MS Danièle, 6 Night Remarkable Sites and Fine Wines on a Cruise through the Doubs Valley and Burgundy ex Dijon, Burgundy, France to Besancon

From Dijon to Besançon, this majestic cruise between Burgundy and the Doubs valley will take you through authentic and traditional cities with different stories and hidden gems. You will be able to visit the Saline Royale of Arc-et-Senans, Dole or the charming city of Saint-Jean-de-Losne, first river port of France home to the Musée de la Batellerie, recounting the history of navigation on inland waterways.

Day 1
Passengers are welcome to board our ship at 6:00 p.m. After comfortably settling into your cabins, we'll introduce our crew at a welcome cocktail before dinner.

Day 2
Join us on an excursion along the Grands Crus wine route. The touristic Grands Crus wine route passes through the finest and most prestigious of the Burgundy vineyards. We'll stop along the way for a wine-tasting* session. We'll return onboard and cruise to Petit-Ouges, discovering the magnificent lush, green landscapes of the Saône Valley. Upon arrival in Petit-Ouges, discover the "Path of the Three Wash Houses”(1).

Day 3
The whole day will be spent cruising towards Saint-Jean-de-Losne. Take the time to sit back and admire the vineyards and scenery that we'll slowly pass by as we cruise. We'll arrive in Saint-Jean-de-Losne late in the afternoon.

Day 4
Join us on a visit of Saint-Jean-de-Losne, the capital of canal barging in France, which lies at the heart of the French waterways and canal system in southern Burgundy. The afternoon will be spent cruising towards Dole.

Day 5
Join us on an original and unique tour, following the "trail of the Chat Perché”. This trail refers to the famous tales of a Perched Cat, written be Marcel Aymé who lived in Dole as a child. It also refers to Dole's location, which is perched on a beautiful hillside. We'll return onboard and cruise towards Ranchot. You can use the bicycles (available on board) to ride on the bike path that follows our route on the canal.

Day 6
The morning will be spent cruising. In the afternoon, we'll set out by coach to Arc-et-Senans for a tour of the Saline Royale. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, this royal factory, built between 1775 and 1779 in the shape of a semi-circle, was where salt workers traditionally lived and worked. Tonight is our gala evening.

Day 7
Enjoy one last buffet breakfast on board before disembarking at 9:00 a.m. End of our services.

The MS Danièle is a superb Premium canal barge, measuring 38,50 meters long and 5,07 meters wide. It can accommodate 22 passengers, in 11 cabins offering amenities and providing guests with all the comforts they need during their stay. On board, everything has been taken care of down to the smallest detail with crew members to guarantee a personalized service. The decoration creates a particularly soft and welcoming atmosphere. Located on the upper deck are the restaurant, which offers delicate cuisine in a refined setting, the lounge bar and a relaxation area with a jacuzzi. Comfortable sun loungers are provided on the sun deck, the ideal place to relax and admire the surrounding landscapes.

CroisiEurope has a fleet of Prestige category boats with cabins, which ply the most beautiful rivers in Europe. Spacious and light, they offer a welcoming and refined setting. Accommodation capacity varies from 100 to 180 passengers depending on the boat's design. At the cutting edge of technology, their facilities offer comfort and safety.

Carefully maintained and partially renovated each year, the CroisiEurope fleet is largely made up of recently built vessels, less than five years old, all with Veritas certification. The leading European river tour operator, our company owes its international reputation to its seriousness, its dynamism, its sense of innovation and its recognised value for money of long standing.

Vessels are rated four-star and food is superb – as you’d expect on a French-owned cruise line, staffed by French chefs and with top French and German wines aboard. One cruise of the Rhone and Saone Rivers in France concentrates on gastronomy and traditional French cusine, visiting Collonges Abbey, renowned for its great French chef, Paul Bocuse.

CroisiEurope is a family-owned and operated firm, with brothers and sisters running different aspects of the company and keeping a close eye on all operations to ensure excellence.

River cruising offers much free fun. Wake in the morning and observe the passing riverside scenery through your cabin window – perhaps from your bed. Gaze upon village churches or a patchwork of fields sparkling in the morning sun.

CroisiEurope’s network traverses a phenomenal number of European rivers and waterways. They range from the Guadalquivir and Guadiana (flowing through Spain and Portugal respectively); the Douro in Portugal, the Po and Venice Lagoon in Italy; the Rhone in Provence, plus the Seine from Paris to the Normandy Coast. And there’s more: the Moselle, the Neckar, the Saar, the Oder, the Havel, the Baltic Sea, the Camarge, the Rhine, the Main and the mighty Danube; the Tisza and the Black Sea; the Belgian and Dutch waterways. Everything from tulip time in Holland to Christmas Markets in Germany.

Drinks included with on board meals: mineral water, house wine, beer, fruit juice, and tea or coffee.