Top 7 cruises into the countryside for narrowboat holiday beginners

Following government guidance, Drifters operators are planning to restart their holidays on 4 July.

Our self-drive narrowboat holidays provide a floating holiday home for cruising through the countryside, watching out for wildlife and enjoying walks along towpaths and connecting footpaths along the way.

You can take all the supplies you need, and you have the freedom to moor up for the night alongside rural towpaths and canalside pubs offering take-outs.

A licence isn’t required to steer a canal boat and all our operators provide boat steering tuition as part of their holiday packages.  Our narrowboats range from 32ft to 70ft and can accommodate between two and 12 people.  They are all equipped with essential home comforts, including central heating, hot water, TV, showers, ovens, flushing toilets, and many now have WiFi too.

2020 hire prices start at £560 for a short break (three or four nights) on a boat for four people, £725 for a week.

Here are our Top 7 countryside cruises into the countryside for narrowboat beginners:

1. Bob gently along to Fradley Pool Nature Reserve – on a short break from our canal boat hire base on the Trent & Mersey Canal at Great Haywood in Staffordshire, you can head south to Fradley Junction, where the Coventry Canal meets the Trent & Mersey. The journey takes around five hours, travelling through 12 peaceful miles of Staffordshire countryside and passing through just five locks.  Along the way, the route takes you past the National Trust’s Shugborough Estate and Cannock Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.  At Fradley, boaters can moor up to explore Fradley Pool Nature Reserve, a haven for many types of water and woodland birds.
2. Cruise through the Worcestershire countryside to complete the Droitwich Mini-Ring – the Droitwich Ring is the only canal boat holiday cruising circuit in Britain which can be completed on a short break (three or four nights). Cruising through the Worcestershire countryside along sections of the River Severn and the Worcester & Birmingham Canal, and the Droitwich canals, this 21-mile, 33-lock canal boat holiday circuit can be cruised in 16 hours from our narrowboat hire base on the River Severn at Worcester.
3. Glide along the Oxford Canal to Rugby & back – from our canal boat rental base at Napton on the Oxford Canal in Warwickshire, it takes just over six hours to travel 15½ miles, and pass through three locks to reach the rural outskirts of Rugby. Along the way, boaters pass through just three locks and series of canalside villages, including Braunston and Hillmorton.
4. Cruise the leafy Calder & Hebble Navigation to Brighouse and back – on a short break (three or four nights) from our canal boat hire base at Sowerby Bridge, you can travel to Brighouse and back along the leafy Calder & Hebble Navigation. This historic town, famous for its Brighouse and Rastick Brass Band, offers glorious Pennines walks, places to eat and shops. Along the way, boaters pass through the historic market town of Elland and the village of Mirfield, with medieval stocks and ducking stool, plus Dumb Steeple, thought to have been a landmark to guide travellers on their way across the moor and later a Luddite rallying point (12 miles, 20 locks, 8 hours return).
5. Cruise into the Shropshire Lake District – from our narrowboat hire base at Whixall on the Prees Branch of the Llangollen Canal in Shropshire, on a three-night weekend break, narrowboat holiday makers can cruise through the Shropshire Lake District to Ellesmere and back. On a four-night mid-week break, boaters can continue on to Chirk on the Welsh border, with its magnificent aqueduct, 459-yard long tunnel and magnificent Medieval Castle on the hill.
6. Travel through the Wiltshire countryside to Bradford on Avon – from Drifters’ canal boat hire base on the Kennet & Avon Canal at Devizes, it takes around six hours, travelling 10 miles and passing through seven locks to reach the historic town of Bradford on Avon, famous for its magnificent 14^th century Tithe Barn and Bath stone architecture. Along the way, you’ll pass through the villages of Seend, Semington and Hilperton, and beautiful stretches of Wiltshire countryside.
7. Potter through the Shropshire countryside to Market Drayton – from our canal boat hire base at Brewood on the Shropshire Union Canal, it takes around 10 hours to reach the historic market town of Market Drayton, home of the gingerbread man. Along the way, boaters pass through miles of unspoilt Shropshire countryside, and a series of woodland cuttings.  There are just six locks to pass through each way.