Napton Narrowboats

Napton Narrowboats Napton Marina
Tomlow Road
Stockton
Southam
CV47 8HX

01926 813 644

As well as being a hire boat base, Napton Marina also have private, offline moorings available. When not servicing / pre...
05/06/2026

As well as being a hire boat base, Napton Marina also have private, offline moorings available. When not servicing / preparing hire boats on the three turnaround days each week, our engineers work on private boats and maintaining the marina.

Tuesday this week saw two of our staff working on replacing one of the jetties on the private moorings. First they ripped up the old decking slats, then as required they will drive new poles into the bed of the marina, and fix supporting timbers down the sides. Finally, new decking will be attached on top and mooring cleats re-fitted.

There’s always something to do at Napton Narrowboats. If you’re looking for somewhere to moor your boat, why not contact us to find out more? You can also get some information at napton-marina.co.uk/services/moorings.php

A popular route many of our customers take from our Autherley Base is the Shropshire Union canal to Nantwich and back.Wi...
29/05/2026

A popular route many of our customers take from our Autherley Base is the Shropshire Union canal to Nantwich and back.

With 56 locks in total and 78 miles of boating, this is a comfortable weeks cruising through the beautiful countryside of Staffordshire, Shropshire & Cheshire. Being built towards the end of the canal building era, newer techniques allowed for deep cuttings and majestic embankments as it wends it’s way Northwards from Autherley Junction.

Charming villages along the route provide handy stops for replenishment and refreshment in the shops and pubs. The locks are generally gathered in flights on this canal, making for energetic interludes between long relaxing miles cruising along the canal.

Lots of history along the route may tempt you to visit a few places of interest on the way, from the historic town of Nantwich, with origins dating to Roman times, up to the “Secret” Nuclear bunker at Hack Green, which played a central role in the defence of Britain for almost sixty years.

To find out more, visit napton-marina.co.uk/routes/Nantwich where you can also book your own adventure along this or many other routes available from our two bases.

Well the weather forecast for this weekend is looking glorious! Sunshine and temperatures of 26 / 27 degrees Celsius. We...
22/05/2026

Well the weather forecast for this weekend is looking glorious! Sunshine and temperatures of 26 / 27 degrees Celsius. We’re going to be very busy, with lots of hirers taking a boat out to make the most of the Bank Holiday break.

Many of the people coming are having their first experience on a Narrowboat holiday, and we will be ensuring they set off on their break happy in their ability to drive the boat and work the locks.

Every customer gets comprehensive one-to-one instructions as part of the handover procedure, tailored to your level of experience. If you’re an old hand at Narrowboating, you’ll get shown how the boat and its equipment works, with perhaps a brief refresher on boat handling before you’re on your way.

If you’ve never done it before, you’ll also receive tuition on boat handling and how to work the locks. You’ll soon be setting off to enjoy your holiday, confident with your newly-learned skills.

Our website at napton-marina.co.uk has lots of information, and online booking, or if you have any questions you can always call us on 01926 813644.

Those who have been following us a while may remember us introducing our new boat shell back in November 2025. As a comp...
15/05/2026

Those who have been following us a while may remember us introducing our new boat shell back in November 2025. As a completely empty hull (bar the framing and floor) it had a long way to go before being ready for our customers in 2026.

Our next update was in March this year, where you could see everything taking shape into a recognisable layout: Cabin walls, bed bases and kitchen layouts.

But after a great effort by the team here at Napton Narrowboats, Michelle was finished in time for her first hire last week. She certainly looks very different to how she was back in November!

If you too want to enjoy your own holiday on Michelle, you can find out more and book your break at napton-marina.co.uk/boats/regency/regency_8

This week we found ourselves at the mercy of our Internet connection: An outage meant we were unable to answer our phone...
08/05/2026

This week we found ourselves at the mercy of our Internet connection: An outage meant we were unable to answer our phones or reply to any emails for the afternoon.

Such reliance on the trappings of the modern age reminded us how nice it can be just to get out on a boat, even for a short time, and switch off from the 100 mile-an-hour, 9-to-5 bustle. Pootling along at walking pace, listening to the sounds of the countryside, spending time with friends and family. Mooring for the night in a rural village, strolling to the pub for a cool pint.

