Canal du Midi

[Simpo Two]

Looks like I've finally got a hire-boat holiday on the Canal du Midi (one of my must-dos) next May.

I plan to do a lot of googling for the most suitable boat, but if anyone has anyone recommendations or experiences I'd be pleased to hear them. How did you get there - drive, tunnel, ferry, fly, overnighter etc. Thanks!

[miniman]

Interested in what boat you end up with, would love to do this.

[mrsshpub]

We spent 2 weeks on the Canal du Midi a few years ago. We flew into Toulouse then got a train to Castelnaudary, where we picked up the boat — the boat yard was within walking distance of the train station. It was a great holiday and we'd love to do it again!

The locks on the Canal are all manned but the lock-keepers have lunch breaks, so that needs to be taken into account when planning a journey.

[Simpo Two]

mrsshpub said:

We spent 2 weeks on the Canal du Midi a few years ago. We flew into Toulouse then got a train to Castelnaudary, where we picked up the boat — the boat yard was within walking distance of the train station. It was a great holiday and we'd love to do it again!

We looked at exactly that plan, but wondered how we'd get a week's provisions without a car - or is there a supermarket within trolley distance?

Did you hire from Le Boat?

[Sport_Turismo_GTS]

Simpo Two said:

We looked at exactly that plan, but wondered how we'd get a week's provisions without a car - or is there a supermarket within trolley distance?

Did you hire from Le Boat?

We’ve done two recent trips with Le Boat (but not on the Canal du Midi) - the Horizon range of boats are nicely equipped and easy to manoeuvre.
It’s good to plan stopping points on your journey, to ensure you have access to water and, most importantly power, to keep the air con on!

[mtvessel]

Did it this year with Le Boat, from Carcassonne. Part of a 2 centre holiday so we drove. Went towards the med.

Most of the hire boats are 'gin palace' types which are fine in decent weather but very difficult to control in high winds. They are like a balloon on water. Ask me how I know. The barge types are much easier to handle.

At the locks, some of which are huge, you need to put someone ashore before you enter. The lock keepers operate the locks but will not assist you with the boat.

Plan your route. While you can moor on the bank some areas are very remote. Even some of the villages do not have a single shop or restaurant. At weekends the only restaurant may be fully booked. Shore electricity is difficult to find. Do not rely on mobile phones because you may not be able to charge them. Even fresh water was not easy to find. If you can moor early because some berths get full, depends on the time of year.

Speak to the locals if you can find one. We found bars and eateries not shown in our guide, a boat that was also a bakery selling bread and cakes, loads of places offering wine tastings.

Overall recommended if you are looking for an active holiday.

[Simpo Two]

Thanks for the tips. We plan to go pretty much self-contained with enough provisions for a week; a restaurant might happen but we're more interested in cruising and scenery. We'll need water once or twice but shouldn't need shore power (assume they use gas for cooking not ruddy induction!)

As for mooring, can you stop for the night anywhere it's safe to do so, or do you have to use official moorings (like the Caledonian canal)?

[mrsshpub]

Simpo Two said:

mrsshpub said:

We spent 2 weeks on the Canal du Midi a few years ago. We flew into Toulouse then got a train to Castelnaudary, where we picked up the boat — the boat yard was within walking distance of the train station. It was a great holiday and we'd love to do it again!

We looked at exactly that plan, but wondered how we'd get a week's provisions without a car - or is there a supermarket within trolley distance?

Did you hire from Le Boat?

When we looked closely at the route of the canal, we realised that quite a lot of the towns & villages along the route were some distance away from the canal, so we hired bikes. That worked well. Apart from 'shopping logistics' (carrying heavy bags some distance in September heat didn't appeal!), it also gave us more options when eating out. We never considered getting a whole week's provisions in one go — part of the fun of such a trip is going to the small local shops & markets along the way. Also, fridges on boats can be quite small so, depending how many of you are on the boat, you may only be able to store enough chilled food for a few days.

I believe we hired from Le Boat.

[Sport_Turismo_GTS]

On both occasions our trips took place in August (2023 and 2024).

Last year we used the St Jean de Losne base, and (apart from one occasion) were able to easily find ‘proper’ moorings with power and electricity and villages with suitable restaurants and shops for provisions.

