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Paris to Bruges 15-Day Guided Bike and Barge Tour (Level 2)

  • 15days
  • France

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Twin bed room:
Double bed room:
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Bike & Barge Tours Europe
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Paris to Bruges over 15-Days 

This bike and barge tour starts in the heart of Paris and offers you a two-week bike and boat trip in two (or three!) countries. History is abundant on this tour. Several historical towns, museums,castles, a varied landscape.

The first week you will experience riding in forests and lower hills, in the second week you’re in flatland. The ship follows the river Seine downstream for a while. From Conflans it goes upstream the Oise river. After Compiegne the ship follows a canal with many locks towards the Belgian border. The river Escaut (Schelde) is the next waterway, until Gent. The last stretch, to Bruges, is in a canal again.

Highlights:

  • Picturesque city of Bruges
  • Canals and Countryside
  • Paris, the City of Light
  • Auvers-sur-Oise

Tour Character: Level 2

Not too steep and not too long cycling. Average 40-60km per day.

Your accomodation: 

On board there’s an extended library, a varied collection of CD's and DVD's, a television to play movies and many magazines to keep you entertained. Route maps and information about the sailing areas and the places you will visit, is of course available. On our sundeck you can relax and sit under the canopy, which gives you shelter from the sun (or rain) and where we also serve meals if the weather allows it. Laundry service is offered on board (only with cold water). All you have to do is hang out your laundry to dry on the midship. There are 2 Luxury twin cabins with wardrobe and table, 3 Twin cabins and 2 Bunk bed cabins (also for single travelers). All cabins are provided with: private bathroom, airconditioning, 220 voltage, soap, windows/portholes that open. Hair dryers are available on board. There is limited storage space in the cabin. We recommend 1 suitcase per person. You can slide the suitcase under the bed.

Included in the tour:

  • All nights on board, cabin in the booked category (luxury twin cabin on request) 
  • Use of bed linen and towels (change of towels possible)
  • Breakfast
  • 12 x three course dinner with wine and cheese
  • Coffee and tea on board
  • Tour guide, cycles with the group
  • Bicycle insurance
  • Route information

Not included:

  • Mandatory Contribution Dutch Guarantee Fund (Insolvency Protection)
  • Bicycle rent
  • Entrance fees to museums; approx. € 30,- per tour
  • Personal insurance

If you would like to rent a Touring Bike (220 EUR) or E-Bike (420 EUR), please contact us when booking

Notes:

  • Special diet if requested when booking € 150,- per diet, if requested when boarding € 200,-
  • Individual riding is an option. A road book is included (1x per cabin) and Gps-tracks can be provided by e-mail.

Arrival/ departure:

  • You are expected at the barge on Monday afternoon, between 11.00 AM and 14.00 PM. You can bring your luggage earlier to the barge, but not before 10.30 AM. We are busy cleaning the barge, but we can provide you with suggestions to have a nice walk into town. The mooring place of the barge Feniks in Paris, Port de l'Arsenal.
  • The nearest airport to the embarkation point of the barge is Paris Charles de Gaulle By train it is about 30 minutes from the airport to the railway station Gare du Nord A taxi from the airport to the mooring place will take about 60 minutes and costs about € 80,-
  • From Gare du Nord by Metro you need to go to the metro station Bastille. From the metro you can walk to the barge, walking distance is about 10 minutes. The tour ends two weeks later in Bruges, so another possibility is to fly to Brussels Airport From Bruges you can take the train to the airport. Travel time is about 1.5 hours.
  • The tour ends two weeks later in Bruges on Monday morning after breakfast at 10 AM. You will spend the night from Sunday to Monday on board in Bruges. The mooring place of the barge in Bruges: ‘Buiten Katelijnevest’ near the Bargeweg (nearly 1 km/ 0.6 miles from the train station). There is a good train connection to Paris .Travel time is about 2.45 hours and a one-way ticket (2nd class) costs about € 85,-.

Slow Tours offers a range of Bike and Barge Tours Europe

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  • Day 1

    Paris

    After arrival and welcome at the barge on the mooring place, the barge leaves from its berth for a boat tour through Paris and on the Seine.

