You are here:

News

Record visitor levels announced for canal network

15th Mar 2010

Record visitor numbers highlight waterways as the perfect location for a staycation.

As British Tourism Week gets underway, record visitor levels have been announced for the nation’s 200 year-old canal network. Last year the number of adults visiting an inland waterway topped 13 million.

This illustrates a turnaround in fortunes which has seen canal restorations grow the network by 10% and the number of canal boats increase by over 40% since the turn of the century.

British Waterways is using British Tourism Week to encourage visitors to slow down, relax and experience a different pace of life alongside the UK’s canals and rivers.

Experience life in the slow lane

With the economic climate continuing to bite, Britain’s waterways offer a host of attractions for people aiming to save cash by 'staycationing', from eye-popping achievements of industrial engineering such as the UK’s latest World Heritage Site Pontcysyllte Aqueduct to modern wonders of the waterways like The Falkirk Wheel.

There are activities for everyone to enjoy: canoeing down rivers; wildlife spotting from the helm of a narrowboat or enjoying a pint at one of the hundreds of waterside pubs across the network.

Originally used to transport goods and materials, canals offer a different viewpoint, cutting through our countryside and travelling through the hearts of many towns. They offer excellent flat walking and cycling routes, where people can get an insight into Britain’s industrial past.

Canals could move into new 'national trust'

Tourism and leisure have been crucial ingredients in the renaissance of Britain’s canals and rivers and will be likely to play a growing role if the network is moved into a proposed new ‘national trust for the waterways’.

The boating holiday season lasts from Easter to October with boaters coming from across the UK and abroad to enjoy peace and quiet, the scenery and the tranquil pleasures of life afloat.

Fast canal facts

• Last year, 13.1 million adults visited British Waterways’ 2,200 miles of canals and rivers

• Boaters come from far and wide: the top countries for canal tourists are Australia, New Zealand, Denmark, the USA and Canada

• Birmingham has more miles of canals than Venice

• Britain’s longest canal is the Grand Union Canal – at 137 miles it stretches from London to Birmingham

• The first canal of the industrial age was the St Helen’s Canal of 1757, closely followed in 1761 by the famous Bridgewater Canal, built by the enterprising Duke of Bridgewater to carry coal from his mines at Worsely to the markets of Manchester

• The Caledonian Canal boasts the Loch Ness monster whilst the Shropshire Union Canal is probably Britain’s spookiest with a reported five ghosts along its length

• There is the equivalent of 1.4 billion bath tubs of water in British Waterways’ canal network

• There are more boats on the canal network today than at the height of the Industrial Revolution

• The Kennet & Avon Canal was the vital second line of defence after the English Channel during World War II

• The Falkirk Wheel appears on the Scottish £50 note

• 91% of people say that waterways are an important part of the nation’s heritage

Last updated: 18/03/2010

We'd love to hear your comments on this article, but please ensure they meet our guidelines. We reserve the right to remove all or part of a comment before or after publication.