Current events
UP ON the deck of a cruise barge drifting through hidden nooks of the French countryside, I sit back and savour the moment.
The warm sunshine beating down, the scenery like something from an impressionist painting and above all, the leisurely pace to take it all in.
Later I would be picking from a menu of fresh local cuisine at the onboard restaurant. Tomorrow I would be exploring pretty French towns. In between I’d be soaking up the sights along the river and spending restful nights in my cosy cabin.
This is cruise barging – a niche kind of European river trip that is gaining a loyal following of mindful travellers.
I was travelling with Croisieurope, which operates one of the largest river cruise fleets in Europe.
Promising ‘an adventure between land and sea’, I had plumped for an itinerary featuring the delights of Provence, cruising the Rhone and surrounding canals.
After a flight to Marseilles, I boarded a coach transfer to the city of Arles, where the delightful royal blue and white MS Anne-marie was awaiting its passengers.
Barge cruising in these parts is nothing like narrowboating on the canals at home. There are no metal buckets painted with folk art, no whistling kettles on gas rings, no squeezing through gangways.
Anne-marie was more like a snazzy floating boutique hotel. Her spacious lounge with sleek, wraparound sofas in white leather led out onto the deck with tables for sundowners and parasols for shade. Inside, you could perch on stools at the cocktail bar.
There are just 11 cabins on board spread over two decks, sleeping 22 in total, and I just loved that my light and airy room with twin beds, ensuite shower room and TV was always just a few steps away.
That night I sampled the first of many outstanding meals paired with local wines. Following a peaceful night’s sleep, there was a buffet breakfast, featuring obligatory pains au chocolat. Then I joined a short coach trip through picture-postcard French villages to Le Moulin de la Coquille olive oil mill. I took a fascinating tour of the machinery, sampled some delicious produce, and enjoyed the views.
We then headed back to Arles for a gentle stroll. By chance, the annual Festival of the Herdsmen was taking place and it was wonderful to watch locals in traditional clothing proudly parading through town on horseback. It’s a ritual that’s been running since the 16th century.
The next morning we arrived in the heart of the Camargue, shaking off the cobwebs along the riverside paths with help from the onboard bicycles available for guests to use. The fishing town of Saintes-maries-de-la-mer, with its fortified church, flamingos on the lake and vast sandy beach was a smashing seaside trip.
We then enjoyed another afternoon cruising the river, ending in the town of Aigues-mortes, where we had free time to potter around streets full of artisan shops and ice-cream parlours.
On our final day we took a guided walking tour of Aigues-mortes, then visited the Salins du Midi, huge salt pans that have been producing the region’s famous salt for centuries, with a chance to climb the dizzy heights of the salt mountain. Our final lunch was a spectacular barbecue on the sun deck, with brochettes of beef, monkfish and a selection of colourful salads.
Although I’d seen and done a lot in the snapshot three days on board (regular itineraries are seven days), everything was timed so that nothing felt rushed. Holidaying at a slower pace certainly made it a richer one. Now where’s my pre-lunch aperitif?