized rainforest shower. The saloon was refitted from scratch with bespoke furniture, a bar, a piano, and a dining area that opens onto the galley so you can watch the chef work.
For six nights the barge carries you east through the vineyards, from the Marne onto the quiet Canal latéral à la Marne, to Châlons-en-Champagne. In between: grand cru tastings at Aÿ and in the Côte des Blancs, the Reims cathedral where the Kings of France were crowned, the Avenue de Champagne in Épernay, and the American ground at Château-Thierry and Belleau Wood. Book the whole barge for your group, or join a departure by the cabin.
The Kir Royale has had three lives. She was converted into a beach landing craft in the Second World War, she was sunk, she was refloated, and she was eventually rebuilt as a hotel barge. She is a recent addition to the fleet and started work in Champagne in May 2024, rated ultra deluxe. The saloon was completely refitted: bespoke furniture, a bar, a piano, and a separate dining area with an opening to the galley so guests can watch the chef work. There is an upstairs toilet for guests, which sounds like a small thing until you have spent a week going below for it. The four suites are each around 200 square feet or more, newly renovated, with modern en suite bathrooms, his and hers sinks, and an oversized rainforest shower. Outside there are three deck spaces: a forward sun deck with a heated spa pool and loungers, a large sheltered aft deck with a covered dining area, and an upper observation deck with a panoramic view.
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.
The Kir Royale has four suites, each around 200 square feet or more, which is large for a hotel barge. All four were renovated recently and each has a modern en suite bathroom with his and hers sinks and an oversized rainforest shower. You never share a bathroom with other guests. If cabin size is the thing that has kept you off a barge until now, this is one of the roomier boats in the fleet.
A private charter is the whole barge for your group alone: $75,200 for six guests, $78,100 for seven, and $81,000 for eight at 2027 season rates. A cabin booking means you take one suite on a set departure, from $10,890 per person or $21,780 per cabin, and share the barge, the table, and the excursions with other guests. Solo travelers can take a suite with a single supplement of $4,000. Tell us which way you want to travel and we will point you to the right weeks.
Yes. The Kir Royale sells both ways. Cabin bookings are $10,890 per person or $21,780 per suite at 2027 season rates, with a $4,000 single supplement, and you travel alongside up to six other guests. Private charter of the whole barge starts at $75,200 for the week. Call Kim and she will tell you which weeks are open in each mode.
This is the question almost every first-time guest is too polite to ask. The honest answer: it feels like being looked after, not watched. The Kir Royale carries a crew of five to six for a maximum of eight guests. They have their own quarters and their own rhythm, they read when you want to chat and when you want space, and by day two most guests stop thinking about it. The galley opens onto the dining area, so you can watch the chef work if that is your idea of a good evening.
The rhythm on most days: a gentle cruise on the Marne, a guided visit to a champagne house or a town like Reims or Épernay, lunch aboard, then a free stretch to walk the towpath, sit in the heated spa pool, or do nothing at all. If you need a packed schedule to feel like you are on holiday, a barge can feel slow. If your idea of a good week is a glass of grand cru and the vineyards going by at walking pace, boredom is not the problem. Leaving is.
It is uncommon, but water levels on the Marne and lock maintenance can occasionally limit how far the barge travels in a given week. This is a sample itinerary and it is subject to change, and on alternate weeks the cruise runs in the reverse direction anyway. When cruising is limited, the crew rebuild the week around the same villages, champagne houses, and meals by road. We would rather you hear this from us now than be surprised by it. Travel insurance is a sensible backstop for the things none of us control.
This is the only week in the fleet that spends all six nights in Champagne. You cruise the River Marne and the Canal latéral à la Marne from Château-Thierry to Châlons-en-Champagne, taste at a grand cru house in Aÿ and a boutique grand cru domaine in the Côte des Blancs, stand in the Reims cathedral where the Kings of France were crowned, and walk the Avenue de Champagne in Épernay. The Kir Royale herself is a recent addition to the fleet, rebuilt as an ultra deluxe barge and put into Champagne in May 2024, with four unusually large suites and a heated spa pool on the forward deck.
You are met in Paris in the early afternoon on Sunday and driven to the barge by private chauffeured minibus. At the end of the week the same transfer returns you to Paris. Both transfers are included in your fare. Private charters can ask about other pickup points; talk to Kim when you book.
Easier than most trips you have taken. You fly into Paris, and the barge meets you at a designated point with a chauffeured transfer included. One suitcase, one meeting point, and the crew takes it from there. Kim sends exact meeting details well before departure, and she will help you plan Paris nights on either side if you want them.
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.
Your chef cooks aboard each day and the dining area opens onto the galley, so the cooking is part of the evening rather than hidden behind a door. Wines are chosen to match each meal and the bar stays open at any reasonable hour. The week also eats and drinks its way through the region: a private tasting at La Maison Ayala at Aÿ, a private gourmet lunch in the salon of the Frerejean Frères family domaine at Avize, and a guided tasting of the region’s signature styles at the Pressoria museum.
Cell coverage is good along nearly all of this route, which runs through inhabited countryside and towns the whole way, so email, photos, and a call with the grandkids are straightforward. Ask Kim to confirm what Wi-Fi is aboard the Kir Royale before you book if working from the boat matters to you.
Three separate outdoor spaces. Forward there is a sun deck with a heated spa pool and sun loungers. Aft there is a large sheltered deck with a covered dining area, which is where most lunches happen when the weather is kind. Above both is an upper observation deck with a panoramic view over the vineyards and the river. Inside, the saloon was completely refitted with bespoke furniture, a bar, a piano, and a separate dining area, and there is an upstairs toilet for guests so you are not going below every time.
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.
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.
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.
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Until it is live, call Kim at 888-229-2315, or request the full itinerary to start the conversation.
