we would be interested in any ones reports or tips on a french river cruise holiday ,we intend to travel in august ,4 adults.cheers john and trish craven

Search this forum with the word "barging" and you will find several threads on the subject. Where you go depends on your interests. When I organized such a trip for 12 of us, I picked a canal and company that would allow one-way travel with the maximum "old stones." They also offered a one-way itinerary through the Vosges, but I did not think that nature was the way to go with my group. It eventually turned out that most in the group were not particularly interested in the "old stones" either, but all found the trip memorable.

renting a drive-it-yourself barge, or with a tour company?

We actually rented two self-drive boats.

A good friend, and her group of old friends did 2 self-drive barges this summer and had a ball.