Special celebration coming up? What better way to spend a day with your nearest and dearest than bobbing along on a boat? Tie up on a pretty river bank to enjoy your own picnic (plenty of room on board for cool boxes etc) or head for one of our riverside pubs.

No special celebration? Do it anyway! Taking one of our boats out for the day is a great adventure for kids of all ages, from working the locks, exploring the history of the river to spotting the wildlife (how many Kingfishers will you see?).

A typical day out would be from our yard at Byfleet, heading upstream (south) through three locks - Pyrford, Newark and Papercourt - for a pub lunch at the New Inn at Send or a picnic in that area, before turning around for the return back down. See the National Trust map of the Navigation for details.

Birthday Parties, Wedding Anniversaries, Family outings, treats for the grandchildren, or just a fun day out with a bunch of friends - a good time for everyone is all but guaranteed.

Our boats can accommodate up to 10 people with fixed fore and aft bench seats in the forward cabin with a table in the middle. They feature a small toilet, 2-burner hob & grill, kettle, fridge and washing-up facilites. There's plenty of space for coolboxes and picnic hampers. Please bring your own crockery and cutlery, food and drink.

Lifejackets are available on free-of-charge request, we have a wide range from toddler to adult.

More photos on our Gallery Page

SPRING/SUMMER/AUTUMN PRICING 2023

Availability: Most days of the year (even in winter for the bravest boaters)

Jan/Feb/Nov/Dec £200 flat rate up to 10 people

Hire period is either: 9am-5pm* or 10am-6pm*, subject to availability.
Late returns will incur additional charges (we like to go home too!).
* or sunset if earlier

Booking: Please telephone or visit in person to make your booking. A deposit payment of £100.00 secures your booking with the balance payable on the day. Balance payment may be by cash or debit card. An additional £100 cash security deposit (this is not an insurance waiver) against safe return of the boat and inventory or third party damage is required. Assuming all is good at the end of the day, and the boat is returned clean and on time, this will be returned.

Novice or expert? On your arrival, we will give you a comprehensive introduction to the boat and general safety procedures. This is then followed by hands-on tuition with escort and instruction to and through the first lock.

Hirers should click on the links below for our full Terms and Conditions, and for further information about boating and locks. Although we will go through these on the day, reading through them before hand would be an advantage.

The files are in .pdf format and require an appropriate reader. If you do not have one, Adobe Reader is available from get.adobe.com/uk/reader free of charge. Some 'built-in' readers within web browsers do not display these correctly. If so, <right click> on the link then save the document for off-line reading.

  Terms and Conditions of Hire for Dayboat

  General boating procedures

  Going through locks

Another useful document is: The National Trust Guide for Boaters

See our Contact/Map page for the location maps and the National Trust map of the Navigation.