Marin D'Eau Douce
Marin D'Eau Douce is a French electric boat rental operator founded in 2014, offering license-free self-guided cruises for 5–11 passengers across 10 French bases in Paris, Strasbourg, Lille, Meaux, and Greater Paris. It serves individual tourists, families, and corporate clients with team building events.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersParis, France
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Marin D'Eau Douce does
Marin D'Eau Douce is a French electric boat rental and aquatic leisure operator founded in May 2014 by Nicolas Couderc and Olivier Doin, headquartered in Paris. It operates a network of ten waterfront bases across France — Paris (Bassin de la Villette, closed in 2025 after 11 years), Levallois-Perret, Boulogne-Billancourt, Bougival, Cergy-Pontoise, Meaux, Strasbourg, Lille, Fontainebleau, and Château de Chantilly — serving tourists, local families, and corporate clients. The company runs a fleet of approximately 120 electric boats with capacities of 5, 7, 9, and 11 passengers, deployed across an aggregate of 30–40+ km of navigable waterways at each base location.
The core product is hourly and daily rental of license-free electric boats — meaning customers can pilot them after a brief on-site safety briefing, without a navigation permit. Boats are 100% electric, produce zero direct emissions, and operate silently. Supporting offerings include a children's nautical carousel sub-brand ("Moussaillon d'Eau Douce") with themed miniature electric boats at three bases, themed corporate team-building events including treasure hunts, nautical rallies, and escape games for groups of 20 to 400, gift cards distributed via a PlaceMinute partnership, and on-site guinguettes (floating terraces) selling food and beverages at each base. Technical differentiation is concentrated in electric propulsion and the license-free regulatory positioning rather than in proprietary software or data assets.
The business model is asset-heavy and usage-based: revenue is generated primarily through hourly and full-day boat rentals, supplemented by quote-based corporate event packages, ticket-based children's activities, gift card sales, and F&B add-ons. The go-to-market is hybrid: direct-to-consumer bookings are handled through the company's website and phone channel with self-service on-site execution, while a parallel enterprise field sales motion targets corporate clients through dedicated quote requests and project managers. The company is private, founder-controlled, and shows no external institutional investment or parent company in the disclosed materials.
Marin D'Eau Douce firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Marin D'Eau Douce
- Legal name
- Marin d'Eau Douce
- Website
- https://marindeaudouce.fr
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Marin D'Eau Douce is a French electric boat rental operator founded in 2014, offering license-free self-guided cruises for 5–11 passengers across 10 French bases in Paris, Strasbourg, Lille, Meaux, and Greater Paris. It serves individual tourists, families, and corporate clients with team building events.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Marin D'Eau Douce industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Boat Rental and Waterway Tourism
- NAICS
- Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Water (48721)
- SIC
- Water Transportation (4400), Services-Miscellaneous Equipment Rental & Leasing (7350)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Day-Cruise & Excursion Boat Operators (Non-overnight) (THAEAGAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Marine Recreation Rentals & Tours Retail Counter (On-site Sales) (CRAMAIAM), Tourist & Sightseeing Cruise Operators (Day Cruises) (TLAFALAF)
Keywords
Where Marin D'Eau Douce is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Paris
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices10 records
Markets served
Marin D'Eau Douce business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Hourly/Daily Boat Rental: Core revenue from renting electric boats without permit by the hour or full day. Customers can rent boats accommodating 5, 7, 9, and 11 people for various durations from 30 minutes to 6 hours.
- Corporate Events: Team building, seminars, treasure hunts, nautical rallies, and corporate events for businesses. Custom event organization including treasure hunts, rallies, and escape games on water.
- Mini Port Activities: Revenue from miniature boat rides for children at nautical merry-go-rounds. Priced per ticket with multi-ticket packages available.
- Gift Cards: Sale of gift cards valid for 2 years across all bases, offering boat rides of 1, 2, 3 hours, half-day or full-day experiences.
