This waterway runs from Ramonville-St-Agne (just south of Toulouse) to Les Onglous (east of Agde). You’ll cruise under the famous overhanging avenues of poplar trees (see above right) and hear cicadas buzzing away all around you in fields that are full of golden corn, blood red poppies or smiling yellow sunflowers. You’ll pass through tiny villages made of creamy coloured stone, hewn centuries ago.

This is a very popular route and for a very good reason. Built from 1666 on, by up to 12,000 men, crossing rivers and tunnelling through hills, the Canal du Midi flows with a grace, beauty and physical agility for 235 kilometres through some of the most beautiful countryside in Europe. This stretch of wonderful waterway cruises through the world-famous town of Carcassonne with its amazingly preserved medieval citadel perched on the hill above you, and extends from just under Toulouse to the Mediterranean Sea. Now over 300 years old, the Canal du Midi has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There are lots of fun things to do along this route and because of the fantastic beaches that are well within reach, this waterway is very popular with families who wish to charter cruise, as well as groups of friends or couples who wish to soak up ‘la bonne vie’ (the good life!) and enjoy the wonderful mediterranean climate, cuisine and lifestyle. The possibilities for water sports are numerous and there are also water parks and many similar attractions designed to give children and parents a really fun time. There are many excellent excursions for the adults, many of which explore the fascinating history of the area.

A wonderful ‘vacation atmosphere’ pervades this route as people come to experience the amazingly brilliant sun light that the Impressionist painters tried to capture in their art works. Tall cypress trees, palm cypresses, poppy and sunflower fields typify the Languedoc landscape through which you’ll cruise. Minute little villages, founded hundreds of years ago due to passing trade on the canal, remain today, often still as little cafés or restaurants where you may stop and soak up the atmosphere. A wonderful tradition of fresh cuisine is enjoyed in this region as in other areas of France, with olive trees growing in many of the fields, and often just by the side of the road. The wine-producing areas of Corbières, Minervois, St Chinian and Faugères are all here to be explored and savoured.

So many reasons—you’d be crazy not to want to! - Because you love the mediterranean cuisine, because you enjoy lots of sunshine, because you love fantastic countryside and wonderful scenery, European history and architecture, you want to escape to a paradise, away from the city ‘grind’ and enjoy the freedom of exploring a region of great natural richness, because it’s romantic, because it’s great for cycling....the list of reasons is endless!