Historic sites to visit on your canal boat holiday

There’s a great choice of stately homes and historic sites to visit on a narrowboat holiday in England and Wales

One of the joys of a canal boat holiday is the feeling that you’ve escaped the rush of modern life and stepped back in time. The canals themselves and landscapes and cities they pass are all steeped in history and heritage, so offer the chance to immerse yourself in the past.

There is such a varied range of stunning manor houses, stately homes and other famous sights lining our inland waterways, you’ll be spoilt for choice.

Here are just a few of our favourite historic properties, most of them within walking distance of the canals.

Blenheim Palace, Woodstock, Oxfordshire

Nearest waterways: Oxford Canal and the River Thames

Nearest narrowboat hire base: Oxford

Arguably the most famous stately home in the UK after the royal residences, Blenheim Palace is worth a visit. The World Heritage property displays a level of grandeur that wows all 900,000 visitors that pass through its ornate rooms each year. Built between 1705 and 1722 in ‘English Baroque’ style, Blenheim remains the principle residence of the Dukes of Marlborough and was the birthplace and ancestral home of Winston Churchill. As well as housing incredible artworks, antiques and interiors, the palace sits at the centre of stunning Capability Brown gardens and 2,000 acres of beautiful park land criss-crossed by idyllic walks.

Prior Park landscape gardens, Bath, Somerset

Nearest waterways: Kennet & Avon Canal and the River Avon

Nearest narrowboat hire base: Bath

While the stunning Grade I Palladian style property has now been converted into a school, its exterior and landscaped grounds can be still be admired by visitors. Built for Bath entrepreneur and philanthropist Ralph Allen in the 1730s and 40s, Prior Park sits at the top of a hill with sweeping views down over Bath’s beautiful city centre. Its Capability Brown gardens, bordered by woodland, feature one of only four Palladian bridges in the world. Now owned and run by the National Trust, take a short break from canal life to catch a bus up the hill to the entrance then enjoy a walk back down through the grounds to the city centre.

Westwood Manor, Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire

Nearest waterways: Kennet & Avon Canal

Nearest narrowboat hire base: Bradford on Avon

This beautiful manor house was built over 300 years with the original property constructed in the 15th century then added to in the 16th and 17th centuries meaning it offers a unique combination of architectural and interior styles. There are late Gothic and Jacobean windows alongside decorative plasterwork, tapestries and antique furnishing. The former home of Edgar Lister, a diplomat at the Ottoman court in the early years of the 20th century, also boasts an impressive topiary garden. Walking distance from the canal, Westwood is worth a quick stop off during your canal boat holiday.

Adlington Hall, Adlington, Cheshire

Nearest waterways: Macclesfield Canal

Nearest narrowboat hire base: Bunbury

One of the most beautiful country houses in England, Adlington Hall has been home to the Legh family since 1315. The current property, built on the site of a Saxon hunting lodge, dates from 1480 when the Great Hall was erected using two great oak trees, still standing at one end of the room today. The building was expanded in the 1740s into a grander Georgian house. It still houses a 17th century organ played by Handel, alongside rich collection of antiques and artwork. The 60 acre gardens feature a yew maze, rose garden, Regency rockery and a Rococo styled landscape garden containing the T’Ing House, a Pagoda bridge and the Temple to Diana.

Little Moreton Hall, Congleton, Cheshire

Nearest waterways: Macclesfield Canal and the Trent & Mersey Canal

Nearest narrowboat hire base: Bunbury and Great Haywood

This iconic Tudor manor house looks like it has jumped straight out of a children’s fairy story. The higgledy piggledy timber framed building has been perched, defying gravity, next to its moat for more than 500 years. Now run by the National Trust, the earliest parts of the house were built for the prosperous Cheshire landowner William Moreton in about 1504-08, and the remainder was constructed in stages by successive generations of the family until about 1610. Nestled at the back of the building is a beautifully maintained knot garden and herbs and vegetables that would have been used in Tudor cooking. Visitors to the hall can learn about Tudor cuisine and other aspects of their everyday life and culture.

