Offer Expired
Waiting for Cruiseline update
Charter any one of the ‘Afloat in France’ luxury barges and create your own French river cruising journey. Whether your passion is for wine, history, architecture, walking, cycling, antiques or golf – or a combination – Orient will be able to arrange specific activities and sightseeing trips.
- 11960
- Ocean
- 01 Jan 00
- Europe
- 07 Jun 16
- Cruise Only
-
Important Terms
- * Rates quoted are in Australian dollars.
- Rates are in AUD/USD
- Prices are per person, based on twin share, inclusive of port charges, taxes, and all discounts unless otherwise stated.
Single occupancy and 3rd guest rates are available upon request. - Prices shown are fully inclusive of taxes unless otherwise stated.
- Advertised price includes any bonus nights, special offers or discounts listed in the inclusions.
- Surcharges may apply due to demand, Christmas & New Year's Eve, school or public holidays, trade shows, special events & other unforeseen circumstances.
- Prices may be based on Dynamic Rates and as such, may fluctuate at anytime without notice, due to matters outside our control, such as adverse currency fluctuations, fuel surcharges, taxes and airfare increases, or at the property's discretion.
Itinerary
When you charter the Afloat in France barges, it’s like having your very own private villa. You enjoy a house-party atmosphere with your family and friends, but with the added benefit of ever-changing scenery outside the windows.
And with the constantly changing vistas, there come opportunities to try a variety of activities and visit a range of attractions in the surrounding countryside.
That’s where Orient-Express’ tailor-made cruises come in. Whichever péniche-hôtel you select—and they’re all available for charter either singularly or in tandem—it will follow its regular course, but your party can choose exactly what you do along the way.
Whether your passion is for wine, history, architecture, walking, cycling, antiques or golf—or all of those—with sufficient notice Orient can arrange specific activities and sightseeing trips around it.
Food and wine are clearly a highlight of any holiday, and when you charter an Afloat in France barge you can discuss the kind of cuisine you would like to try, enabling the on-board chef to prepare the perfect menu for you. In fact, guests can test their own culinary prowess.
The Alouette is equipped with a superb open kitchen so that she can be chartered for special cooking cruises—up to four guests can learn the secrets of regional French cuisine during on-board tutoring and may, of course, have input into what dishes they master. Other themed cruises, based on activities such as golfing and antiques shopping, allow guests to choose a theme that interests their party most.
Wine-tasting is already high on the agenda: the Semaine des Grands Crus tour offers connoisseurs the exclusive opportunity to taste 33 of Burgundy’s best wines, including Montrachet, Romanée Conti and Bonnes Mares. The six-night cruise includes on-board dinners hosted by a resident wine expert, on-board wine classes, tours of famous cellars, such as Joseph Drouhin, and dinners with the winemakers themselves.
Barging in Tandem
If you have a big family or a large group of friends all wishing to travel together, you can arrange to cruise in tandem.
This simply means chartering two, or even three, vessels and travelling in convoy. The Alouette and Hirondelle or the Fleur de Lys and the Amaryllis can be used if you have up to 14 in your party; for up to 22 passengers you can charter the Fleur de Lys, Amaryllis and Hirondelle.
This not only gives you the space you require, but enables your party to share the facilities of two or three barges. Afloat in France can arrange excursions, menus and schedules to accommodate the whole group and really make the holiday a shared experience. Let the party begin!
