Beginners Welcome

We love to welcome beginners to the delights of the Inland Waterways; however, we do appreciate that our base at Apperley Bridge Marina is not the easiest of places to start your first ever canal holiday.

One unusual feature of the Leeds Liverpool Canal is Staircase Locks that open one into the next, and from our base at Apperley Bridge you will go up 5 sets of staircase locks, 2 sets of 2 rise, 2 sets of 3 rise and of course, the famous Bingley 5 Rise. The Bingley locks are the only manned locks on the route. So, whilst we do offer a fantastic one-way cruise that takes in the best of the Leeds Liverpool Canal, we appreciate that it can be intimidating for novice crews.

This is why we offer all our bearBOATERS the opportunity to have one of our RYA Instructors on board for the first two days of your holiday and incorporate the RYA Inland Waterways Training. The training covers all aspects of handling a canal boat – helming the boat, winding, springing off, locking up and down, swing bridges and much, much more. With the emphasis on team work as well as safety, everyone has an enjoyable two days that equip them with the confidence and knowledge to fully enjoy their holiday from beginning to end. Our Instructors leave you at the end of each day when you are safely moored and join you again the next morning.

For everyone hiring our boats we offer the two-day training at a much-reduced fee of £250 when incorporated with your holiday. This is for a maximum of 4 people and offers a potential saving of £950 as our standalone RYA courses are £300 per person. 

Please read this review on training with a holiday from the Ellison family.