Important information about our Barges and how they differ from a standard holiday cottage
By Carl Scott
A stay aboard one of our Barges is unique, and has some differences to a standard holiday cottage. Here is some important info for you to be aware of.
Both of our Barges are moored on Quays. You are not able to take them out, nor do we offer trips. Think of them as floating holiday cottages.
We have Macerator pumps on all the toilets on our barges. We have signs up saying that wet wipes, sanitary products and nappies must not be flushed down the toilet. This will result in a broken pump and we will have to charge for replacement. They are £400, plus fitting. We provide the appropriate bags and bins for the disposal of items such as described above.
Additionally, these ‘holiday cottages’ are boats on water. We ask that you take great care and attention at all times and we cannot be held responsible in any way for any incidents or accidents whilst aboard. We cannot stress this enough. They are boats. We’ve made that fairly clear. And boats are a little different, that’s why you book them. It’s a unique holiday but access is not the same as a cottage. Just check out the videos and you’ll get a good feel for each barge and it’s location. They are not suitable for disabled or infirm guests and there’s nothing we can do about it.
We cannot stress enough, these are boats. They are on the water. You may experience a diesel or heating oil smell as that’s how the barges are heated. As with all boats heated in this way we cannot avoid this, but both systems are regularly checked and serviced to ensure correct and safe operation. We also need to carry out maintenance such as refuelling, emptying of grey water tanks etc, and this may well need to be done whilst you are on board. We will do our level best to ensure you are not disturbed, but these routines are necessary.
Neither of our Barges are suitable for disabled or less agile guests. They are both accessed via gangplanks and steps across water due to the very nature of this unique kind of holiday. Similarly the tides rise and fall twice a day and we can’t do anything about that. It’s a planet thing. This means the gangplanks will be steeper either up or down at certain times of the day. Both have secure handrails though.
In adverse weather they may face unique challenges, but they do offer a unique break. Twee Gebroeders is connected to a mains water supply, fed along the quay. It is lagged but if it does freeze then you’ll be without running water. You have a key on board for the shower block, which is a short walk and you’ll need to put bottled water down the loo. If we see this coming, we will put some bottles on board for you. We appreciate this would be inconvenient but this is beyond our control and under such circumstances we cannot offer compensation. We’ve really done our best to stress that a barge holiday is different.