- Food & Beverage Add-ons: Appetizer baskets, champagne, refreshments, and food platters served during boat rentals and events.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Mini boat rides at 10-minute intervals |
| Other | Monthly | Sales & Customer Service Internship - Season 2026 |
| Other | Monthly | Nautical Base Manager - Seasonal Contract |
| Subscription | Annual | Communication Manager - CDI (1-3 years experience) |
| Other | Monthly | Commercial/Business Development Internship |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Marin D'Eau Douce product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Marin d'Eau Douce rents 100% electric boats without a license across 10 waterfront bases in France (Paris, Levallois-Perret, Boulogne-Billancourt, Bougival, Cergy-Pontoise, Meaux, Strasbourg, Lille, Fontainebleau, Chantilly). Customers self-pilot boats accommodating 5 to 11 people for durations from 30 minutes to 6 hours. The company also organizes corporate team-building events (treasure hunts, rallies, escape games) for groups of 20-400 people, operates a children's mini-boat carousel (Moussaillon d'Eau Douce), and sells gift cards and food/beverage add-ons at on-site guinguettes.
Product overview
Marin d'Eau Douce operates a network of electric boat rental bases across France (Paris/Bassin de la Villette, Levallois, Boulogne, Bougival, Cergy-Pontoise, Meaux, Fontainebleau, Chantilly, Strasbourg, Lille), offering boats without a license for 5 to 11 people. The core offering includes hourly to full-day rentals on electric propulsion boats across 40+ km of navigable waterways. Supporting products include the Mini Port / Moussaillon d'Eau Douce (electric mini-boats for children), corporate team building events (treasure hunts, rallies), gift cards, and on-site guinguettes (floating terraces) for food and beverage. Some bases offer additional activities such as bicycles, rosalies, golf carts, kayaks, pedalos, and paddles.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Moussaillon d'Eau Douce: A children's mini-boat activity brand operating a nautical carousel with miniature electric boats for children at Paris (Bassin de la Villette), Lille, and Bougival. Children can captain themed mini-boats (ferryboat, police boat, fire boat, fishing trawler, racer) in a safe, buoy-delimited zone. The brand offers 'Moussaillon d'Eau Douce' diplomas for participating children.
Products and services
- Electric Boat Rental Without License (Location de bateaux électriques sans permis) Self-service electric boat rental available across 10 French bases, accommodating 5 to 11 people per boat for 30 minutes to 6 hours. Customers receive a brief safety briefing and self-pilot boats on canals and rivers without any boating license. Accessible to all individuals and groups for leisure cruising.
- Corporate Events / Team Building (Événements Entreprise) Custom-organized corporate events on electric boats including team-building activities, treasure hunts, nautical rallies, and escape games on water. Available themes include Historical, Ecological, Street Art, and Comics. Accommodates groups from 20 to 400 people with dedicated project managers. Targeted at French companies for seminars, team cohesion events, and employee celebrations.
- Mini Port / Moussaillon d'Eau Douce (Children's Nautical Carousel) Nautical carousel featuring small electric mini-boats for children (3.60m x 1.20m, 250kg capacity) including themed boats: ferryboat, police boat, fire boat, fishing trawler, and racer. Operated in a safe, buoy-delineated zone. Children receive 'Moussaillon d'Eau Douce' diplomas. Priced per ticket with multi-ticket packages available.
- Gift Cards (Bons Cadeaux) Gift cards for boat rentals valid for 2 years across all Marin d'Eau Douce bases, available in durations from 1 hour to full-day for 5, 7, 9, or 11-person boats. Sold directly and through PlaceMinute partnership platform.
- Château de Chantilly Multi-Activity Base Multi-activity base located within Château de Chantilly estate offering rowing boats, motor boats, children's electric boats, bicycles, rosalies (4 & 6 seats), and golf carts for exploring the estate grounds. Targets visitors to the historic château.
- Guinguette du Capitaine (Floating Terrace Food & Beverage) Floating terraces at each base offering drinks, snacks, charcuterie and cheese boards, salads, and aperitifs. Connected to and extending the boat rental customer experience with on-site refreshments.
