Our Snarestone and return canal boat holiday is an easy route that is great for first timers as it contains only a few locks and runs through rural England.

Your journey begins at the head of the Oxford Canal before joining the Grand Union Canal, the longest in the UK, at the busy junction of Braunston.

Braunston village has several sights of interest, including the All Saints Church and Braunston Manor, two beautiful buildings within a tranquil countryside setting. After visiting these, you could take a look at the village’s old windmill before settling down in one of its cosy pubs.

Once you have resumed your journey, you will turn up the North Oxford Canal into narrow locks near Rugby at Hillmorton.

Head in to Rugby and you will find statues of the war poet Rupert Brooke, the author Thomas Hughes and the man usually credited with inventing the sport of Rugby Football – William Web Ellis. If you’re a fan of the sport you can visit the Rugby Football Museum.

After Rugby, you will move on to Hawkesbury, where you’ll find the lock with the smallest lift on the system at only six inches!

Finally, you coast down the lock-free and rural Ashby Canal, a very quiet and extremely peaceful journey with few boats to disturb you. The canal was once an important part of the local mining industry, but now exists as a calm cruise area with beautiful views.

All routes from this base