Hotel Barge M.S. Niagara

Charter cruise program

Day 2. Saturday morning whilst having breakfast, the barge cast off her moorings and begins her cruise up the canal of Burgundy. Today's cruises will take through the first dozen of  the weeks 45 locks. After the captain skillfully pilots the barge under the first obstacle, which is a bridge by Eiffel, and since rebuilt, you will approach the famous mustard factory and then pass the picturesque Lake Kir, to Plombieres les Dijon with its small leisure port, then the village of Velars sur Ouche. You are free to get on and off board at any of the locks, the crew has bicycles ready for you, or you may prefer to wonder off on foot to follow the canal's towpath. Take your camera with you, some of the lock houses are very interesting. After a break for lunch, the barge continues to through the locks to Fleurey sur Ouche, the village's name means Flowers, which is the barge mooring for the night. It is a very old village with many quaint traditional houses, and narrow streets, explore them at your easy or take part in the program if you wish. Afterwards your second evening meal is waiting for you; the view from the dining room over the canal will delight you.

Day 3. Sunday morning, whilst the village church bells ring, the barge Niagara slowly glides away from Fleurey sur Ouche. The midday destination is the small village of Saint Marie sur Ouche. After a few locks the canal passes below the domain of Chateau la Chassagne and then  makes a sudden left turn to contour the nearby hills, the canal hugs the road which climbs over to Nuits saint George. There is now a dramatic change in the country side as the barge moves into the heart of Valley Ouche, when the barge arrives in the village, don't forget to take look at the beautifully flowered garden of lock house number 36. Slightly upstream from here the barge will moor up for a Sunday lunch shaded by the tress lining the canal. You will have plenty of time to wonder off into this village, if you look hard, you'll discover two places with memorials indicating where members of the Resistance were executed.

In the afternoon the barge continues up the canal towards the village of Gissey sur Ouche. This very quaint village has many interesting old buildings such as a 300 year old wash house, with crystal clear spring water flowing through, there are even a few of the older villagers who still use it. Try and photograph the old hotel, and search for the railway buildings. The adventurous traveler can wonder off into the hillsides and forest to check out the wild boar parks.

Day 4. This day is very important today, as you will be introduced to the secrets of the Burgundy wines. You'll have plenty of time to enjoy your breakfast, and prepare yourself for some very serious wine tasting in the Burgundy wine capital of Beaune. The minibuses will take you along the small roads and over the hills, down into the Cote de Beaune. The sudden change in the landscape always impresses travelers. Suddenly all around you, you see vineyards for miles and miles. Vines that have been cared for, for many hundreds of years, by many generations of families. You'll be in some of the most famous vines of the world, such as, Aloxe Corton, Corton Charlemagne, Pommard, Mersault, Poullinay Montrachet.
Your guide will skillful introduce you to the Burgundy vineyards by explaining the differences between the Bordeaux and other vineyards. He will show you why the wines taste different from one vineyard to the other, the harvesting, and pressing and fermentation process. In the 18th century cellars, you'll be shown how the wine is matured in oak barrels, the transfer of the wine to the bottles and the aging.
A wine tasting is organised to introduce you to the 1000 different tastes of Burgundy. From the Hautes Cote de Nuits to Gevery Chambertin to Volnay, red and white wines, how to make roses, why wines have forest fruit or nut taste, many of the secrets will become clear to you. You will of course have the chance to buy wine, and for those who wish to profit from the occasion, wine can be selected and sent to your own front door.
By lunchtime you will be ready for the short bus ride to a wonderful restaurant which is set in a very old wine cellar in the village of Volnay. This village has many premiere cru wines such as Clos des Chenes, a rich red wine, there are many choices form the menu, but if you are unsure which choice to make let the Captain guide you in selecting your entr� and main course. As is typical in France your meal will last a couple of hours; afterwards you will be ready to continue the exploration of the Burgundy wine capital of Beaune. The visit of the 15th century Hospice is a must; just looking at the incredible architecture and roof of this building will astound you, the old city ramparts and the Tower of Philippe le Bon, the wine museum. You can also visit the shops along the small pedestrian streets, try and find the cheese shop, where you can also do some cheese tasting!

