• Link to Instagram Link to Instagram Link to Instagram
  • Link to Facebook Link to Facebook Link to Facebook
  • Link to X Link to X Link to X
Boating holidays on the UK canals & inland waterways in the UK
Drifters
  • Home
  • Boating Holidays
    • First Canal Holiday?
    • Making a booking
    • Visitors from the USA
    • Rural retreats
    • City Breaks
    • Boating holidays for groups
    • Greener holidays
    • Hire Boat Survey
  • UK Canal Map
    • Map of UK canals
    • Canals of North East England
    • Canals of North West England
    • Canals of Central England
    • Canal holidays in Southern England
    • Canals of Wales
    • Canals of Scotland
    • Canal Cruising ‘Rings’
  • Our Boats
    • Drifters Standards
    • Quality Grading
    • Tuition
    • Canal Boats
    • Boat Interiors
    • Photographs
    • Day Boats
  • News
    • Newsletter & Offers
    • Facebook
    • YouTube Channel
    • Instagram
    • X
    • Blog
    • Press Coverage
  • Information
    • Boating safety video
    • Faqs
    • Videos
    • About Us
    • Press Office
    • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
  • Click to open the search input field Click to open the search input field Search
  • Menu Menu
Check Availability
Hide Availability

Advanced search

Choose from available start days:
Advanced options
Check Availaility:
Dogs afloat on a Drifters Holiday hire boat

Narrowboat holidays are great pet-friendly staycations

March 30, 2022/in News/by Debbie Ludford

Narrowboats provide a floating holiday home, so it’s possible to take all sorts of pets on the canals.

And as well as hundreds of dogs every year, here at Drifters we have accommodated many other kinds of pets aboard our canal boats.  From rabbits and hamsters to caged birds, goldfish and tortoises.

Here are our top six reasons why canal boat holidays are great for pets:

  1. The majority of canal boats for hire allow pets on board, so you don’t have to allocate holiday budget to pet care;
  2. No extra vaccinations or pet passports are needed for pets to cruise the canals;
  3. Many of our operators allow the first pet to travel free, while others charge a supplement of between £25 and £35;
  4. Canal boat holidays are especially great for dogs, with plenty of towpath walks and dog-friendly canalside pubs;
  5. Narrowboats with open cruiser-sterns at the back offer extra room ‘on deck’ for pets and the family to enjoy the ever-changing view; and
  6. Doggy life-jackets are available to buy in advance, with wide belly-straps and easy-to-grab handles for a quick retrieval when dogs accidently go swimming!

To check availability, click here https://www.drifters.co.uk

 

Tags: canal boat hire, canal boat holidays, narrowboat hire, narrowboat holidays
https://www.drifters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/dogs-afloat-med-res-scaled-e1611075035641.jpg 500 750 Debbie Ludford https://www.drifters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/drifters-green.jpg Debbie Ludford2022-03-30 07:53:242022-03-31 07:45:04Narrowboat holidays are great pet-friendly staycations
You might also like
Ways to reduce plastic waste on your canal boat holiday Ways to reduce plastic waste on your narrowboat holiday
The Barge Inn on the Kennet & Avon Canal at Seend Best canal and riverside pubs
Interior of Chirk Tunnel on a narrowboat holiday Top tunnels to navigate on a canal boat holiday
Friends enjoying hire boat holiday We’re opening a new canal boat hire base on the Coventry Canal
Celebrity Canal Boaters Drifters helps Julia Bradbury explore the Wonder of Britain
Children enjoying a family canal boat holiday A family holiday on the Kennet & Avon Canal
Head to one of the Seven Wonders of the Waterways on your next canal boat holiday Head to one of the Seven Wonders of the Waterways
Canal boat holidays are great for pets Canal boat holidays are great for pets
Search Search

Recent Posts

  • Cruising across the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct on a narrowboat
    Cruising across the Pontcysyllte AqueductMay 5, 2026 - 10:16 am
  • Canal boating on the Llangollen Canal in Shropshire, England
    Canal boat break from WrenburyApril 27, 2026 - 11:16 am
  • Marion's Four Counties Ring itinerary
    Marion’s Four Counties Ring ItineraryApril 27, 2026 - 10:53 am
  • Narrowboat on the Chirk Aqueduct next to Chirk Tunnel on the Llangollen Canal
    Take to the water this August bank holidayApril 20, 2026 - 7:38 am
  • The Globetrotter on a canal boat holiday on the Llangollen Canal in Shropshire
    The Globetrotter reviews a holiday from WhixallApril 17, 2026 - 3:30 pm

Newsletter

Blue Light Card Discount

Blue Light Card holders save 10% with our Blue light card discount. It’s our way of saying thanks to our NHS, social care & emergency workers.

Blue Light Card Discount

Drifters price promise

If you see the same holiday elsewhere at a lower price, we will match it. It would be good to flesh out this offer a little more to balance out

Drifters Price Promise

Hire Boat Survey

The national waterways charity wants to know about your experience of hiring a boat on the canals and rivers in its care, to help make the experience better.

Launch Survey

Drifters UK boating holiday blog

All the latest canal boating news from drifters

Cruising across the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct on a narrowboat

Cruising across the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct

https://www.drifters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Anglo-Welsh-Aqueducts-13-low-res-2.jpg-1.webp 1333 2000 Debbie Ludford https://www.drifters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/drifters-green.jpg Debbie Ludford2026-05-05 10:16:322026-05-05 10:16:32Cruising across the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct
Canal boating on the Llangollen Canal in Shropshire, England

Canal boat break from Wrenbury

https://www.drifters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Olivia-Ellis-Wrenbury-2025.webp 1101 2048 Debbie Ludford https://www.drifters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/drifters-green.jpg Debbie Ludford2026-04-27 11:16:102026-04-27 12:17:58Canal boat break from Wrenbury
Marion's Four Counties Ring itinerary

Marion’s Four Counties Ring Itinerary

https://www.drifters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/BP_Delilah-67-2048x1367-1.jpg 1367 2048 Debbie Ludford https://www.drifters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/drifters-green.jpg Debbie Ludford2026-04-27 10:53:162026-04-27 13:49:30Marion’s Four Counties Ring Itinerary
Narrowboat going into a lock on Britain's inland waterways

Drifters Press Coverage 2026

https://www.drifters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/BP_Delilah-80-2048x1367-1.jpg 1367 2048 Debbie Ludford https://www.drifters.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/drifters-green.jpg Debbie Ludford2026-04-22 07:31:112026-04-22 07:32:41Drifters Press Coverage 2026
All News

Drifters Standards

Drifters Standards

Interactive canal route map

Interactive Canal Map

FREE monthly boating holiday newsletter

Newsletter Signup

Popular Pages

Day Boat Hire

Map of the Canals

Canal Boats

Newsletter Signup

© Copyright - Drifters Cookie Policy
Link to: Easter Days Out on the water Link to: Easter Days Out on the water Easter Days Out on the waterFriends enjoying a narrowboat holidayLink to: Boris the lizard enjoys a canal boat holiday Link to: Boris the lizard enjoys a canal boat holiday Boris the lizard enjoying a canal boat holidayBoris the lizard enjoys a canal boat holiday
Scroll to top Scroll to top Scroll to top