European Canal Boat Planning

We intend to retire early next year and hope to purchase a boat in Europe with a view to spending up to 6 months a year (it might be too cold for us to spend winters on board) cruising the rivers and canals. This whole idea has been generated by one magical trip on the Canal du Midi in 2014 and the desire to do it while we still can. Our boating experience is very limited (I can recognise a boat at close range) so we are trying to gain as much knowledge as possible in a short period. Any advice that members have regarding licences, best place to purchase a boat (would probably prefer to buy privately), must have fittings, layout issues, how to find competent and trustworthy marine surveyors etc would be greatly appreciated.
We had wondered whether it might be easier to buy in the UK (for language and cultural reasons) and then have the boat taken to France (I wouldn't have the confidence to take a boat across the Channel) but have not yet been able to find much information about the benefits or difficulties in doing this.
Any and all advice would be appreciated.

We were convinced for two months last spring that we would do the same thing. We only gave it up because it would only work for us as an expat experience or committing to six transatlantic flight a year. We're now refitting a boat for the Great Loop (or maybe the Great "U")

From our research, there are much better deals to be found in Holland. I don't know how you could do this without a broker. We found a very good one:

(The forum bot still won't let me post email addresses so you'll have to figure it out.)

Peter Copeland

peter (the "at" sign) dutchbargesforsale.co.uk

He is in the UK but specializes in selling Dutch barges to Brits. This is the place to start. Barges come up for sale frequently and the good ones go fast so you need to plan to go over and spend at least a couple weeks so you can grab the one you want.

Thanks for the suggestion Roger. We plan on going to the UK in Spring 2016 to start the search for a boat. I've noted the broker's details and will make contact.
It's interesting that I had never heard of the Great Loop until you mentioned it and I have just spent the last hour or so Googling it. Certainly looks like fun but might be advanced for our skill level. We'll get Europe sorted first and then review our options.

A few years ago I got interested in doing what you are thinking of and started this thread on Trawlerforum: http://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s30/living-aboard-french-canal-boat-7685.html

Buried in the thread are tons of references and info. Working through an English broker of Dutch boats is a good idea. But I suspect that English will work fine for some of the French brokers. Here is one: H2O boat - New and used motor boats for sale, boatyard, Marinas since 1986

How was your Midi canal experience. Who did you charter with. I hope it isn't like how the BVI has gotten where everyone leaves their mooring early in mass to race to the next mooring field before it fills up.

David

djmarchand said:

A few years ago I got interested in doing what you are thinking of and started this thread on Trawlerforum: http://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s30/living-aboard-french-canal-boat-7685.html

Buried in the thread are tons of references and info. Working through an English broker of Dutch boats is a good idea. But I suspect that English will work fine for some of the French brokers. Here is one: H2O boat - New and used motor boats for sale, boatyard, Marinas since 1986

How was your Midi canal experience. Who did you charter with. I hope it isn't like how the BVI has gotten where everyone leaves their mooring early in mass to race to the next mooring field before it fills up.

David

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Thanks for the advice David. I haven't yet looked at H2O Boat and will do so shortly. Your thread sounds really useful so I will look at that with interest.

The Canal du Midi experience was wonderful. We were too optimistic about our capabilities so the trip wasn't as relaxing as we anticipated but we can see what we should have done and will have a much better idea for our future activities. We booked through France Afloat/France Fluviale and travelled from Capestang to Port Lauragais. With only 2 of us on board and all but 1 of the locks going uphill we had a steep learning curve. We moored on the canal bank several times so had little trouble with nightly stopovers. The most challenging was in Carcassone where we were expected to reverse into our berth which was something we had never done before. In future we will practice in a secluded area before submitting to a public viewing for that sort of activity. We also now understand the benefit of bow thrusters so they will be high on our wish list for any vessel we purchase.
Thanks for your advice.
Andrew

David gives good advice and links, although I may not have read all of the first one. I did visit H2O Boat about 4 years ago. Their English is fine. There was a good range of boats there, but some were in poor condition. Oddly enough it was my trip to that region that put me off canal boating as an extended lifestyle choice. Nothing specific, not H2O, not the region itself or the people there. Just a gut feeling that developed over a period. Not many boats were moving along the canals. Lots were moored in marina's with liveaboards who never moved and many had 'for sale' signs. I came away with an impression that it was kinda like a trailer park. The people were fine, but the whole environment just seemed depressing to me. If you keep on the move it would be different, I'm sure.

Tom Sommers website has lots of info
EuroCanals-Cruising the Canals & Rivers of Europe
I have the pdf version of his France Guidebook and it is very good.

