"...there is a huge amount of information here, presented in a very accessible and economical format and offering far more than any book could."

An independent opinion of EuroCanals Guides 2006 CD-ROM
by Hugh Potter, longtime editor of Waterways World magazine, now
Consultant Editor of Waterways World and Editor of Narrowboat quarterly:

One might have thought that this informative CD, produced in America, was aimed at the US market - but in fact, over half the sales of the first edition were to the UK! This second edition features a general introduction to the waterways of mainland Europe, with a 'slide show' offering a taster of the wide variety of canals and rivers available for leisure cruising in France, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, plus a short section on the UK.

The main part of the CD is a well-illustrated 486-page 'e-book' compilation of guides, articles and photographs about travelling on the canals and rivers of Europe at the helm of a canal boat or barge, based on the author's extensive first-hand experience. The files are in PDF format and so are viewable on both Mac and PC: the author gives an excellent introduction as to how to get the best out of the free Adobe Reader program that he recommends to read them. My only complaint is that, though computer screens are universally landscape, the 'pages' are portrait and so not easily viewed without scrolling.

There is an extensive introductory section on the practicalities of boating in Europe - types of boat and their handling, locking, languages, phones, email, internet, etc - followed by detailed 'guides' to the four main countries.

The author emphasises that these are planning guides rather than navigational charts. The main guides are based on articles that he has written over the last five years. For example, the section on the Seine runs to 30 pages and includes not only how to cruise the river in your own boat, but details of the fascinating canals of Paris, the public trips that operate on them, where to moor (and where not to moor!), with links to relevant websites and email addresses where available for hotels and hotel boats, hire boat bases, marinas and tourist offices.

For those who become hooked on the idea, there are sections on the practicalities of buying a boat in Europe, brokers, handling courses, guides, registration, a glossary of common terms in all the relevant languages and links to relevant web sites.

Whilst not covering every single waterway, there is a huge amount of information here, presented in a very accessible and economical format and offering far more than any book could.

Hugh Potter; April 2006, Waterways World magazine, 151 Station Street, Burton-on-Trent DE14 1BG, England (UK) Contact: admin@wwonline.co.uk