AT-A-GLANCE REVIEW

CANAL DU MIDI HOTEL BARGE: CLAIR DE LUNE

The Canal du Midi is France’s best-known, and probably finest, canal. This cruise from near Narbonne to Carcassonne (vice versa, on alternate weeks) takes six nights, or five full days. You’d do the same trip in a car in under an hour. Which is exactly the point. Here the luxury is luxury, but also the winding down to pre-steam pace, the better to appreciate languid Languedoc surrounds: vineyards, rocky foothills, sunlight on the water, attended by first-rate food and drink, and a crew for whom the word “service” doesn’t quite fit. It’s more like floating with friends who want to please.

Ship 9/10

A former freight barge transformed in the Nineties into the poshest boat on the canal. It’s a country house crammed into barge form.

Itinerary 9/10

This bit of the canal snakes through a southern landscape overseen by hills, overlooked by vineyards and trees, and punctuated by working villages ranging from six to nine out of 10 on the charm scale. The fine city of Carcassonne makes a cracking end or start point.

Cabins 7/10

Three of them, eminently comfortable but mildly more cramped than I’d expected at these prices. Then again, the boat must fit into 17th-century locks, so space is at a premium.

Food and drink 10/10

It’s a daily lunch and dinner party, of such quality one risks being overwhelmed by gastronomy. There’s an unbeatable selection of wines, plus every spirit you’ve heard of. Essentially, if you want it, they provide it, any time.

Facilities and entertainment 8/10

It’s a barge with a maximum of eight passengers. You don’t expect a disco or floor show. There’s a hot tub, an open bar, loungers and, all being well, good company. That’s ample.

8/10

From £3,150 per person in a twin/double cabin, all-inclusive. If, for you, such a sum spells “holiday of a lifetime”, this may not be it. If, however, a few thousand doesn’t scare you, and you fancy a decadent float through France in civilised company, I wouldn’t hesitate to book.

European Waterways (01753 598555; gobarging.com).

The Clair de Lune is like a country house packed into a barge small enough to negotiate 17th-century locks