Sometimes we need that time to decompress, to reconnect with our loved ones, ourselves and the world around us: Turning off the tech (or at least, reducing its use!) can be the nudge we need to do so. A holiday on one our boats is the ideal opportunity to find that space.

Of course, this doesn’t mean slumming it! Our boats have all the comforts you deserve, from linen-draped king sized beds, proper flushing loos, fully equipped kitchens with microwaves, coffee makers etc. And if you really can’t tear yourself from your tech, free onboard Wifi!

As we waited for updates from our ISP, and for the phones to start ringing again, at least we had plenty to do around the boatyard, and a glorious day to do it. And our customers out on the boats could be assured we were always contactable via our emergency mobile phone, should they need to.

Find your escape at napton-marina.co.uk

A common benefit of your canal holiday, it seems, is the number of canal side pubs available to you. 🍺Often built to sla...
01/05/2026

A common benefit of your canal holiday, it seems, is the number of canal side pubs available to you. 🍺

Often built to slake the thirst of the ‘Navvies’ that built the canals, and then the working boatmen who came after, their legacy is the canal-side hostelries that now serve cool drinks on a summer’s afternoon, or delicious meals at the end of a hard day’s relaxing on your boat.

The route guides on our website (napton-marina.co.uk/routes) give details of many of these, with map links giving the best route if they’re just a short walk from the towpath. Links to their websites / pages, and contact details allow you to plan / book ahead if you wish.

The one we’re featuring this week is just a short way from Napton Marina, and can make an ideal stop for your first night after leaving our base.

“The Blue Lias”, or as it as recently become known “Fat Bobs at the Blue Lias”. Originally a farmhouse, the building became a pub in 1790, just before the canal opened.

Late last year, after 40 years in the same family, it was taken over and refurbished and is now a Classic Vehicle themed pub, with lots of memorabilia and ever-changing exhibits of cars and bikes.

Of course, it is still a pub / restaurant, offering food and drinks, a canal-side beer garden and at the weekend, the ‘pit stop’ cafe offers cooked breakfasts.

Why not give yourself a break on one of our boats, and give Fat Bobs at The Blue Lias a visit as one of your stops?

Family Friendly Holidays - Pocket Friendly Prices.We would like to offer you 15% off July and August holidays across all...
24/04/2026

Family Friendly Holidays - Pocket Friendly Prices.

We would like to offer you 15% off July and August holidays across all our boats.

Offer available until the end of May - more details at napton-marina.co.uk/15OFF

If you take one of our boats down the Southern Stratford Canal (heading for the delightful town of Stratford-Upon-Avon),...
17/04/2026

If you take one of our boats down the Southern Stratford Canal (heading for the delightful town of Stratford-Upon-Avon), you’ll cross over the Edstone Aqueduct, a marvel of early 19th century engineering.

About 33 feet in the air, you’ll cruise over England’s longest cast iron aqueduct, passing over a railway line and road below. Unusually, the towpath beside the trough sits level with the base of the canal, giving passing walkers a duck’s eye view of the boats beside them.

At 475 feet long, and over 200 years old (though regularly maintained!), it is one of the wonders of the waterways you can experience when you hire a boat from us at Napton Narrowboats.

Find more about the route and book your holiday at napton-marina.co.uk/routes/Stratford

We're pleased to see that the Canal and River Trust have announced plans to reopen Penkridge lock on the 17th April at 1...
13/04/2026

We're pleased to see that the Canal and River Trust have announced plans to reopen Penkridge lock on the 17th April at 17:00

(If you wish to travel this way, please confirm it has reopened as scheduled at https://tinyurl.com/2cr63ode)

This will open up routes from our Autherley base up the Staffordshire & Worcestershire canal, which include our popular:

Four Counties Ring (napton-marina.co.uk/routes/FourCountiesRing)

Staffs & Worcs North (napton-marina.co.uk/routes/Staffs&WorcsNorth)

Back Country Ring (napton-marina.co.uk/routes/BlackCountryRing)

Address

Napton Marina, Tomlow Road
Napton On The Hill
CV478HX

Opening Hours

Monday 8:30am - 5pm
Tuesday 8:30am - 5pm
Wednesday 8:30am - 5pm
Thursday 8:30am - 5pm
Friday 8:30am - 5pm
Saturday 8:30am - 5pm

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