Shugborough Hall, Milford, Staffordshire

Nearest waterway: Trent & Mersey Canal

Nearest narrowboat hire base: Great Haywood

Home to the Anson family since 1610, this beautiful colonnaded Georgian mansion, is surrounded by miles of undulating parkland and ancient woodland adorned with monuments. Visitors can admire the rich interiors and furnishings of the state rooms and living quarters of former owner of Patrick Anson, 5th Earl of Lichfield, then head ‘below stairs’ for a peek into the servants’ rooms. Explore the formal gardens and rambling parkland before popping along to Park Farm to meet the Tamworth pigs and other creatures great and small. You can cruise right past Shugborough’s grounds depending on your canal boat holiday route.

Wightwick Manor, Wightwick Bank, Staffordshire

Nearest waterway: Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal

Nearest narrowboat hire base: Great Haywood

This Victorian timber framed manor is home to an impressive Pre-Raphaelite art collection, including works by Bryne-Jones, Rossetti and Everett Millais. Its former owner Theodore Mander decorated the interiors with the designs of William Morris and his Arts and Crafts contemporaries, so the house now stands as a perfectly preserved relic of this era of design and one family’s passion for art. Now run by the National Trust, visitors can also enjoy a ramble around the 17 acres of gardens and woodland that surrounds the house before heading to the tearoom or second hand bookshop.

East Riddlesden Hall, Keighley, West Yorkshire

Nearest waterway: Leeds & Liverpool Canal

Nearest canal boat hire base: Silsden

This 17th century manor house once sat at the heart of a thriving farming estate, and today tells the tale of the rise and fall of those who lived and worked there. Built in 1642 by James Murgatroyd, who made his fortune in the Halifax cloth industry, the impressive property sits on a plateau overlooking the River Aire and the canal.  It’s surrounded by stunning grounds, including a walled garden and medieval tithe barn. East Riddlesden Hall is a popular filming location having been used in Wuthering Heights and Sharpe. A perfect place to moor up during a narrowboat holiday from Silsden.

Brynkinalt, Chirk, Denbighshire

Nearest waterway: Llangollen Canal

Nearest narrowboat hire base: Trevor

The ancestral estate of the Trevor family since 942, the Brynkinalt estate sits amid the beautiful green hills on the Wales-Shropshire border. At the heart of the estate sites the Grade II* hall built in 1612 using red brick cut onsite.  It was extensively revamped with Gothic elements in the early 19th century, but still features the original Jacobean oak panelled Hall. The property is surrounded by stunning formal gardens including a walled garden, park and woodland with a number of gate lodges and follies. The family welcome visitors but this must be arranged by booking in advance. Tours are conducted by members of the family.

Charlecote Park, Stratford upon Avon, Warwickshire

Nearest waterway: Stratford upon Avon Canal and the River Avon

Nearest narrowboat hire base: Wootton Wawen

This grand 16th century stately home sits surrounded by a stunning deer park on the banks of the River Avon. The estate has been home to the Lucy family for 900 years with the current property.  The house hosted Queen Elizabeth I and was built in 1558 by Sir Thomas Lucy. It has been filled with treasures from all over the world by each generation of the family, whose varied lifestyles and tastes have all left their mark. The stables even boast an impressive carriage collection. The house looks out upon Capability Brown landscaped gardens and hundreds of acres of parkland offering scenic walks and great picnic spots.

Powis Castle, Welshpool, Powys

Nearest waterway: Montgomery Canal

Nearest narrowboat hire base: Whixall Marina

Home to the Earls of Powis, this medieval castle which dates back to around 1200 overlooks extensive formal gardens and terraces laid out under the influence of Italian and French styles. Originally built as a fortress, the castle was revamped and embellished by successive generations of the Herbert family over the course of more than 400 years.  It now houses an impressive collection of paintings, sculpture, tapestries and period furniture and is renowned for housing the valuables that Robert Clive and his son Edward brought home from India. Now run by the National Trust, the house and garden is surrounded by rolling green acres that make up a stunning deer park.