Tourists to France are being attracted to its scenic canals and are adopting varied means of travel to explore them completely, not being limited to the waterway alone.
The oldest canal in France, Canal du Midi, is in the south-west. It opened in 1689 and is now a national monument. It has unique oval locks. The Nantes-Brest canal in Brittany, north-west of France, built by Napoleon when Brest was blockaded by the English and people in France required a secure waterway to reach Nantes, is 364km long with 328 locks. The 'bief de partage,' the highest point on the canal where the waters separate, was dug by prisoners of war. Burgundy, in the eastern-central part of France, boasts of the Nivernais canal that has two tunnels, a lock ladder, self-operated drawbridges, and manual wooden lock gates.
Tourists are cycling, rollerblading, riding and walking on town paths alongside the canal to gain an enthralling enriching experience on their trip to France.