  • Day 2

    Paris-Bougival

    Depending on the mooring place, you will traverse Sunday-morning Paris with relatively less traffic, following the Seine-river. This first day has some serious slopes to conquer (Paris is not flat!). We will go through parks (Bois de Boulogne) and forest to Versailles (lunch) where we will visit the park. Through Sunday afternoon quiet suburbs we will find our way. Option: visit to chateau/museum of Malmaison (Napoleon and Josephine). Mooring near Bougival

  • Day 3

    Bougival-Auvers sur Oise 30 km.

    In the morning we follow a bike trail along the river to nearby St. Germain-en-Laye. From the bridge to the castle is a ca. 1 km. slope. The French kings had many luxurious dwellings in and near Paris. From St. Germain the court finally moved to Versailles.In the castle houses a fine prehistoric museum. Coffee stop. We follow the river more or less and will have lunch in the next town. End of this Seine-day is in Conflans Ste. Honorine, a once busy river port. From here the ship will sail upstream the Oise river to Auvers. This nice little town is connected with the famous Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh, who spent his last months here, producing a large number of paintings. Guided walk

  • Day 4

    Auvers sur Oise – Creil 35 km.

    An early sailing brings us quite a distance upstream. The bike ride leads us to the forest around Chantilly. Here an impressive chateau (art) can be visited. In case it is closed (Tuesdays off season) a good alternative is a visit to the former abbey of Royaumont. After Chantilly the longer ride-option offers you a nice ride to the historic town of Senlis (Roman traces, cathedral) and a beautiful wooded landscape back to the river in Creil.

  • Day 5

    Creil – Compiegne 40 km.

    Another early sailing on the Oise-river starts your day. Cycling away from the river you’ll hardly experience the very moderate slope. After coffee stop we are heading for the immense Compiegne forest. On our way to there, you’ll see a ruin of a chapel and impressive Roman excavations. Lunch in a village in the forest. Pierrefonds castle is a must-see! All the way back to the river is in the forest. Compiegne is waiting for us. It’s a nice town. Palace-museum. You can join a guided walk in this historic town (Joan of Arc).

  • Day 6

    Compiegne – Noyon 45 km.

    An open space in the forest of Compiegne is connected with two truces of two World Wars (Clairière d’Armistice). There is a small museum to be visited. After the coffee stop we enter a lovely wooded valley on our way to the north. In one of the villages we can have our lunch. In the afternoon we are heading for the old town of Noyon with it’s immense cathedral. At it’s foot there is a nice historic museum. Another nearby little museum is dedicated to the reformer Calvin who was born here. Mooring near Noyon

  • Day 7

    Noyon- Peronne 60 km.

    Because of the distance the first leg of this daytrip is often covered by sailing. We are entering the wide agricultural area of Northern France, also site of fierce fighting in the war of 1914-1918. You’ll encounter military cemeteries in this vast area. Coffee stop and lunch in a small town and village. In the afternoon we are heading for the Canal du Nord. Near one of the locks we might meet our ship. If not, the last stretch is a nice ride with a stop near the river Somme to our destination today, Péronne. Dinner in town today.

  • Day 8

    Peronne – Moislains 20 km.

    Day in Peronne. The Historial, the war museum in the castle is worth while visiting. There is another small local museum in the centre. Participants who are even more interested in the history of the Great War ‘14-’18 could use their day off for a visit to one or more places connected with the 1st World War. To the west, direction Amiens was the Australian sector. Visit on your own initiative. Ask your guide for information at the beginning of your journey. If there are enough interested guests a tour along interesting WW1 sites will be organized by a local guide with great knowledge of the Great War (not included in price).

  • Day 9

    Moislains – Arleux 55 km.

    The sailing towards the end of the canal near Arleux takes a long time because of the ship traffic and many locks. The captain might leave on Saturday afternoon already to make the next day easier for guests and crew! The bike ride starts near Moislains and you will encounter only a few minor slopes. Coffee stop in a village and lunch probably in Cambrai. For a while (16th century) this town was part of the Netherlands! Easy cycling afterwards to the end of Canal du Nord near Arleux.

