From rural retreats to vibrant city centres, narrowboat holiday-makers can use their boat as a floating holiday home to explore Britain's beautiful 3,000-mile network of inland waterways, with the choice of hundreds of waterside destinations and historic canalside pubs to visit along the way. 

Drifters Waterway Holidays (drifters.co.uk) offers over 550 boats for hire from 45 locations across England, Scotland and Wales.  2022 hire prices start at £550 for a short break (three or four nights) on a boat for four, £760 for a week.  Tuition is included in all Drifters holiday packages.

Here are Drifters' Top 10 canal boat holidays for 2022:

1. Cruise to historic Shardlow – in Spring 2022, Drifters will open a new narrowboat hire base at Springwood Haven Marina on the Coventry Canal in Nuneaton. On a week's break from Springwood Haven, boaters can travel to the historic inland port of Shardlow and back.  The journey passes through Atherstone, past Alvecote nature reserve, across the Tame Aqueduct, through Fradley Junction, Alrewas, Barton-under-Needwood, Branston and Burton-on-Trent, home of the National Brewery Centre. At Shardlow there are over 50 listed buildings, including the Salt Warehouse, housing Shardlow Heritage Centre.  The journey there and back passes through 58 locks and takes around 49 cruising hours.
2. Visit the UNESCO World Heritage City of Bath - on a short break from Drifters' base at Devizes in Wiltshire, boaters can travel along the Kennet & Avon Canal to reach moorings at Sydney Wharf, on the edge of Bath City Centre. The journey travels 19 miles, passing through eight locks and takes around nine hours.  Along the way, the route passes through the village of Seend with its canalside Barge Inn, and the historic town of Bradford on Avon, with a choice of independent shops and restaurants.  The route also takes boaters over the beautiful Avoncliff and Dundas Bath stone aqueducts.  Once at Sydney Wharf, boaters can moor up and take a 15-minute walk into Bath City Centre. 
3. Navigate to Manchester and back – on a week's break from Drifters' narrowboat hire base at Acton Bridge, narrowboat holiday-makers can cruise to Manchester and back, enjoying time in the countryside as well as well as the City. The route, which travels a total of 68 miles of waterway (34 each way) passes through just one lock.  Places to stop off at along the way, include Stockton Heath, with a choice of shops, boutiques, restaurants and pubs, as well as the historic village of Lymm.  On arrival in Manchester, there are places to moor at Castlefield Basin, within easy reach of City Centre attractions. And to visit the Trafford Centre, boaters can return via Worsley on the Bridgewater Canal.
4. Visit Warwick Castle afloat – from Drifters' canal boat hire base at Stockton, on the Grand Union Canal in Warwickshire, boaters can cruise to Warwick and back. The journey there and back takes around 14 hours, and passes through 40 locks (20 each way).  Overnight moorings are available close to Warwick Castle on the banks of the River Avon.
5. Potter through the Shropshire countryside to Market Drayton – from Drifters' 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 just six locks and a series of villages with canalside pubs, including the Junction Inn at Norbury and the Royal Oak at Gnosnall. 
6. Cruise along the Shropshire Union Canal to Norbury – from Drifters narrowboat hire base at Autherley, on a short break canal boat holiday-makers can cruise along the Shropshire Union Canal to Autherley and back. This rural route, perfect for beginners, takes boaters through 15 miles of peaceful countryside.  It passes through just two locks and a series of pretty villages with canalside pubs, including the Bridge Inn at Brewood and the Hartley Arms at Wheaton Ashton.
7. Watch out for wildlife on the Ashby Canal – on a week's holiday from Drifters canal boat hire base at Braunston, canal boat holiday-makers can cruise to the pretty village of Snarestone and back, travelling a total of 47 miles, passing through just eight locks (four each way) in around 32 hours. This largely rural route takes boaters up the North Oxford Canal to Rugby and on to Hawkesbury Junction to join the Coventry Canal.  Five miles later, the route transfers onto the lock-free Ashbury Canal, which winds gently through countryside for 22 miles.  From Carlton Bridge to Snarestone, the canal is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), recognising the diversity of its plant, insect and animal life, including nine species of dragonfly, and rare native white-clawed crayfish. 
8. Float across 'The Stream in the Sky' - from Drifters' base at Trevor on the beautiful Llangollen Canal in North Wales, the awesome UNESCO World Heritage Status Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and historic Ellesmere in the heart of the Shropshire Lake District, can be reached on a short break. Standing 38 metres high above the Dee Valley, the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct carries the canal in a cast iron trough, supported by 19 enormous hollow pillars.  With not even a hand rail on the south side of the aqueduct to obscure the stunning views of the valley below, canal boaters literally feel like they are floating above the earth.
9. Cruise to Todmorden for stunning Pennine scenery - on a short break (three or four nights) from Drifters' base at Sowerby Bridge, canal boat holiday-makers can travel to Todmorden and back along the Rochdale Canal. The journey, which travels a total of 20 miles, passes through 34 locks and takes around 16 hours. The historic town of Todmorden offers visitors fine Victorian architecture, plenty of pubs and restaurants, and a busy market.  Along the way, boaters pass through the beautiful Calder Valley village of Mytholmroyd, the birthplace of Ted Hughes, and the old mill town of Hebden Bridge, with a variety of shops, cafes, restaurants and pubs and a series of scenic waymarked walks. 
10. Travel round the Avon Ring - on a two week break from Drifters' base at Tardebigge, narrowboat holiday-makers can travel round the popular Avon Ring.  The route covers a distance of 108 miles, passes through 130 locks.  It takes in sections of the Stratford Canal, Worcester & Birmingham Canal, River Severn and River Avon.  It passes through dozens of towns and villages, including Tewskesbury, Pershore, Evesham, Stratford upon Avon, Lapworth and Alvechurch.

For more information about Drifters boating holidays call 0344 984 0322 or visit www.drifters.co.uk. 

For information about visiting the canal network go to www.canalrivertrust.org.uk

ENDS

For Drifters press enquiries & images, contact Debbie Walker on 01628 318069 mb 077486 40577 walker.debbie@sky.com 

Notes to editors

Drifters Waterway Holidays is made up of nine hire boat companies: ABC Boat Hire, Anglo Welsh, Black Prince, Countrywide Cruisers, Foxhangers, Kate Boats, Napton Narrowboats, Shire Cruisers and Union Canal Carriers.  Between them they offer over 550 boats for hire, operating from 45 bases across England, Scotland and Wales.  Narrowboats range from 32ft to 70ft and can accommodate up to 12 people.  www.drifters.co.uk Tel 0344 984 0322.