| European
luxury hotel barge cruise vacations aboard the French Barge Alegria
along the Canal du Midi in the south of France. |
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ALEGRIA
Luxury
French barge cruises along the Canal du Midi
in the south of France
The French Canal du Midi welcomes you to a luxurious and
exclusive river cruise on board one of the most beautiful hotel barges,
Alegria.
Alegria is the latest barge that has been launched on
the Canal du Midi. Her ambitions are clearly to become one of the top
barges available in the region. Her features are unique:
- A unique and modern look, very different
from most of the other barges.
- The largest lounge for only four guests,
with music and video.
- Almost the largest cabin sizes along the
Canal (180 to 210 sq ft)…
- Beautiful cabins that are distinctive,
light and bright.
- Intimacy
and privacy thanks to two entrance doors from each cabin leading either
directly to the outside of the barge or inside to the lounge.
- All
the comfort offered by the best boats (air conditioning, central
heating, heated towel rails, etc.) and even more: a mini fridge, a
coffee and tea tray in each cabin.
- Large portholes that have been installed
on the hull and that provide you with panoramic views at the level of
the canal.
- A pool beautifully integrated in the
superstructure of the barge
- A very welcoming wheelhouse with its
authentic 1937 wheel, teak woodwork and a typically Provencal floor.
Alegria hosts a maximum of four guests in
two large cabins fitted with king size beds, and is managed by a crew
of five.
Barge
cruising offers a week of relaxation, gastronomy, excellent wines,
fascinating culture, great landscapes and friendship with a warm nation.
Every day is a new day of discoveries ... and of unexpected surprises
offered to you!
Cruise
Highlights:
- Tour
Carcassonne, a fortified city dating back to the Gallo-Roman era
- Oppidum of Ensérune
- Fortified village of Minerve
- Capestang public market
Gastronomy
Is it too early to make your mouth water? ... surely not!
The
gastronomy aboard Alegria will vary a lot … You will taste some typical
French local dishes as well as the best French gastronomy. Every meal
will be accompanied by different wines, both local (the St-Chinian,
Minerve, Corbières are becoming more and more renowned) and from other
regions of France (Bordeaux, Burgundy, Loire, etc. ...) straight from
our Wine Fridge on board. You will never be offered the same wine twice
during the week (unless you insist on drinking one that you
particularly loved again!)
For your added pleasure, we set your
table with different services for breakfast, lunch and dinner: from the
festive one through the ethnic one to the classic one. When weather
permits you can have your meal outside on the deck.
- Our Chef will cater specifically for you
and might even share some of his cooking tips as he prepares a dish.
- And
... we will also offer you some meals off the barge in some excellent
restaurants! During the week you can count on at least two meals on
land … We will discuss all these possibilities while you are holding a
glass of Champagne on board ...
- For Breakfast you will be
served a selection of pastries and breads, cereals, yogurts, fruits,
fresh fruit juice, cheeses, cold meats, smoked salmon, eggs cooked to
order, a selection of teas, coffee, etc.
- The lunch is an ever
changing buffet with a choice of salads and starters, a main course
(quiches or local dishes), a selection of cheese and a desert.
- We
show you below some examples of menus but please bear in mind that the
dishes can vary according to the time of the year, the availabilities
on the markets (and … the temper of the Chef!!!):
Salmon and Dall Fish Cake, with
a Dill and Lemon Cream
Filet
Mignon of milk fed veal Potatoes Anna;
Baby
Carrots, Broccoli and Cauliflower
Kumquat
and Veal Jus
The
Cheese of the Day: Brie de Meaux
Feuilleté
of Strawberries and Cream with Raspberry Sauce
Warm Salad of Goats Cheese in a Hazelnut Crust
with Rocket and Raspberry Vinaigrette
Risotto of Seared Scallops and Prawns
with Peas and a Seafood Nage
The Cheese of the Day: Morbier
Duette of Peaches Poached in Muscat with a Peach Ice Cream
Duck Foie Gras Mi-Cuit with Brioche Toast and Rhubarb Compote
Breast of Duck with Triple Cooked Chips,
crispy Greens and a Oriental Plum Sauce
The Cheese of the Day: Coulet Roquefort with Pear & Walnuts
Baileys Bitter Chocolate Mint Mousse
GUEST COMMENTS
- Olivier, these are a few
of the photographs that I took whilst being pampered to within an inch
of my life... I cannot begin to tell you how much my husband and I
relaxed and enjoyed ourselves. He was ill recently, and you were the
best thing that happened to him. Thank you. As you can see, your
Troubadours’ take up a large part of my memory- what a fantastic idea!
And Monique was everything a hostess should be... May you have
continued success!
***
Susan and John, UK, Sept 08***
- We
have traveled by barge before and our expectations were surpassed.
Algeria gave us 5 star service the entire trip. The chef provided
wonderful food for us lunch and dinner. Wine was skillfully pared with
each course of food, and the meal was explained along with the wine
selection. Peter's cooking skills and personality could easily support
a television cooking show. Eating his food was delightful.
Olivier who is both the owner and captain made sure that any
need/desire we had was met and quickly. Monique our hostess on board
studied to see the foods and drinks we preferred and made
them
readily available to us. I can't imagine anyone doing a
better
job in her position then she did. The cabin was larger than
our
hotel room in Paris. It was nicely decorated, had large port windows,
good linens, heated towel racks nice french soaps.. we were very
pleased. The service was fabulous. Every day arrived with something
which blew me away. I said it all except you have Alegria listed as
deluxe and I think it was definitely ultra deluxe.
***
Janet and David, USA, Sept 08***
Photos
courtesy of ALEGRIA. Used by permission.
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