Canal hire firms – Northern England & Scotland

Aire and Calder Navigation

East of Leeds the busy Aire and Calder Navigation links to a number of waterways, including the Calder & Hebble, Sheffield & South Yorkshire Navigation and the River Ouse, an increasingly popular cruising network.

Chesterfield Canal

The Chesterfield Canal is a long way from other narrow canals, so hiring a boat from a base on the canal, even if you have a boat of your own, can make a lot of sense! The you can relax on its 35 miles of meandering rural waterways.

Huddersfield Narrow Canal

Spend a week's hire boat holiday crossing the Pennines on the short and steep Huddersfield Narrow Canal, over glorious wild Pennine moorlands and under the highest, longest and deepest canal tunnel in the country.

Lancaster Canal

Choose a boat from a Lancaster Canal Hire firm and enjoy peaceful lock-free cruising through pleasant pasturelands, with views of the foothills of the Pennines, Morecambe Bay and the Lake District.

Leeds and Liverpool Canal

The Leeds and Liverpool Canal has a wide choice of hire firms along this long 127 mile canal. There are hire firms on both the Lancashire and Yorkshire side of the Pennines. Some firms hire narrow boats, some wide boats.

Rochdale Canal

Hiring a boat to cross the Rochdale Canal is wonderful experience for energetic boaters, especially as part of a 'Pennine Ring'. There are plenty of broad locks needed to climb up and over the Pennine hills.

River Trent & S&SYN

The River Trent is one of England's major rivers, navigable since Roman time, still carrying large commercial barges and well worth exploring. The semi tidal river below Cromwell Lock needs care and special equipment.

Scottish Lowland Canals

Hire a boat on the Scottish Lowland Canals , the Forth & Clyde Canal & the Union Canal, opens up waterways from Glasgow to Edinburgh, the Rivers Forth to the Clyde, plus the stunning Falkirk wheel