"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 Small ships

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

Discover the best cruise routes

Top cruise destinations

Bodrag River

Bodrag River

Hungary

Friesland

Friesland

Holland

Shannon

Shannon

Ireland

Charente

Charente

France

Canal du Midi

Canal du Midi

France

A selection of hotel barge cruises

Check out the best deals

Last-minute
Panache barge cruise

Panache

Holland & Alsace
12 guests
★★★★★
France
Holland
Alsace
Dutch Waterways
Save 10%
La Bella Vita barge cruise

La Bella Vita

Venetian lagoon
20 guests
★★★★
Italy
Venice Lagoon
Esperance barge cruise

Esperance

Midi Canal
6 guests
★★★★★
France
Canal du Midi
Magnolia barge cruise

Magnolia

Burgundy Canal
6 guests
★★★★
France
Burgundy Canal
Saône Valley
Save 10%
Renaissance barge cruise

Renaissance

Loire Valley
8 guests
★★★★★★
France
Loire Valley
Early booking
Aurora barge cruise

Aurora

8 guests
★★★★★★
Belgium
Belgium - France
France
Holland
Flanders
Bruges to Haarlem
Rotterdam to Paris
Dutch Waterways
Bruges to Paris
Île-de-France
10% discount
Maïtena barge cruise

Maïtena

4 guests
★★★★★
France
Saône Valley
New route for 2026
Elegance barge cruise

Elegance

6 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.

La Peniche S rental boat

La Peniche S

10 guests maximum
5 cabins
Ideal for 10 adults
4 bathrooms
★★★★★
From 2691€/week
La Péniche FS rental boat

La Péniche FS

12 guests maximum
6 cabins
Ideal for 12 adults
3 bathrooms
★★★★★
From 2711€/week
N OCTO FLY rental boat

N OCTO FLY

10 guests maximum
4 cabins
Ideal for 4 adults
& 4 children
4 bathrooms
★★★★★
From 3332€/week
Special Offer
Classique rental boat

Classique

8 guests maximum
4 cabins
Ideal for 6 adults
& 2 children
2 bathrooms
Value rating
From 1259€/week
Special Offer
Grand Classique rental boat

Grand Classique

12 guests maximum
5 cabins
Ideal for 6 adults
& 4 children
3 bathrooms
Value rating
From 1779€/week
La Péniche P rental boat

La Péniche P

7 guests maximum
2 cabins
Ideal for 4 adults
& 2 children
2 bathrooms
★★★★★
From 2475€/week
N1310 rental boat

N1310

12 guests maximum
5 cabins
Ideal for 6 adults
& 4 children
2 bathrooms
★★★
From 1995€/week
N1160 rental boat

N1160

10 guests maximum
4 cabins
Ideal for 6 adults
& 1 child
2 bathrooms
★★★
From 1702€/week

Testimonials

Guests have said...

Thank you for your assistance, it all went very well and the boat was very comfortable and provided everything we expected.

The boat was as expected.  Appreciated it's size.  I rate it 8/10
We cruised on the Canal du Centre... easy to deal with the locks
We rate Hotels...

How would you rate your boat? 5 stars
How would you rate your cruise destination? 5 stars
How would you rate the Customer Service from Hotels Afloat?...

The barge trip was fantastic. The crew, the food, the excursions, the barge were all great.
The crew was pleasant and funny. The food was a gourmet...

How would you rate your boat?    4 stars

How would you rate your cruise destination?    4 stars

How would you rate the Customer Service from...

The boat was quite spacious, nice Gin Deck
Rate it 9/10
The route from Tonnerre to Vermenton is beautiful...
The scenery, ease of finding supplies,...

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

After dealing with Emma pre and post Covid, I felt as though we had become good friends! Emma helped us plan a family barge experience to...

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