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Shire Cruisers reviews 2014

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  • Experience

     

    "Climb up to summit level & down other side very rugged & harsh, weather didn't help (sleet & heavy rain) but enjoyed the challenge, very rewarding. Walkers / cyclists / other boaters all friendly & helpful without exception. Had great time.." - Mr Schofield, Buckingham (March)

    "Everyone very friendly and helpful. Lots of places to eat and wander around." - Mr Barnett, Devon (March)

    "Loved Hebden Bridge as very cosmopolitan." - Mr Sleet, Norfolk (April)

    "Hebden Bridge fantastic - everything about it. Nice people, nice pubs." - Mr Swan, Norfolk (April)

    "We palled up with another couple which made operating the locks easier. Everyone on the canals very friendly & helpful." - Mrs Cooper, Cambridge (April)

    "We enjoyed mix of town & countryside, and Hebden Bridge was an interesting town to walk about." - Mrs Hardman, Oxford (April)

    "Scenery great - especially beyond Walsden. Moored by Lock 32 - walked to Summit." - Mr Galley, Cambridge

    "The scenery was beautiful as you reached the summit. Met some really friendly people while we were doing the locks." - Mrs Owen, Buckingham

    "The walk from Hebden Bridge to Heptonstall going up the Buttress, steeped in history, the oldest Methodist Church still in use, the unique shape of being Hexagon. Lovely coffee shop and information museum, the locals very friendly." - Ms Chandler, Oxford

    "Canal community friendly & helpful. Staff (particularly Richard) very helpful. Ate at Masons Arms, Gargrave - also Dalesman Café (good) and Cross Keys, East Marton. Great scenery & wildlife." - Ms Varley, Somerset

    "Scenery throughout was varied & more rural than we anticipated. The vast majority of people were delightful. (Rochdale Canal through to Ashton)" - Mrs Ridehalgh, Cornwall

    "Scenery very good & varied, met several owner Boat people who we travelled several days with." - Mr Clarke, Sussex

    "Skipton Castle, East Riddlesden Hall. Great wildlife - hares, curlews, oystercatchers, kingfishers. Moored away from it all. Nice steak at Salterforth Anchor. Glad we brought full waterproofs!" - Mrs Crutchley, Warwick (Barnoldswick)

    "Thank you for running this excellent business, could not have had this perfect adventure holiday without you." - Mrs Wood, Sussex

    " The scenery was an interesting mix of rural, town & industrial - past & present." - Mr Green, Norfolk

    "Wonderful treescape, friendly people and Waterway staff. Good pubs with real ale. Hebden Bridge is a brilliant town. We did a circular walk via Heptonstall." - Mr Dunn, Worcester

    "Fantastic scenery - especially the industrial. Autumnal colours are the reason for coming at this time of year. People very friendly especially the people watching at the locks." - Miss Harkin, Westmorland

    "Great scenery with amazing history to take in. Food was great at lots of different venues. " - Mr Redfearn, Northumberland

    Food & drink

    " First we wish to say many thanks for another wonderful holiday aboard Warwick. We really enjoyed a very relaxing trip, from Sowerby Bridge to Barnoldswick. I have attached a few pub type eating places we visited during our trip.
    The Fleece Inn, Westgate, Elland. Warm welcome, excellent food and Marstons Beers.
    The Ruddy Duck, Wakefield Waterfront. Modern Pub, good menu and Marstons Beers.
    The George and Dragon, Apperley Bridge, Friendly, good food and a Free House.
    The Bayhorse, canal side, near Skipton. Good service, very good food.
    I hope these may be of some help to other boaters. Best Wishes, Kind Regards "
    - Marion and John Gregory, Warwick

    "The Weavers, Luddenden Foot - great pizzas!
    Highly recommend Grandma Pollards - awesome pies and pastries."
    - Mr Sleet, Norfolk

    "Enjoyable meal in La Perla Italian restaurant - pianist superb!!!" - Mr Swan, Norfolk (April)

    "Good food: Shoulder of Mutton, Mytholmroyd; White Hart, Todmorden; White Lion, Hebden Bridge; Moonlight Indian, Luddenden Foot." - Mrs Lawrence, Devon (April)

