This tour will take you from to Paris to Reims, and Reims back to Paris. Cycling through the Champagne vineyards and hills, through picturesque villages, along castles but always surrounded by lots of green. Suitable for the biker that really wants to cycle. 
The barge operators will provide you with all the information you need, serve you lovely food and let you taste the local specialities; they listen to what you want to give you the holiday of a life time. No need to bring more than your personal belongings, you will have everything you need when staying on the Feniks.

The cycle guide takes you on a tour of about 40-50 km a day, but if you want to cycle a longer or shorter distance, they provide you with maps and all the information you need. Of course you can also stay on the boat and enjoy the landscape from the sundeck. In the evening the guide takes you for a stroll in town, to show you all its beauty.

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DAY TO DAY ITINERARY 

Day 1 – Saturday: Paris

Arrive at the barge, moored in central Paris, around mid-afternoon. Meet your fellow cyclists, receive your bikes and go for a short introductory ride. Then after dinner take a walk with your guide to explore Paris.

Day 2 – Sunday: Paris – Bougival – Conflans Sainte Honorine cycling @ 30 or 55km

After breakfast we cruise or cycle through Paris, along the river past the Eiffel Tower and through Bois de Boulogne and Parc Trocadero to Bougival, an island in the Seine River. The journey passes through some pretty suburbs and parks with undulating riding terrain, and delightful views across Paris. You may re-board the barge at Bougival and cruise, or continue on by bike to St Germain-en-Laye and Conflans-Ste-Honorine. This route runs partly along the river past several spots which inspired many 19th Century painters. Tonight the barge moors in the popular river town of Conflans, with its many houseboats. In the evening take a walk along the river and into the higher part of town or visit one of the many cafés and bars.

Day 3 – Monday: Conflans – Auvers sur Oise – Creil cycling @ 40km

After breakfast we cruise along a beautiful stretch of river to Auvers sur Oise. In Auvers you can take a walk in the village which was once the home of Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh and where you will find many of the scenes he painted, as well as his grave. Re-board the barge and cruise to Boran-sur- Oise where our cycling for the day starts around noon. The route is through forested countryside and will take you to Chantilly, an internationally recognised centre for horseracing. You may like to visit the chateau of Chantilly which has a splendid collection of paintings. Our cycling route ends at the barge’s mooring place in Creil.

Day 4 – Tuesday: Creil – Compiegne cycling @ 50km

The barge starts cruising before breakfast to Verberie, where we saddle up and head to Bethisy-St Pierre for coffee, then on through the forest of Compiegne with visit to St Jean-aux-Bois for lunch and Pierrefonds where there is a fine example of a medieval castle which was partly rebuilt by the famous architect Violet le Duc in the 19th Century. Follow a cycle trail through the large forest to Compiegne where we spend the night. This townhas so much history to discover (Joan of Arc, the residence of several kings and a museum in the palace).

Day 5 – Wednesday: Compiegne – Soissons    cycling @ 47km

We start from Compiegne, cycling along the Oise and Aisne to the Clairière d’Armistice. This is a historic site which commemorates two world wars. There is a small museum dedicated to these wars including a train wagon identical to the one which was used for the armistice signing ceremonies in 1918 and 1940. Coffee stop in a village nearby, ride in a lovely valley, then we conquer some hills back to the Aisne valley. The route follows the river more or less to the mooring in Soissons, a historic town with medieval church and abbey ruins.

Day 6 – Thursday: Soissons – Berry au Bac / Cormicy cycling @ 40km

We cruise from Soissons over breakfast, then ride to Fort Condé, a well preserved WW1-era fortification in lovely countryside. We stop for lunch in a village on the river and then follow the river to near Bourg-et-Comin, where we rejoin the barge for the canal cruise to our mooring place in either Berry au Bac or Cormicy.

Day 7 – Friday: Berry au Bac / Cormicy – Reims    cycling 40km

We cycle beside the canal and see our first vineyards northwest of Reims. Passing picturesque villages and sloping hills covered with vines we arrive in Reims in the afternoon with of time to explore the town and do some sightseeing, shopping or champagne tasting (at own expense).

Day 8 – Saturday: Tour ends in Reims after breakfast.

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RATING – Easy to Moderate

The terrain is mostly flat, but we will also climb some low hills. Suitable for all levels of cyclist.

AIRPORT / TRANSFERS

Book your flights into Paris CDG Airport. There are trains and Metro from the terminal to the city centre every 10 minutes.

 MS FENEKS  4*

Originally, the Feniks was built in 1928 as a freighter on the Dutch, Belgium and French waters. She is a very strong vessel with many years of meritorious service and is known because of her beautiful line and speed. In 1992 The Feniks was reconstructed to a hotel passenger ship and put in service for several sailing holidays. Since then The Feniks has undergone several refits to keep the ship up to date with all modern facilities.

Since 2015 your new hosts are Ivo and Marius: one of us is always on board. From architect to captain, from consultant to sailor and cook, Ivo and Marius welcome you on board. We work with an enthusiastic crew.: there is Rick, our permanent chief cook, and Sven, our tireless sailor.  

We have an extended library on board, a varied collection of cds and dvds, a television and many magazines to entertain you. Of course we have several family/party games a board and not to forget lots of information and maps of the route, the sailing area and the places we are visiting.

Aboard you will find:

• 2 deluxe cabins with twin lower beds
• 3 regular twin lower bed cabins  
• 2 small cabins with twin bunks
• (All beds have a 20cm thick hotel mattress)

The cabins are clean and well cared for, and equipped with:

• A bathroom with sink, shower and toilet
• Hair dryer, shoe polish, sewing-things, shampoo, soap
• Central heating
• 220 volt sockets

There is a washer and dryer available and as well as everything else you need for a comfortable stay aboard the Feniks. Due to the narrow waterways the Feniks travels along, the barge is narrower than some barges travellers may be accustomed to, and the bunk bed cabins are only about 4 square meters/43 square feet, with bathrooms of about 2 square meters/21 square feet. The twin cabins are slightly larger.

Outside on the deck you will find various seats to take in the best views over the great landscapes. There is a sundeck to relax on or you can sit under the awning. If the weather allows, we serve the meals outside on the deck.  Have you always wanted to steer a ship? Winfred will welcome you in the wheel house.

SCHEDULE  & PRICE

Departure Dates 2019:  

Paris to Reims:  June 8

Reims to Paris:  June 15

This tour includes: 

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NOT INCLUDED:

• Staff gratuities
• Bar drinks
• Special diets ie. celiac, vegan