Dear Travel Agent Friend,

Thank you for visiting our website, which we think is the best you will find for all your hotel-barging in Europe requirements. We understand how important it is to offer your clients the right type of vacation, that’s why we like to spend time talking to you in order to understand exactly which barges will be suitable for them. Your relationship with your clients is precious and we at The Barge Company respect that and will honour it with sensitivity at all times. Most importantly, you will have the reassurance that you’re dealing with probably the most knowledgeable company in the barging world, with an exceptionally high standard of personal service, and we will ensure that you feel fully supported by us at all times.

A barge cruise is a very special vacation and clients often give rave reviews at the end of their week on board, so please read on to find out why we’re the right people for you to be talking to, and why a barge cruise is probably the perfect vacation for your clients.

We sincerely look forward to working with you in 2010. Marie and Mark Gallé (left) Owners, The Barge Company

If you have already applied for and received your personal username and password to access our Travel Agents’ Pages, please use them to log-on here.

Our 10 point ‘Travel Agent Promise’ - why you’re right to book with The Barge Company -

• We are here to support you with up-to-date, accurate information for your clients 7 days a week, just a phone call or e-mail away.



• We aim to reply to all messages promptly and at the latest within 24 hours of receipt.



• We are a very small team (just the two of us) so you will enjoy an uninterrupted service from either me (Marie) or Mark during all of your contact with us, both pre and postcruise.



• We are literally experts on our barges as we are English citizens who live and work in the south of France next to the Canal Lateral a la Garonne.



• We inspect the barges personally all year round, and have been aboard the majority of those that we represent (we are aiming to make that ALL). If we have not personally been on a barge, we will tell you so when we’re discussing it with you.



• When we inspect the barges, we stay on board overnight, sleep in the cabins, try the jacuzzi (if there is one), test the wines and eat the food, meet all the crew, spend time with them—all of this to get the best feel of how they operate and what they can offer your clients — we NEVER do ‘whistle-stop’ tours of about 20 barges in one week, spending about half an hour only on each barge as some other agents do!! (How can anyone remember one barge from another after that type of so-called ‘inspection tour’??)



• We nderstand the importance of maintaining professional working relationships and have stunning references from agents who have worked with us in the past.



• We stay loyal to you once your first booking is made with us. If your client ever comes back to us directly in the years following, we will direct them back to you so your commission is never compromised and your clients are NEVER lured away from you.



• Our company was established in the 1990s and has operated as The Barge Cruise Company Ltd, since 1997 so we have 11 years of experience of hotel-barging in Europe— thus a decade of focussed barging knowledge at your fingertips.



• Because we are the only specialised barge agents living here in France, in the heart of Europe, we can advise you on the best hotels, transport options, follow-on tours and driver-guides for your clients either pre or post cruise.

We provide you with the following excellent resources:

• Personal one-to-one barge consultations with us on our toll-free number (from the USA + CANADA—1-800-688-0245).



• A complete collection of individual e-mailable barge brochures in PDF format, customised with YOUR NAME AND COMPANY CONTACT DETAILS on them where relevant, for presentation and discussion with your clients.



• We’re by your side for all advice and questions that you or your clients may have, on all aspects of the clients’ cruise, both during the run-up to the cruise and also post-cruise where necessary—just a phone call or e-mail away, with a rapid reply service.



• We provide Post-Cruise Questionnaires to clients (customised with your contact details if requested) to get their feedback on the barge vacation. This really helps us maintain high standards and helps you to know what a great time they had!



• Prior to cruising we will send you a folder of Final Cruise Documents encapsulating all cruise details and including extra useful information on such subjects as what to pack, how to tip, what to wear on board, what weather the clients might expect, an itinerary, a colour brochure on the barge they will cruise on and supplementary brochure information on their cruising area.

These pages have been created especially to supply you, the travel agent, with all the indepth information on our excellent hotel barges that you will ever need. We pride ourselves on our efficient, personal service, so please read on, and let us know at any time if we can help you with your barge search, or if we can improve these pages in any way. Thank you for your loyal support.

The contents of our Travel Agents Pages are:

• Commission and Booking Structure



• ‘Agent Only’ Barge Information



• Most Recent Barge Inspections



• Travel Agent Quotes



• Client Quotes



• About The Barge Company



• Terms and Conditions