Normally you will return to the barge in time for an aperitif, then you'll have the time to relax and savor the flavours, which you encountered during this special day.

Day 5. Tuesday's cruise begins with the barge continuing up the canal heading towards the small villages of La Bussière sur Ouche, which hides on of the most interesting Cistercian abbeys of the Burgundy region. On the way, whilst the barge slowly winds it's way through the valley, you will pass through the  villages of Barberiey sur Ouche and Saint Victor, on the hillside to the right you can see the ruined feudal castle of  Marigny, which dates from the 11 th century. The barge will normally arrive just before midday giving you plenty of time to walk the few yards from the mooring to the abbey. Your guide will show you some very interesting buildings dating from the 11th century,  and the huge wine press which is nearly 500 years old, built out of very large oak trees, the lake and parkland with the old paths  walked along by the monks for hundreds of years. The atmosphere of calm and tranquility always impresses visitor.
The afternoon cruise is an idle time for landscape lovers to sit on the sundeck and enjoy the countryside slip by. As many of the locks are quite far apart in this section of the canal it is also a great time to cycle or walk along the shaded path. Watch out for the elegant heron fishing birds or the fast flying kingfishers. The Ouche, which is following the canal, hides many places where you can swim in cool spring water. For those who like trout fishing, bring along your rods, or talk to the captain, who will gladly organize things for you.
The barge generally arrives late in the afternoon in the small port of Pont d'Ouche, if you have organised a balloon trip, the balloon crew very often take you in hand from here. Otherwise there will of course be an excursion organised. Once again your evening meal will enchant you, whilst the sun is setting try and look out for the deer who often come down to drink by the river.

Day 6: Wednesday is a very busy day for the barge crew, as the barge will leave Pont d'Ouche to climb up through the last dozen locks, of your cruise. After a couple of hours, you will see Chateauneuf perched on a hillside, guarding the plateau of Auxois. Try and cycle off at lock number 16 to visit the Chateau of Chaudenay, where Jean de Chaudenay built an earlier version Chateauneuf. Your lunch time mooring will be at the foot of Chateauneuf, shaded by the trees, this is a very pleasant place to take an aperitif. There is also a charming lock selling local handcrafts and jewellery just beside the barge.
After lunch the barge will push through the staircase of locks in front of you, to the small canal port of Vandenesse en Auxois, almost at the summit of the canal of Burgundy. Here the captain will and make a 180 turn with the barge in one of the few turning places available. The barge is then moored up with the sundeck facing the hill of Chateauneuf in the distance. The minibuses will then take you on a visit to Chateauneuf, apart from the very brave who can always attempt to cycle up the step hill to the village.
If you are in luck, your weeks cruise may coincide with on of the many festivals that are held in the village of Chateauneuf, such as the medieval market where you can buy traditional gingerbread and honey, watch knights in armor on horseback jousting.

View from you lunch time mooring

This evening is also the Captains farewell dinner, where you will be treated to a fine dinner. It is an ideal time to ask the Captain to tell you stories of barging and the canals, with the generations of family behind him, he can tell you of barges that cruised on flooded rivers, or the loading 250 tonnes of corn to be delivered to Holland. The evening often ends with brandy at the bar on board; Chateauneuf lit up in the night sky in front of you. You'll probably also be thinking about the memorable week you have had far away from the stress of every day life.

Day7. As today is disembarkation, your captain will have already arranged everything with you. If you have a train back to Paris, or a rental car, whatever, the minibuses will take you exactly to where you want. After a hearty breakfast taken without any haste, enjoy a finally walk around the village of Vandenesse. The crew will say farewell to you from the gangplank and you'll most likely leave the barge feeling sad, and you may even have to hide a tear as you wave good bye to the Niagara.