    "The Stubbing Wharf PH provided us with a superb meal and well done to the licensee for accommodating a party of ten at very short notice.." - Mrs Hardman, Oxford (April)

    "Walked out of the centre (Hebden Bridge) and found Fox & Goose - great little pub." - Mrs Poole, Devon

    "The Moorings -had lunch when we arrived - was good." - Ms Watson, Cambridge

    "Weavers Arms for meal - very good." - Mr Galley, Cambridge

    "Tried Calico Jacks in Skipton, and it was surprisingly good - both in food & value. Also the Living Room in Leeds was great for food." - Mr Dyke, Dorset

    "Lily's Indian veg restaurant @ Ashton (Oldham Rd) highly recommended (Left @ Asda & past Lidl)." - Mr Johnstone, Cornwall

    "Enjoyed meals in 'The Old Brandy Wine' & The Summit." - Mr McGuinness, Worcester

    "Baking tray and Yorkshire pudding tins missing, after all it's Yorkshire & frozen puddings should be banned." - Lisa, Oxford

    "Duke of York pub in Romiley on Peak Forest: exceptional service and top food." - Mrs Ashmead, Sussex

    "Recommend café at Brownhill Countryside Centre - outstanding value. San Vito in Huddersfield v. nice." - Mr Lloyd, Cornwall

    "Gargrave Indian was great." - Mr Bainbridge, Somerset

    "We liked: the White Hart at Todmorden, Wine Press at Hollingworth Lake, La Perla Italian Restaurant, Hebden Bridge." - Mr Rolliston, Stafford

    "Sat night glam rock band Weavers pub Luddenden Foot. Old Gate pub Hebden Bridge. Lamppost Café Hebden Bridge v good for dogs & people. Stubbing pub - v good." - Mr Atherton, Worcester

    Service

    "Very helpful & friendly. Excellent service!!" - Mr Schofield, Buckingham

    "No assistance needed. Excellent holiday - we will be back." - Mr Kemp-Crawford, Devon

    "100% & yes we did require assistance at one point (unfortunately) & very helpful & prompt." - Mr Swan, Norfolk

    "Very helpful - couldn't have asked for more." - Mrs Cooper, Cambridge

    "Sorry for the scrawl - 1st thing Friday morning - very cold but mist on canal lovely!" - Mrs Lawrence, Devon

    "We liked the relaxed way by which all your staff got us under way and on our return to the Shires basin. And thanks to the young chap (Will) who briefed us on the best way to enjoy the use of the boat etc." - Mrs Hardman, Oxford

    "When we arrived Lady was very polite & helpful, the guy who explained everything did so perfectly and was awesome when he showed us the locks." - Ms Watson, Cambridge

    "Really friendly Dave & Julie - lovely who helped us through the 1st 3 locks." - Mrs Owen, Buckingham

    "All your advice at the start gave us the confidence to figure things out." - Mrs Wood, Sussex

    "So kind in helping us learn the basics. We are sure to come again. Just not long enough!" - Karen, Oxford

    "A rope got caught around the propeller. Despite hours with the boat’s Junior hack-saw and the assistance and suggestions from the ‘gang of 4’ on the boat with whom we were buddying through the locks, we could not remove the rope. Within an hour Sir Galahad, in the form of Nigel, arrived and removed a piece of rope that could have tied up the QE2." - Mrs Faraday, Worcester

    "Great level of service and definitely consider using you again on our next trip. Thank you." - Mr & Mrs Ryan, Buckingham

    Information Pack

    "Very useful, covered all aspects." - Mr Schofield, Buckingham

    "Very useful in planning our route, what we needed to bring and amenities along the way." - Mr Barnett, Devon

    "Helped greatly - put a few concerns to rest." - Mr Sleet, Norfolk

    "Really good. We read it, watched the DVD and were well prepared, we thought, and we now know we were." - Mrs Poole, Devon

    "This was great. The Route Guide and other useful information was the best of our 4 hires so far." - Mr Thorn, Stafford (USA)

    "It gave a good insight about what to expect & was useful on the trip (especially the Route Companion)." - Mrs Ridehalgh, Cornwall

    "The Info Pack was excellent and we loved your sense of humour! (I forgot my hair straighteners so cannot confirm if they worked on the boat.)" - Mrs Faraday, Worcester

