"Carefully created cruises, just for you"™

Cruise with Emma

Hi, I’m Emma James-Aldridge, and my company is dedicated to organising hotel barge and self-drive boat cruises on the inland waterways, canals and rivers of France, other European countries and Canada, for clients from across the globe. If you're a family, group of friends, couples or individuals, I have the perfect cruise for you.

Why choose us
Self-drivesHotel barges

Our clients have awarded Hotels Afloat
★★★★★ (4.9) stars

Discover rivers and canals

Top cruise destinations

Friesland

Friesland

Holland

Camargue

Camargue

France

Saône Valley

Saône Valley

France

Loire Valley

Loire Valley

France

Canal du Midi

Canal du Midi

France

Selected of hotel barge trips

Check out the best hotel barges

Rendez-Vous barge cruise

Rendez-Vous

Burgundy Canal
4 guests
★★★★★
France
Burgundy Canal
Save up to 20%
Spirit of Scotland barge cruise

Spirit of Scotland

Scotland
12 guests
★★★★★
Scotland
Caledonian Canal
New route for 2026
Elegance barge cruise

Elegance

6 guests
★★★★★
France
Aquitaine & Bordeaux
Last-minute
Save 20%
L'Art de Vivre barge cruise

L'Art de Vivre

Nivernais Canal & Yonne
8 guests
★★★★
France
Nivernais & River Yonne
Magna Carta barge cruise

Magna Carta

Tested by Jane McDonald
8 guests
★★★★★
England
River Thames
10% off
Johanna barge cruise

Johanna

Midi Canal
4 guests
★★★★★
France
Canal du Midi
Save 20%
Maïtena barge cruise

Maïtena

4 guests
★★★★★
France
Saône Valley
Burgundy Canal
Last-minute
Save 20%
Rosa barge cruise

Rosa

Aquitaine
8 guests
★★★★
France
Aquitaine & Bordeaux

A selection of self-drive boat rentals

Discover the offers and discounts

The price shown is based on a 7-day cruise and indicates the lowest starting price, and excluding any special offer or discount.

Last-minute
Save up to 50%
Panoramic P.1400FB Self-drive rental boat

Pénichette Comfort 8 to 9 people

Panoramic P.1400FB

10 guests maximum
4 cabins
Ideal for 6 adults
and 2 children
3 bathrooms
★★★★
From 2002€/7 nights
FLASH SALE!
Save up to 25%
Dancer 4 (Salsa A) Self-drive rental boat

Dancer 4 (Salsa A)

10 guests maximum
4 cabins
Ideal for 8 adults
and 2 children
2 bathrooms
Comfort
From 2059€/7 nights
Last-minute
Save up to 50%
N SIXTO + Self-drive rental boat

Cruiser Premium+ 6 to 8 people

N SIXTO +

8 guests maximum
3 cabins
Ideal for 6 adults
3 bathrooms
★★★★★
From 2795€/7 nights
FLASH SALE!
Save up to 25%
Horizon 5 Self-drive rental boat

Horizon 5

12 guests maximum
5 cabins
Ideal for 8 adults
and 2 children
5 bathrooms
Premier
From 2639€/7 nights
FLASH SALE!
Save up to 25%
Mystique Self-drive rental boat

Mystique

8 guests maximum
3 cabins
Ideal for 6 adults
and 2 children
3 bathrooms
Comfort
From 2159€/7 nights
Last-minute
Save up to 50%
N PRIMO Self-drive rental boat

Cruiser Comfort 2 to 4 people

N PRIMO

4 guests maximum
1 cabin
Ideal for 2 adults
1 bathroom
★★★
From 998€/7 nights
Last-minute
Save up to 50%
N1100 Self-drive rental boat

Cruise Comfort 6 to 9 people

N1100

9 guests maximum
3 cabins
Ideal for 6 adults
3 bathrooms
★★★★
From 1470€/7 nights
Tarpon 49 Quattro Prestige S Self-drive rental boat

Tarpon 49 Quattro Prestige S

12 guests maximum
5 cabins
Ideal for 8 adults
and 2 children
5 bathrooms
★★★★★
From 3551€/7 nights

Testimonials

Guests have said...

The boat was better than expected...
The drivability including the bow thruster, the kitchen, the central heating, taking the boat solo.

I rate the...

Emma made the whole process very easy, from payment schedules to helping us organize transportation to and from the staging area.. We asked many...

To call the voyage perfect is not enough. Perfection has to include the crew and our Captain Chris. Thanks for all the kindness

We enjoyed Alex's captaining of the barge and the great vineyards, castles that he took us to. We appreciated Nicole's care, her cups of tea and...

We thank you for your kindness and warmth. You made us feel like family from the first day. Lots of laughter all week long. France will now hold a...

Hi Emma

We had a great trip. The arrival, boat familiarisation and boat hand-back service at the yard were excellent. The boat was fine. We went...

We had a GREAT trip... loved the beauty of the canal and the plane trees.
Most appreciated part of the boat: Electronic toilets.

Thank you all so very much for an absolutely marvellous week! Your hospitality, flexibility, understanding and company were wonderful! You shared...

The perfect present at any time of year
Gift Vouchers

v3.21