Le Boat, Europe’s largest self-drive boating company, is poised to become a global brand with the launch of the company’s first North American base of operations in 2018 on Ontario’s historic Rideau Canal.
The Rideau Canal, which opened in 1832, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a Canadian National Historic Site as well as a Canadian Heritage river. It is 202kms long with 47 locks and is the oldest continuously operating canal in North America.
Le Boat will invest $16 million in Le Boat base infrastructure that includes the length of the canal from Ottawa to Kingston. It will open in the picturesque town of Smiths Falls, “Heart of the Rideau Canal,” with a fleet of 16 Horizon cruisers, especially designed to meet Ontario maritime and Le Boat customer requirements.
The fleet will expand to at least 32 cruises over the next five years. Booking will begin in spring 2017, with the boating season officially launching in May 2018 and running through October every year.