Boating hols

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Julie, I know you have a boat but has anyone done canal hols with young kids and would you recommend it?
 
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boats are not really good on canals, canals have a 5mph speed limit (it may be 4 mph)

a canal boating holiday is good fun, but hard work, as you have to open all the locks.

but there are lots of canal side pubs
 
toffee said:
Julie, I know you have a boat but has anyone done canal hols with young kids and would you recommend it?

We've seen loads and loads of families on the narrowboats even with young children.

Everyone is very friendly and helpful

Travelling along at about 2-3 mph........seeing cows drinking out of the canal as your going by............mooring up anywhere you like........stopping a lovely quaint pub for lunch or dinner...............bliss!!! :LOL:

The youngsters seem to enjoy it as they are also learning about the canals and nature as well as having a go at opening and closing the lock gates - with lots of laughs as they struggle to push the beams!!!! :LOL:

When it's really hot some of the teenagers can be seen lying on top of the boats roof getting a tan!!

I would say in my honest opinion that it would be a really really good holiday for a family

It's difficult for me to recommend a particular canal as we live in Manchester.................I have been on the Llangollen canal which was stunning.......I'll post you a link of the canal forum that my husband regularly chats on........they will give you good advice and recommend a canal and a hire firm that are particularly good........although it is expensive to hire a boat though

http://www.canalworld.net/forums/

Our boat is almost finished.......we are going out on it for 2 weeks from 12th June - we haven't decided what canal to do yet but it will either be the Cheshire ring or the Four Counties ring........maybe if they are near to where you live you could come and see us and have a look at our boat?

Anyway, I'll post some photos on here (if I can work out how to do it) when it's finshed
 
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JulieL/B said:
Travelling along at about 2-3 mph........seeing cows drinking out of the canal as your going by............mooring up anywhere you like........stopping a lovely quaint pub for lunch or dinner...............bliss!!! :LOL:
That's the reason why it's on my wish-list. If only...
One day.
 
breezer said:
a canal boating holiday is good fun, but hard work, as you have to open all the locks.
I was lucky, I did a boating hoilday from Reading on the River Thames, they were all electric gate opening and a house keeper as well to have a chat! A really good relaxing holiday.
 
WoodYouLike said:
I've been looking into that too and found several canal boat (narrow boat) holliday sites. We are planning (hoping) to have a holiday like that, but not being used to 'sailing' those boats ourselves I merely looked at boats with crew:
See http://www.hotelboatsuk.com/boats.htm
or http://www.bywaterholidays.co.uk/index.html
http://www.reedboats.co.uk/boats/boats.html[/QUOTE]

No Woodyoulike don't get a crewed boat!.........part of the fun is doing it yourself.........the hireboat people do take you out on it before hand and show you the ropes.

I think having a crewed boat would be restricting and less fun to be honest........I have some friends who did it before thay had their own boat and they said there was no comparison

If I can manage to steer a boat and moor it..........believe me anyone can!!!

We were abit nervous when we first hired one but within five or ten minutes we were off..........no problem.....and like I said to Toffee the other boaters are very friendly and would help if you had a problem
 
Ok, I will re-search then. (And blame you if things do get wrong ;))
But it would be great having a holl's like that, letting the world pass by - no let me rephrase that, passing the world by on a easy pace, being on the water all day, seeing the country from a diffirent perspective.

Hmmm, lovely!
 
WoodYouLike said:
Ok, I will re-search then. (And blame you if things do get wrong ;))
But it would be great having a holl's like that, letting the world pass by - no let me rephrase that, passing the world by on a easy pace, being on the water all day, seeing the country from a diffirent perspective.

Hmmm, lovely!

You should have a look an ebay too (type in narrowboat and canalboat).......we bid and won a weeks holiday on a hire boat (which was when we went on the Llangollen canal) I think we got it for about £300 in the 2nd week of September - which is cheap - the weather was good too

We hired our first boat from Alvechurch group which have places up and down the Country........but if you go when the kids are in school or on the last minute.....you should contact the hire places by phone as they may do a deal with you if they have boats that aren't booked out..........so it may be cheaper
 
we are in cumbria so we would have to travel anyway.
I appreciate that there will be different standards but if it is quite expensive, then we wouldnt be eating out all of the time.
I take it there would be reasonable cooking facilities on the boat to use aswell as pubs and picnics?
I havent looked at the links yet and this is maybe answered there, I will look.

We are camping but I have always fancied doing a canal hol.
Just wasnt sure if it would be boring for the kids.
The youngest really wants to do a rosy and jim holiday! (kids programme with canal boat on it for those without little kids)
 
JulieL/B said:
but if you go when the kids are in school or on the last minute.....you should contact the hire places by phone as they may do a deal with you if they have boats that aren't booked out..........so it may be cheaper
We can always do that then.
It's just the two of us, 'handy' with tools, but with boats? And knowing him and me, it probably end up in big rows ;)
Bu tmost of the canals are straight and narrow anyway, so can't do that much harm:cool:
 
toffee said:
we are in cumbria so we would have to travel anyway.
I appreciate that there will be different standards but if it is quite expensive, then we wouldnt be eating out all of the time.
I take it there would be reasonable cooking facilities on the boat to use aswell as pubs and picnics?
I havent looked at the links yet and this is maybe answered there, I will look.

We are camping but I have always fancied doing a canal hol.
Just wasnt sure if it would be boring for the kids.
The youngest really wants to do a rosy and jim holiday! (kids programme with canal boat on it for those without little kids)

Even the most basic of hireboats have a cooker, central heating and toaster on board
Some have microwaves and dishwashers but those are usually found in the bigger boats (longer to accomodate more people)
 
Just book a long weekend at the most, you'll be bored stiff otherwise. Unless of course you tow a barge of coal or something down south which will render the excercise a little less pointless.
 
keyplayer said:
Just book a long weekend at the most, you'll be bored stiff otherwise. Unless of course you tow a barge of coal or something down south which will render the excercise a little less pointless.

Towing a barge full of coal down South.............now that would be boring!
 
keyplayer said:
Just book a long weekend at the most, you'll be bored stiff otherwise.
Depends what you get bored about, everybody's got difference ways of relaxing.
 
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