  • Day 10

    Arleux – Valenciennes 50 km.

    A day in the north of France. The name of Arleux is connected with garlic, important ingredient used in the French kitchen. Between the English Channel and the German Ruhr-area in a relatively narrow belt there was a major coal mining industry in the 19th and the first three quarters of the 20th century. This is still visible in the landscape. Red brick buildings are abundant here. Option: visit to a coalmine-museum. Bouchain has an old fortress and a small museum. Valenciennes is a bigger town with all facilities belonging to that (museums etc.)

  • Day 11

    Valenciennes-Tournai 60 km.

    Into Belgium. The town of Escaudin has an monday-market. Good place to stop for a while! After the coffee stop in another small town we’ll enter St. Amand-les-Eaux with its impressive tower. Time for lunch! Towards Tournai we can take the longer ride in a beautiful forest area, cross the river Escaut and find our way on quiet countryroads towards the Belgian border. Along the Escaut-river we cycle into Tournai. If necessary, we can take a shortcut after St. Amand. Tournai is famous for its historic town centre. Highlight is the cathedral with its five towers. Mooring near the city centre, at walking distance.

  • Day 12

    Tournai – Oudenaarde 45km.

    Cycling to Oudenaarde is easy, just following the river Escaut. After crossing the language-border(coffee stop), the river is called Schelde. An alternative with just a few slopes a bit further away from the river is an option. Near the lunch place the hill-lovers have a chance to prove their climbing capacities! Nearby are two of the (in!)famous cobblestone covered roads up to the hill (12 and 20 % slope. A beautiful bikepath on a former railroad track leads us to near Oudenaarde. Highlights in town: townhall with tapestries, bicycle centre Tour of Flanders, church, beer brewery. On the market-edge you’ll find several café’s. Mooring ca. 1 km. from the market square. Walk in town.

  • Day 13

    Oudenaarde – Gent 45 km.

    The ride to Gent is nice. First part is along the river, with visit to the former location of an abbey and castle of Ename (3 km’s from Oudenaarde). Quiet roads, patches of forest, some villages and nice bike paths lead us to Merelbeke (lunch). We are near Gent already. Via bike-friendly roads we cycle into the centre where you will have time to visit some of the highlights (St. Baafs cathedral with the famous triptych ‘Mystic Lamb’, the castle, museum of fine arts etc. You will like Gent! It is a very lively town (more than 250.000 inh.) partly because of its many young inhabitants (university students). Well lit Gent in the evening is another experience. Dinner in town this evening.

  • Day 14

    Ghent – Bruges 40 km.

    Between Gent and Bruges you will experience the typical landscape of Flanders. Fields with all kind of crops, winding country roads, small towns, some forest. After Nevele (coffee stop) Poeke, with its castle and park and two café’s on the square near the church is a good place to have lunch. On our further way towards Bruges we will find some villages and patches of forest and of course a café to have a tea stop. Then we will encounter the canal and follow it into Bruges. The mooring is at the very beginning of town, so no ride in busy traffic necessary. At the end of the afternoon the guide can show you some of the highlights of town

  • Day 15

    Bruges

    After breakfast your bike-and barge tour comes to an end.

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Tours marked with are special prices.

Start End Max. No. Guests Accommodation Price p.p.
May 26 2025 Jun 09 2025 12 Single rooms 3,050€
Double rooms 2,690€
Jul 07 2025 Jul 21 2025 12 Single rooms 3,050€
Double rooms 2,690€
Sep 01 2025 Sep 15 2025 12 Single rooms 3,050€
Double rooms 2,690€
Sep 29 2025 Oct 13 2025 12 Single rooms 3,050€
Double rooms 2,690€

Car rental in France

If you would like to drive yourself before or after your tour, ask us for a quote on any brand new Renault, Peugeot or Citroen vehicle for driving in Europe.

Pick up your vehicle from most capital cities in Europe and return it to your drop off destination. Top insurance cover. Email [email protected] for a competitive quote

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