Pénichettes^® 1020FB

European countries have agreed to allow the use of properly-equipped and certified hire boats cruising in tourist areas that are little used by commercial traffic. These boats also have speed-limited engines to ensure that customers won’t get into dangerous situations during their holiday.

Locaboat has of course been approved by the local authorities to rent out its self-drive boats in all the waterways regions on offer.

After an introductory course at our base, covering the theory and practice of handling your boat and the essential rules of cruising, you’ll be given a valid permit for the period of your holiday. Note that our teams ensure that every customer leaving the base has properly understood the essential rules of boating and safety required to enjoy their holiday with complete peace of mind.

Yes, we assure you that no experience is necessary.

Once you’ve booked your boat with Locaboat, you’ll receive your captain’s handbook (also available online from our website). This book explains all the boating rules you need to know, all the services we offer and details of your departure base. You should read it carefully and take it with you on your cruise.

And don’t forget that our teams will provide you with training at the departure base. You will soon get the hang of handling your boat and the essential rules of cruising, then you’ll be given a valid permit for the period of your holiday. Note that our teams ensure that every customer leaving the base has properly understood the essential rules of boating and safety required to enjoy their holiday with complete peace of mind.

You might also like to know that we offer video tutorials on our YouTube channel, showing how to pass through a lock or the various ways of mooring a boat. These videos are optional but can reassure future skippers who are concerned about taking charge of their boat.

In general, length for length, our boats are more spacious than yachts used for sea cruising.

Our boats and Pénichette^® barges have all the comforts you need for a holiday on the canals. They have one or more cabins with plenty of storage, hot water, heating (central or forced air) and bathroom areas (on boats, these are called the ‘heads’), where space is optimised and functional, as well as a large and comfortable lounge/ dining room (‘saloon’). The layout of our boats gives as much space as possible to the main living area, because that’s where you’ll spend most of your time on board. The kitchen (‘galley’) is fully equipped with an oven, fridge, sink and all the pots and utensils you need to cook in good conditions. Sheets, towels and tea towels are provided on board.

Each boat has a water tank and a diesel tank. If the water tank needs filling several times during your stay, you’ll find stopping-points along the route where you can take on more water. The diesel tank, however, will contain enough fuel for several weeks.

Yes, of course.

All our boats are fitted with batteries and an alternator. Electricity is generated by the alternator, so it’s advisable to cruise for at least four hours if you don’t want to plug into sockets on the quayside.

When you are plugged into quayside sockets, you can use the 220V supply to recharge your mobile phones or other devices. When you are cruising, the on-board voltage is 12V. Using an adaptor, available at the rental office, you can plug your devices into the lighter socket next to the internal helm.

Finally, when the engine is switched off, if you notice the lights dimming, it means the battery is running low and it’s time to either plug into the quayside supply or run the engine, as you would with your car. If the battery is completely flat, don’t panic, the engine circuit is separate from the equipment circuit, which means you’ll be able to restart the engine even if the battery seems to be flat.