Backwaters a New Genre of Inland Waterways Holiday - Internship or post-grad Experience Opportunities as Galley Crew for the 2018 season Introduction There are opportunities between May and December 2018 for students to work as domestic crew aboard a passenger barge currently under construction which will offer cruising holidays on the French inland waterways. Passengers will usually cruise in the morning, enjoy an afternoon coach excursion, and stay overnight in a local hotel. The crew of four skipper, deputy and the two student galley staff, will be accommodated on board. Cruising will take place each week from Sunday to Friday, Saturday normally remaining free. On most days there will be no crew duties once the boat has been tidied after the morning cruise and crew members will be free. Crew will self-cater whilst on board. The pattern of working weeks is flexible and can be developed around individual student availability. It will most obviously suit students studying for or having just completed degrees in the business, tourism, hotel & hospitality or modern language spaces. The Company will be happy to report back to academic leads where duties can be considered to form part of a coursework programme. To keep "churn" to a minimum there is a preference for students to be available for at least two months at a time, and as student crew will share a cabin with twin bunks it would be preferable if they apply jointly so we can be confident they will get along with each other! The context may be best appreciated by checking the one-week itinerary overleaf this describes one of the six weeks of cruising available as the boat follows a 350-mile course on the western side of Burgundy. The chartering company and tour operator is Saga Holidays Ltd (and sometimes its sister company Titan Travel), but crew will be employed by, and accountable to, Backwaters.
The Briare Aqueduct spans the Loire and lies on our first season's cruise catchment Duties The position will typically require working hours of 08:30 to 14:30 on 6 days a week although this may vary on particular days and crew may also be asked occasionally to support operations on afternoons and Saturdays. Duties will comprise: Galley service of soft drinks, teas and coffees to passengers from the galley Setting out and clearing up of buffet lunch delivered to the boat ready-to-eat (no on board catering for customers is required) Preparation and cleanliness of lounge, WCs and galley area Simple sales and stock-keeping for a limited range of resale items available for purchase by passengers, including a limited range of local beers and wines Compliance with hygiene and safety protocols Custody and familiarity with first aid and defibrillator equipment Support of embarkation and disembarkation as directed by the boat skipper and deputy Cleaning and maintenance of on-board bicycles carried for passenger use Ensuring the boat is secure if left unattended Liaison with and support of the tour operator's manager who will accompany cruises Being helpful and cheerful remembering always to be patient and kind to passengers of limited mobility Successful applicants will be expected to organise their own first aid and defibrillator training if not already so qualified. There will be a strict no-alcohol policy whilst on duty and company stocks of beers, wines and other items will not be available for crew consumption and subject to daily stock reconciliation. There will also be no smoking on board.
On board safety is extremely important and crew members will be instructed on safety protocols relative to: Embarkation and disembarkation Ropework and walkway safety Passage through locks and under low bridges Man overboard drill Ventilation Galley & WC hygiene Management of slip and trip hazards Crew Members will be paid at the rate of 200 per week against a fixed-term contract once we have decided the pattern of rotation. The Company will provide your transport between Kent and the boat location normally you will travel with the passenger coaches which normally run from and to Folkestone each week on Saturday, but sometimes we may need to get you to travel independently. Students will need to budget for their own food, and will be able to use galley facilities to cook if required. The Aisne-Oise "triangle", a planned Backwaters catchment from 2019. The Somme and Canal de St Quentin would be part of the same cruising range - just off map to the top left - and we also drop down into Champagne country - bottom right