Insequent said:

David gives good advice and links, although I may not have read all of the first one. I did visit H2O Boat about 4 years ago. Their English is fine. There was a good range of boats there, but some were in poor condition. Oddly enough it was my trip to that region that put me off canal boating as an extended lifestyle choice. Nothing specific, not H2O, not the region itself or the people there. Just a gut feeling that developed over a period. Not many boats were moving along the canals. Lots were moored in marina's with liveaboards who never moved and many had 'for sale' signs. I came away with an impression that it was kinda like a trailer park. The people were fine, but the whole environment just seemed depressing to me. If you keep on the move it would be different, I'm sure.

Tom Sommers website has lots of info
EuroCanals-Cruising the Canals & Rivers of Europe
I have the pdf version of his France Guidebook and it is very good.

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Thanks for the comments. We want to use the boat as a way to tour and experience much of Europe rather than living out of a suitcase so we should be safe from the trailer park syndrome.

The Tom Sommers website looks to be very useful. I will probably subscribe as it also appears to be good value.

Andrew

welcome aboard,
like you, i found the french canal experience to be enchanting. Have done Alsace-Lorraine and Burgundy via LeBoat. Those trips helped get me over an aversion to over-night boating caused by canned ham overexposure on a lengthy Pacific crossing. Thirty years on I still can't stand to hear "Plumrose". Unlke the BVI, on French canals you can basically pull over and stake out your boat anywhere, just pick the spot with the best view, farthest towpath, friendliest cows or whatever. Zero competition for position outside of the large towns. Good luck!

All the advice I have read above sounds really good.
The Tom Sommer's Guides are well worth it.

There are also a few hear on TF who are in Europe on the canals.

The market for boats in general in Europe continues to be a buyers market, especially so in France, compared to the Netherlands.

I would be inclined to start in France with looking at boats to buy, just because I think the market is better and a boat already in France will have less issues, IF there are any issues.

Thanks Richard - your comments about the market are appreciated. I've had a quick look at your blog and will read it with interest when I have a little more time.

Andrew

PassageMaker has a nice article this month about a couple who took their "55 Dutch Steel trawler" through France, from the English Channel to the Med.

Hi there! We have been actively searching for a boat for retirement next year as well, though we will be full-time live-aboards for a couple years. I feel like I'm cross-eyed from the amount of internet surfing/research I've done. I second using Tom Sommers as a resource. We have just subscribed (lifetime for a flat fee under $90 and everything is downloadable to use offline). WELL worth the price. If you're interested in France, stick to it! There are many, many English-speaking folks cruising the canals of France, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and others. As for a purchase, I recommend Graham Wharmby and his wife at boatshed dot com. He is from UK and his wife is French. They are brokers who give VERY detailed photos/bilingual videos/descriptions of various canal boats they offer. They can also help you secure a surveyor, boatyard for maintenance, etc. We've actually been able to narrow down the exact make/model of boat we want by watching their listings and comparing with other listings elsewhere. If your prefer a larger barge-type vessel, we've been directed to Amsterdam boatyards. I've seen several brokers advertising services in the Netherlands but don't have first-hand knowledge. Good luck to you!

I have been infatuated by the idea of canal boats for a long time. A friend and wife have taken a couple canal trips and loved them, bike and ride. I doubt if I will ever see a canal though.

I am a pretty experienced boater but I'm thinking the canal deal would be an entirely different animal to learn. Guess I think I'm too old to learn. And why bother, there is lots of places around here, including the Loop that I have not yet explored.

I also kind of have it in the back of my mind that the canal thing will become pretty restricted as it gains popularity.

pete

We somehow surfed into these YouTube channel about canal boats in the UK,




There are others but we like them both. The Cruising the Cut channel has interviewed US expats who keep a canal boat in the UK and have a sailboat in the US. They spend half the year on one boat and then fly to the other boat for the rest of the year.

There is a series of videos of a couple cruising a French canal on their sail boat. They had to take down the mast and they went from the Med to the Atlantic via canal. This is what they did to prepare for the trip but they have other videos.


Later,
Dan

Retirement Planning said:

Thanks Richard - your comments about the market are appreciated. I've had a quick look at your blog and will read it with interest when I have a little more time.

Andrew

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Andrew, as Dan's videos show, the English canals are also very beautiful, relaxing, and easy to navigate. However, they are narrower than the French and Dutch canals, so if you wanted to include them in your travels, you might want to consider that. Having spent a very enjoyable ten days on an English narrowboat, I can indeed endorse the fun side of it. I found sitting out back on the tiller, seated with a nice mug of coffee beside me, as we passed other boats going in the opposite direction, I couldn't help calling out, "It's a hard job, but someone's got to do it..!" It just seemed so apt...

When I watch the narrow boat blog, the day just disappears.
I suspect the boat would be fine for a canal boat. Spots might require hugging the shore or waiting for a weather window.
It takes about 6-8 weeks to totally build and outfit one. It would be a might expensive to put it on a transport and bring it to the states.

There is a place in the US that will rent you a canal boat so you dont have to go to France or the UK for the narrow boat experience.

https://eriecanaladventures.com