The first thing to consider is whether the cruise you are planning is a catered cruise on a large boat or is it a self-drive tour?

Many of our guests do one or the other of these and then tell us of their experiences.
I do recommend that you read the feedback received below before committing to these very costly and not always entirely successful ventures, if you have not already committed yourselves.
The companies running these tours fiercely promote them as they make a lot of money and their promotion relies heavily on the romantic aspect of seeing France from the water.
It's an illusion, literally...
In sharp contrast to this is the idea of basing yourselves in a living French village in your own home.
The latter approach provides a deeper and more satisfying experience because you will be interacting with real French people in a real-life situation whereas water tourists are seen by the locals as just that: tourists, that is, people passing through to whom they can sell their services or products.
You are nothing more to them than a customer.

Water tourists learn little about the real France – either past or present - they just see the superficial image the French tour operators project.
They miss out on a lot!
They only see France from a distance, like a series of picture postcards or a kind of touristic slide show as the stops are often a LONG WAY from the villages and you pass by many more enticing places without stopping at all.