Dates Intending applicants should please review the suggested date blocks below. These are flexible and may be re-arranged after discussion with applicants and taking into account semester periods and the timing of exams. Block 1 Date Day Programme 6 May Sunday Travel from UK to join boat at Cergy 7-9 May Mon-Wed On board training and safety drills, crew familiarisation 10-12 May Thu-Sat Inaugural "taster" cruise through Paris (Backwaters with Buzzlines) 13-15 May Sun-Tue Free time and further trials/modifications 16-19 May Wed-Sat "Taster" cruise Villeneuve-sur-Yonne-Tonnerre-Auxerre(Backwaters with Buzzlines) 15 May Mon Boat trials and operational review 20-21 May Sun-Mon Standing by in Auxerre 22-24 May Tue-Thu "Taster" cruise Auxerre-Clamecy (Backwaters with Buzzlines) 25 May Fri Official Launch for civic representatives, VIPs etc 26-27 May Sat-Sun Free weekend 28 May-1 Jun Mon-Fri Cruise Clamecy-Auxerre (Backwaters with Buzzlines) 2-3 Jun Sat-Sun Free weekend 4-8 Jun Mon-Fri Cruise Auxerre-Clamecy (Backwaters with Buzzlines) 9 Jun Sat Free day 10-15 Jun Sun-Fri Cruise Clamecy-Vermenton (Saga Holidays) 16 Jun Sat Free day 17-22 Jun Sun -Fri Cruise Vermenton-Tonnerre (Saga) 23 Jun Sat Free day 24-29 Jun Sun-Fri Cruise Tonnerre Pont sur Yonne (Saga) 30 Jun Sat Free day 1-6 Jul Sun-Fri Cruise Pont sur Yonne-Montargis (Saga) 6 Jul Fri Hotel overnight oncoming crew arrive to stay aboard Friday for Sat training 7 Jul Sat Return to UK with coach Block 2 Date Day Programme 6 Jul Fri Ashford-Paris and local connection by rail 7 Jul Sat On-board training/familiarisation 8-13 Jul Sun-Fri Cruise Montargis-Sancerre (Saga) 14 Jul Sat Free day (Bastille Day) 15-20 Jul Sun-Fri Cruise Sancerre-Decize (Saga) 21 Jul Sat Free day 22-27 Jul Sun-Fri Cruise Decize-Sancerre (Titan Travel) 28 Jul Sat Free day 19 Jul-3 Aug Sun-Fri Cruise Sancerre-Montargis (Backwaters with Buzzlines) 4 Aug Sat Free day 5-10 Aug Sun-Fri Cruise Montargis-Pont sur Yonne (Titan) 11 Aug Sat Free day 12-17 Aug Sun Fri Cruise Pont sur Yonne-Tonnerre (Backwaters with Buzzlines) 18 Aug Sat Free day 19-31 Aug Sun-Fri Tonnerre-Clamecy (2 week cruise) (Backwaters with Buzzlines) (fortnight) 31 Aug Fri Hotel overnight oncoming crew arrive to stay aboard Friday for Sat training 1 Sep Sat Return to UK with coach
Block 3 Date Day Programme 31 Aug Fri Ashford-Paris and local connection by rail 1 Sep Sat On-board training/familiarisation 2-7 Sep Sun-Fri Cruise Clamecy-Vermenton (Saga) 8 Sep Sat Free day 9-14 Sep Sun-Fri Cruise Vermenton-Tonnerre (Saga) 15 Sep Sat Free day 16-21 Sep Sun-Fri Cruise Tonnerre-Pont sur Yonne (Titan) 22 Sep Sat Free day 23-28 Sep Sun-Fri Cruise Pont sur Yonne-Montargis (Saga) 29 Sep Sat Free day 30 Sep-5 Oct Sun-Fri Cruise Montargis-Sancerre (Saga) 6 Oct Sat Free day 7-20 Oct Sun-Fri Cruise Sancerre-Auxerre (available for charter not confirmed yet) (fortnight) tbc Return to Kent Further dates may follow for December. To express interest in any of these date blocks, please email Lynn@backwaters.tours and if appropriate make separate contact with University administration and/or your course tutor. At this stage no-one will be ruled in or out by what they reply with, but to help us understand your particular interests and talents you could help us please by saying... 1. Whether you are applying singly or jointly and if the latter, who your counterpart is. 2. What course you are on or have completed 3. Whether you have any French, or experience of or interest in France 4. Which block(s) you would like to be considered for 5. If you would like us to look again at our blocks of dates if they don't fit with course dates or exams 6. Any relevant experience 7. Whether you can swim 8. Whether you already have first-aider (including de-fib) qualifications failing which whether you're happy to get so qualified. Once we have an idea of the level of interest we will organise a meeting on campus to follow up in person. Initially we'll set a closing date of 23rd January and review responses at that point. Thanks for reading all this, I hope it's of interest. Best wishes Lynn CEO Lynn@backwaters.tours