This year we used the Hesse base and finding suitable moorings was much harder - at that time of year, being able to use shore power for the air con is essential (in my view), although apart from a few restrictions, you are able to moor where you like. It was also surprising how often the mall local shop / boulangerie / restaurant was closed on a random day - not great when that is the only option for miles!

We did the Canal du Midi many years ago (30+), so I don’t have much up-to-date experience here - I do remember hiring bikes which made the trips into town easier and I remember that Aigues Morte was a great place to visit.

My only other advice would be that whilst many people see the locks as a hassle and something to be avoided (and would plan their routes accordingly) we actively sought out a route with many locks as for us it added to the experience.

[Simpo Two]

By way of an update - we're just about to sign up with Le Boat; their sales rep Gemma has been very helpful and answered every question thrown at her! We've found the boat that suits us and we'll decide the starting base today. Currently Trebes (just east of Carcasonne) is looking favourite and we'll head for the Med and back.

We'll take the overnight ferry from Portsmouth (any preferences between St Malo and Caen?) then drive down to somewhere near Toulouse for the night, then next day raid a supermarket for supplies and pick up the boat.

I'm a great fan of Nicholson guides for UK waterways but they don't cover France. However I found this and it's almost as good: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1408112736

[WyrleyD]

You'll get more sleep time on the St Malo crossing, you'll be lucky to get more than 3-4 hours on the Caen route.

[omniflow]

WyrleyD said:

You'll get more sleep time on the St Malo crossing, you'll be lucky to get more than 3-4 hours on the Caen route.

100% this. St. Malo every time. If you're going next year, then they'll have a brand new boat on that crossing, and it looks like they've done a much better job specifying it than they did with the boats on the Spain routes. We've entered the ballot for the "soft opening" crossing - if successful, I'll report back.

The overnight crossing is around 12 hours, so you have time for a nice relaxing dinner on board and then a decent amount of sleep. In the morning we tend to just have coffee, and then stop for breakfast after a couple of hours on the road. The new boat has several classes of cabin with double beds.

The other advantage to that crossing is the roads from St. Malo. Nice fast toll free dual carriageway to Rennes.

If you have time, St. Malo itself is a lovely place.

[MarkJS]

I can’t help with the boating bit but I’ve spent a bit of time in that region recently. Toulouse really surprised me - it’s a lovely city with a great vibe/buzz about it. Carcassonne is also great (more so the old town). Apart from the market, Narbonne was pretty disappointing and a bit grubby which was unexpected.

Sounds like you’re mainly self catering on the boat which is good in some ways as you won’t find anywhere open for food between 14.00 & 19.00. But, there is some amazing quality food (and drink) in the region and it would be a shame to miss it. Far better quality & cheaper than the UK but that’s not a surprise I suppose.

[Shy Torque]

Simpo Two said:

By way of an update - we're just about to sign up with Le Boat; their sales rep Gemma has been very helpful and answered every question thrown at her! We've found the boat that suits us and we'll decide the starting base today. Currently Trebes (just east of Carcasonne) is looking favourite and we'll head for the Med and back.

We'll take the overnight ferry from Portsmouth (any preferences between St Malo and Caen?) then drive down to somewhere near Toulouse for the night, then next day raid a supermarket for supplies and pick up the boat.

I'm a great fan of Nicholson guides for UK waterways but they don't cover France. However I found this and it's almost as good: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1408112736

There’s an Intermarche and Super U supermarket you could shoot down to in Trebes.

[Simpo Two]

omniflow said:

WyrleyD said:

You'll get more sleep time on the St Malo crossing, you'll be lucky to get more than 3-4 hours on the Caen route.

100% this. St. Malo every time. If you're going next year, then they'll have a brand new boat on that crossing, and it looks like they've done a much better job specifying it than they did with the boats on the Spain routes. We've entered the ballot for the "soft opening" crossing - if successful, I'll report back.

The overnight crossing is around 12 hours, so you have time for a nice relaxing dinner on board and then a decent amount of sleep. In the morning we tend to just have coffee, and then stop for breakfast after a couple of hours on the road. The new boat has several classes of cabin with double beds.

The other advantage to that crossing is the roads from St. Malo. Nice fast toll free dual carriageway to Rennes.

