Yacht
Le Premier is a Freycimet barge, named for the Frenchman who, in the 1800s, oversaw the gutting of independent canal systems and their reconstruction with uniform bridge heights and lock widths, all to facilitate the transport of products to Paris. A Freycimet is the largest barge that can fit through the “new” locks along the centuries-old Canal de Bourgogne, and Le Premier’s top deck barely squeezes beneath several bridges along the route. I had to duck two or three times while sitting on the sundeck, as I am apparently taller than the bags of grain that previously were hauled along this waterway.
     The hull itself is more than 50 years old, and her owner-operators spent two years rebuilding her into a yacht-style barge complete with things unavailable on other local barges—but quite common onboard charter yachts—such as an enclosed pilothouse with guest seating and a long, open sundeck. The refit cost about $1 million and ended in 2004, when Le Premier began offering charters.

Crew
Kathy Williams and Richard Shields own and operate Le Premier with three other crew members serving as stewardess, mate, and mate/tour guide. Previously, Williams and Shields ran a 70-foot charter sailboat in the Eastern Mediterranean. “Our last year of offering charters in Turkey was 2001,” Kathy told me. “We’d been there for about 15 years, and it was 9/11, and we felt tourism in a Muslim country was going down. Then, this opportunity came up in France.”
     They bring charter-level service to a part of the world where it is incredibly hard to find, with other similar-size barges packing in far more people with far less personalized treatment. And, having reconstructed Le Premier themselves, Williams and Shields take great pride in ensuring she is always at her best.

Chef
Williams does the cooking, using fresh, local ingredients that introduce guests to the cuisine of the Burgundy countryside. Every dinner, for instance, includes a cheese course complete with a quick lesson to help you distinguish one sample from the next.
     Wine tasting is also a natural part of the dining experience, what with so many exceptional wineries located in the region. We tried everything from the least-expensive table wines to the more expensive brand-name bottles with our meals, and never once were we anything but delighted.

Accommodations
Le Premier has three large, equal-size cabins that can be arranged with twin- or king-size beds, making the yacht a good choice for couples and families alike. The décor is light wood with white soft goods, allowing for a spacious feel. All the guest cabins are in the same area, far from the crew quarters, for ultimate privacy.

Destination
Le Premier is exactly 16½ feet wide, which is a hair narrower than each of the 54 canal locks that line the Dijon-Escommes route, the most popular itinerary aboard the luxury barge. The canal is a clear-cut route where you can go only forward. Le Premier’s slow speed—6 knots, tops—makes it feel almost like a Disney ride on a fixed track, especially in the verdant parts of Burgundy that look, sound, and smell like enchanted forests filled with large balls of mistletoe and fluttering birds.
     Also unique to this style of charter is that the sounds of civilization are never more than a half-dozen feet away along the canal’s sides, including the groaning of occasional car engines and a morning’s worth of construction—the types of things most charter yachts take you as far away from as possible.
     What’s interesting, though, is that cruising along this particular canal allows you to hop off the barge at any given lock and do whatever you like. You can stare out at a sea of green where “I think that’s a herd of cows” replaces “dolphins off the starboard side,” and you can opt, whenever you like, to step off and wander ashore. There’s a path along the canal where I walked for several lock lengths, enjoying the scenery and, without effort, moving much faster than the barge to meet it later along the route.
     “You go walking, cycling, or looking around while we’re working with the lockkeepers,” Shields says. “You’re not stuck on the boat at all.”