La Renaissance (barge)
 La Renaissance cruising on the Canal de Briare
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 France | |
| Name | La Renaissance |
| Owner | European Waterways, LTD |
| Operator | European Waterways, LTD |
| Port of registry | Paris |
| Route | River Seine/Canal de Briare: Montargis to Châtillon-sur-Loire |
| Launched | 1960 |
| Christened | Bonne Humeur |
| Status | In service |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Commercial passenger vessel |
| Tonnage | 275 tons |
| Length | 128 ft (39 m) |
| Beam | 17.5 ft (5.3 m) |
| Height | 12.5 ft (3.8 m) |
| Draught | 5.25 ft (1.60 m) |
| Decks | 2 |
| Installed power | 2 x 220 volt generators |
| Propulsion | 250 HP BAUDOIN |
| Speed | Maximum speed 10 knots |
| Capacity | 8 passengers |
| Crew | 5 crew |
| Notes | Fuel capacity 3 tons, Water capacity 12 tons |
The La Renaissance was built in Belgium in 1960 as a standard péniche barge to carry cargo along the canals of Europe. Her original cargo was grain and iron ore. She presently serves as a hotel barge, owned and operated by European Waterways. She is one of around 60 barges offering luxury cruises on French waterways. This branch of waterway tourism is estimated by the waterway authority Voies Navigables de France to represent an annual revenue to the local areas of around 60 million euros.[1]
History
The barge was built as La Bonne Humeur ('good mood') in 1960, and measures 39 m (128 ft) long by 5.20 m (17 ft) wide. She has a rectangular hull section, bluff bow and a counter-hung rudder, and is effectively the largest-size vessel which can pass through the Freycinet locks in France and Belgium. This corresponds to a potential loading capacity of 350 tons if loading to the maximum draught if 2.20m (a little over 7 ft).
In 1997, the cargo barge was converted to a hotel barge and underwent another refit in 2006. She was purchased by European Waterways in 2007. She was then taken to a boatyard in Belgium for inspection, maintenance and improvements. The hull has two wear strips welded outside the chine which mean the hard wear of rubbing against lock walls will be absorbed by this sacrificial steel strip.
Hotel barge
The barge was rechristened La Renaissance and began operations on the canals of western Burgundy and the upper Loire in May, 2008. She currently has 4 double cabins allowing her to carry up to 8 passengers. She also has separate crew quarters. The crew of five consists of captain and pilot, deck hand and tour guide, master chef, housekeeper, and waiter.[2][3][4]
She has a top speed of 10 knots, but usually cruises at the canal speed limit of 6 km/h.
External links
- List of hotel barges offering cruises in France
- Voies navigables de France: Les Chiffres du Tourisme Fluvial en 2016: "Les Croisières Fluviales" (in French)
- La Renaissance on french-waterways-com
References
- ^ Les péniches-hôtels en France (PDF). Béthune, France: Voies Navigables de France. 2015. pp. 12–18.
- ^ Steven B. Stern (2004). Stern's Guide to the Cruise Vacation 2005. Pelican Publishing Company. ISBN 978-1-58980-240-7.
- ^ Kay Showker; Bob Sehlinger (2007). The Unofficial Guide to Cruises. Wiley. ISBN 978-0-470-08791-6.
- ^ Shirley Slater; Harry Basch (1997). Fielding's Worldwide Cruises 1998. Fielding Worldwide. ISBN 978-1-56952-156-4.