    "Very useful as we hadn't been on a canal boat before & weren't sure how locks worked." - Mr Bainbridge, Somerset

    "Really good - loads of info - DVD very helpful - could've done with it for our first holiday! Lots of info on the boat in the pack in case we were stuck." - Ms Allison, Leicester

    "Again, extremely, useful. We sent the info pack to three different addresses (Chicago, Minneapolis, Oxford UK) so everyone was familiar with the boat and canals. We all benefited from the information." - Mr Donovan, Buckingham

    "Very useful and written in humorous and helpful manner." - Mr & Mrs Everitt, Cambridge

    "Read through & watched DVD, all good covered all aspects. On board info covers EVERYTHING: very impressed." - Mr Tollick, Sussex

    Handover

    "Will was brilliant at helping us before we left. Many thanks to him and team for making the holiday even better." - Mr Barnett, Devon

    "Very comprehensive, could not fault it." - Mr Schofield, Buckingham

    "Couldn't fault - especially our guide (Thomas) who took us through the first 3 locks." - Mr Sleet, Norfolk

    "Given it was our first time on a narrow boat, the briefing was vital and clearly explained. Getting us thro' the first three locks gave us much needed confidence. The lock keeper at Tuel Lane (3/4) was very friendly & helpful." - Mrs Hardman, Oxford

    "Excellent - we felt more confident. Simon was good & patient." - Mr Galley, Cambridge

    "Josh was very friendly and helpful." - Mr Gilbey, Stafford

    "Brilliant down to earth. A credit to the company. Told us and showed us everything we needed to know and we got your boat back in one piece after our maiden voyage. Brilliant *****" - Lisa, Oxford

    "Susan gave an excellent overview of the route & what to expect. Tom was very articulate & knowledgeable with an encouraging manner." - Mrs Ridehalgh, Cornwall

    "v good thnx Nigel good teacher before the off." - Mr Brakewell, Rutland (Australia)

    "The young man (Tom) was so very good. Put us at our ease and went through everything clearly." - Mrs Chappell, Norfolk

    "Very good briefing (Nigel) - best & most thorough of all firms we have hired from." - Mr Stockwell, Dorset (New Zealand)

    "Excellent. Especially 'Tom' who did our training and took us through the first 3 locks." - Mr Bielby, Susssex

    "Excellent - Josh was thorough, friendly & very helpful & a real credit to the Company." - Mr Foad, Stafford

    "Simon was very informative & gave great clear instructions. We had all the info we needed!" - Mr Row, Worcester

    "Handover briefing very good and we appreciated the help at Greenberfield Locks, was a good way to get the correct advice and learn how to do them safely." - Mr Forster, Warwick

    "Very good - knowledgeable, patient & helpful staff didn't rush us & explained & demonstrated well & only let us go when they were 100% happy we were OK." - Ms Allison, Leicester

    "Richard and Julie were great. Welcoming and patient and good sports. They made us feel at ease as first time boaters." - Ms Macdonald, Warwick

    "The gentleman (Simon) who did our handover was precise, polite, and had a calm attitude. He is a credit to your team." - Ms O'Brien, Oxford

    "Nigel was amazing! So much info, clearly explained in very short time. Lock tuition great (lockkeeper commented on how well we'd been taught!)." - Mr & Mrs Marshall, Warwick

    "Full and comprehensive. Best experienced over 6+ boating holidays." - Mr & Mrs Everitt, Cambridge

Check availability

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Boats

Boat Name Berths Route Type
Devon 2 Short Break
Oxford 2 Short Break
Cambridge 2 Short Break
Norfolk 2 + 2 Short Break
Leicester 4 + 2 Short Break
Hereford 4 + 1 Short Break
Sussex 6 + 2 Short Break
Northumberland 6 + 4 Short Break
Westmorland 6 + 4 Short Break
Stafford 2 + 2 Out & Back
Worcester 4 + 1 Out & Back
Buckingham 4 + 2 Out & Back
Warwick 2 + 1 Leeds & Liverpool
Somerset 4 + 2 Leeds & Liverpool
Dorset 4 + 2 One way
Gloucester 4 + 2 One way
Cornwall 4 + 2 One way