Barging (barge cruising) France, Chalon sur Saone, River Saone, Burgundy vineyards

Château-Thierry is an interesting town and there is time to stroll round before returning to Merganser for our first dinner on board. The following day we set off up the River Marne stopping for the night at Dormans, where the memorial to those who fell in the battles of the Marne during the first World War merits a visit. The cruise continues along the Canal Latéral à la Marne, past the champagne villages of Mareuil-sur-Marne and Ay-sur-Marne where even in the smallest plots of land straight rows of vines reach down to the water's edge. At Condé-sur-Marne we pass the junction with the Canal de l’Aisne à la Marne. The canal now heads straight for Châlons en Champagne with few locks and a good towpath very suitable for cycling. There is time to visit this important and attractive town graced with ancient and impressive buildings and also boasting excellent shopping facilities. Continuing our cruise we reach Vitry-le-François, an attractive market town which has been rebuilt after wholesale destruction during World War 2.

This itinerary is reversed for the cruise from Vitry-le-François to Château-Thierry

REIMS to COMPIEGNE

We arrive in Reims in time to explore this magnificent city. Reims is the cultural and economic capital of Champagne and boasts a long and celebrated history. Here, amid the splendours of the Cathedral of Notre Dame and the Tau Palace, you will find reminders of the coronation of French kings from Clovis in 498AD to Charles X in 1825. Also, as befits a regional capital, the ambience of the centre is appealing with excellent shops, lively bars and plenty of the cosmopolitan chic one associates with champagne. The cruise takes us along the Canal de l'Aisne à la Marne to the junction with the River Aisne at Berry au Bac, scene of one of the most famous tank battles of the first world war. The cruise along the Aisne takes us first to Soissons, an attractive and historic town with good shops and monuments, then through an attractive landscape of woods and small villages to the junction with the River Oise and Compiègne with its famous Second Empire Chateau, excellent formal gardens and outstanding vistas. Cobbled central areas boast a large number of timbered buildings, rare in this part of France and the shopping is first class.

This itinerary is reversed for the cruise Compiègne to Reims.