'RENAISSANCE'

Sunday, Day 1 Paris to Briare
Guests are met at the meeting hotel in Paris at 2.30 pm and transferred to the spacious Renaissance where a Champagne Welcome awaits you. We cruise to Briare crossing of Gustave Eiffel’s magical aqueduct across the River Loire, an amazing 10,000 ton, 662 metre Pont Canal, which was completed in September 1896. Time for a walk or cycle ride before your first dinner aboard.

Monday, Day 2 Briare to La Gazonne
Morning visit to a family-run vineyard in Sancerre. This medieval hilltop village overlooks a vibrant and pulsating region which has known viticulture since Roman times. Afternoon cruise to La Gazonne, a beautiful mooring surrounded by lakes and ponds with Seine River one side and the Saone River the other side. Dinner on board.

Tuesday, Day 3 La Gazonne to Rogny les Sept Ecluses
Morning cruise to the village of Rogny les-Sept-Ecluses. Today’s excursion is to Chateau Guedelon. A team of fifty people have taken on an extraordinary feat to build a castle using the very same techniques and materials used in the Middle Ages. Work on the site began in 1997 and is scheduled to take 25 years to complete. Guédelon offers a unique opportunity to witness the different stages of a castle's construction with each phase being of interest in its own right. Alternatively we visit the 1000 year old Castle of Saint Fargeau. In 980, Héribert, Auxerre's bishop and biological son of King Hugues Capet, built this fortified hunting meeting place. Dinner aboard.

Wednesday, Day 4 Rogny les Sept Ecluses to Chatillon Coligny
Morning visit Gien, home of the Faience pottery and hunting museums and Chateau de Gien, built at the end of the 15th century for Anne de Beaujeu, Louis XI's older daughter. Afternoon cruise to Chatillon Coligny. Dinner ashore at Michelin starred Auberge des Templiers in Les Bezards.

Thursday, Day 5 Chatillon Coligny to Montbouy
We leave Chatillon Coligny this morning for a gentle cruise to Montbouy. This afternoon we visit Chateau Sully sur Loire. The castle originally belonged to Georges de la Trémoïlle, who infuriated Joan of Arc by encouraging the Dauphin to devote himself to idle hunting in the forests around Sully. After Joan's failure to liberate Paris 1430, de la Trémoïlle virtually imprisoned her in the castle. In the 18thC Voltaire, exiled from Paris, also spent time at the Château. Dinner aboard.

Friday, Day 6 Montbouy to Montargis
We enjoy a morning cruise through Little Venice, past flower-bedecked bridges and medieval watercourses joining France’s oldest canal. The cruise takes us through the Loiret countryside with towpath cycling to Montargis. Our visit this afternoon is to the splendid town of Moret-sur-Loing, home to the great Impressionist artist Alfred Sisley. This medieval walled town is still an inspiration for painters today, with its elegant Renaissance facades, colourful shops and medieval half-timbered house. Captain’s Farewell Dinner aboard.

Saturday, Day 7 Montargis to Paris
After breakfast we return you to the meeting point in Paris by midday

On alternate weeks the cruise is in the reverse direction. This is a sample itinerary and is subject to change.