Boating along the Birmingham Canal Main Line

Using your boat as a base to explore the city's many sites is easy, as there are plenty of visitor moorings throughout the city centre. A Harbour Master works in the central area to assist boaters and deal with daily maintenance issues.

With no locks and a straight course, the canal is one of the few where you can actually expect to cruise at the 4mph speed limit. You can imagine how this comparatively advanced waterway must have speeded traffic in the 19th century.

The publication Exploring Birmingham & Black Country Canals by Boat, available from the Canal Information Centre (0121 632 6845), provides further detail about visiting the area by boat, full details of all visitor mooring facilities and some suggested itineraries.

All city centre moorings are close to public telephone, pubs and restaurants, tourist information centre and grocery shop. British Waterways' Birmingham City Centre visitor moorings include:

• Cambrian Wharf: 48 hour moorings. Refuse disposal, elsan disposal, water, toilets, shower (opening soon).

• Gas Street, Brindleyplace and Oozells Street Loop: 24 hour moorings.

• National Indoor Arena: 48 hour moorings.

• Holliday Wharf: 24 hour moorings. Refuse disposal, elsan disposal, toilets, water.

Please note that, in general, those moorings close to the main attractions offer shorter stay times and are especially busy during the school holidays. You also need to bear in mind that the closer you are to the attractions, the noisier things will be during the late evenings.

Privately operated visitor moorings include:

• Sherborne Wharf (0121 455 6163): Elsan disposal, refuse disposal, electricity, water, fuel, gas, pump out, chandlery, toilets, shower, crane, wet dock

• The Mailbox (0121 632 1000): 24 hour moorings. Water, toilets, shower.

Please contact individual private operators for further details about their sites, whether any charges apply and whether berths must be pre-booked.

For moorings outside the City Centre, the Black Country Living Museum in Dudley is a short distance off the New Main Line but is generally recognised as the best place to tie up between Birmingham and Wolverhampton.

British Waterways and a number of private operators have a variety of residential moorings in the Birmingham and Black Country area. Contact Nick Fazey on 0121 506 1300 for further details.

Bridge & lock opening times

Find detailed information on local services, moorings and stoppages by using the drop down menu on the left.