That matches what I thought. More sleep, more sociable times, shorter faster journey.

But the member of our party who's doing the driving, and has driven to the Loire Valley quite a few times, swears by the Caen route. He says 'the timing just fits'. So at the weekend I challenged him as to exactly what that meant, and his reason was to avoid rush hour traffic.

We'll be travelling to Portsmouth from Essex, about 3 hours travel to be on the safe side. The Caen ferry leaves at 11pm so we'd be travelling in relatively clear traffic. It gets into Oustreham at 6.45am so he can get well into France before the rush hour.

By contrast the St Malo ferry leaves Portsmouth at 8.16pm, so we'd be hacking down the A12 and round the M25 much earlier. It arrives in St Malo at 8.15am, which he says is going to be right in the French rush hour.

I haven't done this trip so can't be sure if he's right, or simply making it up because he's always done it that way and likes early starts.

So - to you folk who've taken the St Malo route at that time - is it as bad as he says it is? Ultimately he's doing all the driving so we don't want to argue too much...

[hiccy18]

Usually we hit St Malo on a Sunday morning, but I also landed on a Friday morning in May this year: yes it was a bit busier, but no delay and it's a pretty clear route out of a quiet looking town and the onwards routes southwards are free flowing. Compared to congestion we suffer from in England, it's literally nothing.

We've got a seven hour trip to Portsmouth on this side, so for us St Malo "just fits", but I can understand your driver wanting to avoid UK rush hours.

[omniflow]

Getting off the boat and onto the dual carriageway in St. Malo is an absolute doddle. We've done it loads of times (pre, post and during Covid) and never once found it a problem. It takes about 15 mins max.

[Simpo Two]

Thanks, very useful replies.

I looked up the ferry times and in doing so realised that we're travelling at the weekend - so there won't be rush hour traffic anyway! For the UK end we'd be going round the M25 about 5-7pm on a Saturday.

Now we just have to change his mind because he's hell bent on Caen

[pete_esp]

Simpo Two said:

That matches what I thought. More sleep, more sociable times, shorter faster journey.

But the member of our party who's doing the driving, and has driven to the Loire Valley quite a few times, swears by the Caen route. He says 'the timing just fits'. So at the weekend I challenged him as to exactly what that meant, and his reason was to avoid rush hour traffic.

We'll be travelling to Portsmouth from Essex, about 3 hours travel to be on the safe side. The Caen ferry leaves at 11pm so we'd be travelling in relatively clear traffic. It gets into Oustreham at 6.45am so he can get well into France before the rush hour.

By contrast the St Malo ferry leaves Portsmouth at 8.16pm, so we'd be hacking down the A12 and round the M25 much earlier. It arrives in St Malo at 8.15am, which he says is going to be right in the French rush hour.

I haven't done this trip so can't be sure if he's right, or simply making it up because he's always done it that way and likes early starts.

So - to you folk who've taken the St Malo route at that time - is it as bad as he says it is? Ultimately he's doing all the driving so we don't want to argue too much...

Hi Simpo!

We've done this route loads of times, 5 at least but we come from Edinburgh and usually drive to Portsmouth on a Sunday to minimise traffic. We usually arrive in Portsmouth around 4pm, then fart around in Gunwarf Quay for a bit getting last minute odds and sods then have a quick dinner overlooking the harbour. When we see the ship arrive we get the bill and head to the port. Boarding is usually pretty quick and easy.

We've never had any issue with traffic after arriving in St Malo on the Monday morning. Getting to the autoroute takes 15-20 minutes maybe? I'm not even sure as I don't think about it. Then it's autoroute all the way so no traffic whatsoever.

I'd go to St Malo every time, it's even closer to your destination than Oustreham , in fact I wouldn't be surprised if you go this way to be arriving at the same time as if you went to St Malo.

[Simpo Two]

Thanks Pete. We have tried all the logic on him and clips from here, but he still says Caen is 'better for not losing hours'.

We'll have a hotel booked near Toulouse, which Google Maps says is 476 miles and 7hrs 33 mins. Say 9.5 hours including breaks and roadworks etc. The St Malo ferry gets in at 8.15am so we'd be at Toulouse by 6pm. Caen makes no sense to me!