Quantifiable outcome
- 324 marriage proposals have been made on Marin d'Eau Douce boats
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Marin D'Eau Douce
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Marin D'Eau Douce technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Marin D'Eau Douce partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- PlaceMinuteminorPartnership for gift card distribution through placeminute.com platform. Gift cards are valid for 2 years across all Marin d'Eau Douce bases and can be purchased for various durations (1h, 2h, 3h, half-day, full-day).
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Marin D'Eau Douce competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Le Boat: Operates the largest fleet of self-drive canal boats across Europe including France. Directly comparable as a self-piloted boat rental operator serving leisure tourists on French and European waterways, though typically with larger vessels requiring licenses.
- Locaboat: French self-drive canal boat rental company operating in France and across Europe. Highly comparable as a French-rooted license-free boat rental business, though focused on multi-day cruising itineraries rather than hourly urban day-rentals.
- Crown Blue Line: European self-drive boat rental company with strong French canal network presence. Comparable as a multi-base, license-free boat rental operator in the French and European leisure market, though at larger vessel scale.
- Nicols: Self-drive canal and river boat rental operator headquartered in France with a fleet serving French and European waterways. Directly comparable boat rental model, though focused on overnight cruising and family-oriented multi-day rentals.
Regional players
- Paris Canal: Paris-based canal cruise operator offering sightseeing tours on Canal Saint-Martin and the Seine. Highly comparable as a Parisian canal/waterway experience operator serving similar urban tourist segments, though via guided tours rather than self-piloted rentals.
- Vedettes de Paris: Paris sightseeing boat operator offering Seine tours from the foot of the Eiffel Tower. Comparable Paris waterway leisure experience targeting tourists and corporate groups, though via larger fixed-route vessels rather than self-piloted rentals.
Broad incumbents
- Bateaux Parisiens: Major Parisian sightseeing cruise and dinner cruise operator on the Seine. Comparable as a Paris water leisure provider serving tourists and corporate events, though with scheduled tours rather than self-piloted rentals.
- Bateaux Mouches: Iconic Paris sightseeing cruise operator on the Seine. Comparable as a Paris water-based leisure experience provider serving tourists and corporate clients, but operates larger scheduled cruise vessels rather than self-piloted rentals.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Marin D'Eau Douce social profiles
Digital presenceMarin D'Eau Douce financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Marin D'Eau Douce leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Marin D'Eau Douce funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Marin D'Eau Douce M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Marin D'Eau Douce
What does Marin D'Eau Douce do?
Marin d'Eau Douce rents 100% electric boats without a license across 10 waterfront bases in France (Paris, Levallois-Perret, Boulogne-Billancourt, Bougival, Cergy-Pontoise, Meaux, Strasbourg, Lille, Fontainebleau, Chantilly). Customers self-pilot boats accommodating 5 to 11 people for durations from 30 minutes to 6 hours. The company also organizes corporate team-building events (treasure hunts, rallies, escape games) for groups of 20-400 people, operates a children's mini-boat carousel (Moussaillon d'Eau Douce), and sells gift cards and food/beverage add-ons at on-site guinguettes.
Is Marin D'Eau Douce a public or private company?
Marin D'Eau Douce is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Marin D'Eau Douce founded?
Marin D'Eau Douce was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Marin D'Eau Douce based?
Marin D'Eau Douce is headquartered in Paris, France, in the Europe region.
How does Marin D'Eau Douce make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Hourly/Daily Boat Rental is the primary driver. The others are corporate Events, mini Port Activities, gift Cards and food & Beverage Add-ons.
Who are Marin D'Eau Douce's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Le Boat, Locaboat, Crown Blue Line and Nicols. Regional players are Paris Canal and Vedettes de Paris. Broad incumbents are Bateaux Parisiens and Bateaux Mouches.
Does Marin D'Eau Douce have an API?
No public API is recorded for Marin D'Eau Douce.
What industry is Marin D'Eau Douce in?
Marin D'Eau Douce's product category is Boat Rental and Waterway Tourism. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAEAGAG, Day-Cruise & Excursion Boat Operators (Non-overnight), with a secondary code of CRAMAIAM, Marine Recreation Rentals & Tours Retail Counter (On-site Sales). Its NAICS code is 48721 and its SIC code is 4400.