This past couple of years has seen an increase in staycations, but one of the most popular choices for families has been boating short breaks and canal boat holidays in general.
It is easy to see why because taking a boating holiday in the UK is the best way to slow down and take in everything that is beautiful about our country. Canal boat holidays allow families to escape the stresses of daily life, especially the hectic school run!
When we say that families can slow down with a boating holiday, we mean it! With an average speed of just four miles per hour, taking one of our canal boat holidays is an excellent way for everyone to shift down a gear and take a fantastic adventure together.
When you jet off on holiday abroad, you and your kids miss so much of the world when flying above the clouds. Also, you never have the chance to be involved in your trip. But when navigating your own canal boat, you and your kids can work together to navigate locks and become masters of your journey.
It's great fun to watch your kids become excited at the next approaching set of lock gates and enjoy their enthusiasm for learning how their boat works and navigates the canal system.
There is a whole new language to learn when you take a canal boat holiday. Would the average kid in school know what a tiller is? What about a winding hole or where the stern of a boat is? There is so much to learn that even taking boating short breaks can be very educational for your kids.
For anyone that has never taken a canal boat trip, even for a day, they have been missing out on the opportunity to learn about our natural wildlife. Families can enjoy spotting a fantastic range of water and wetland bird species that you would never see in your back garden at home.
Even at night, the canals are a hive of activity. You can relax in the evenings on board your boat, listen out for the plop of water voles, and watch wild bats skimming over the surface water catching moths.
Watch the sun go down on deck while enjoying your supper or playing cards with the family. A boating holiday is a great way to take a break from all your electronic gadgets, so leave the laptops and tablets at home, dust off an old family favourite board game, or take some bird-spotting books with you and make a diary of which birds you find.
The one major flaw of taking a package holiday is that it will only include the main tourist attractions that thousands of people visit every year. Most of these places have become very commercialised and have long lost their original authenticity.
However, when you take a canal boat holiday, you will be discovering the hidden gems that dot our inland waterways and have a unique charm all of their own. There are many excellent eating places close to the waterside, such as traditional old pubs and coach houses built to provide hospitality to working narrowboat people.
There are also miles of canal-side countryside to explore with traffic-free towpaths. There are some excellent places to stop off for a delightful picnic and a family game of cricket or rounders.
Why not check our availability to see when you can take your next canal boat short break with us. You are welcome to contact us to learn more about our boating holidays if this will be your first time as a captain of your own boat.
You should also be aware that we offer our Waterside Holiday Cottage for those who would rather keep their feet on dry land. This is also an excellent base for a family holiday where you can relax by the w