Canal Events & Festivals 2020 - 2021

IWA Canalway Cavalcade is a unique waterway boat gathering organised by IWA volunteers, that has been taking place at Little Venice since 1983. Admission is Free. Join us over the early May Bank Holiday weekend. There will be activities for all the family with a boaters’ gathering, a pageant of boats, trade shows and stalls, live music, kids’ activities, competitions, Morris Dancers, a real ale bar, a wide variety of snacks and food.

Skipton's annual Waterway Festival takes place around Skipton and on the Canal Basin (off Coach Street). The event runs over the whole weekend and will be opened by the Mayor of Skipton Town. Dozens of narrowboats and other craft will line the Basin and the surrounding towpaths - all themed to help celebrate the Canal's landmark anniversary - and there will be a full programme of entertainment throughout each of the three days. Entry to the Festival is free. Once again, this year's Festival is benefiting from financial support from the Skipton BID!

The Rickmansworth Festival takes place on the third weekend of May every year and celebrates canals, the community and the environment. We had a fantastic 26th Festival and the next Festival, which is the highlight of the town’s annual calendar and the finale of Rickmansworth Week, is on the 16th and 17th May 2020. The top attraction for many is the wonderful array of canal boats from across the country - a terrific spectacle, with at least 100 craft of many types and histories moored along the towpath up to four deep. But there are things to do, see and enjoy whatever your interests, and whatever your age. The Rickmansworth Festival started as a purely canal based event in 1993, as part of the British Waterways “Canals 200” celebration that year.

At Crick Boat Show, visitors can take a free trip out onto the water to experience the Grand Union Canal on one of our trip boats. Trip boats run every 10 minutes from 10.10am each day of the show and each trip lasts 30 minutes. All trips are run by LNBP Community Boating who will be collecting small donations.

The event will take place on the spot where the Wey & Arun Junction Canal was officially opened on the 28th September 1816 by the 3rd Earl of Egremont.

BEALE PARK BOAT & OUTDOOR SHOW ENJOY THREE DAYS OF ‘SIMPLY MESSING ABOUT IN BOATS’ SEE, TRY AND BUY! CLASSIC BOATS · MODERN BOATS · WOODEN BOATS · FIBRE GLASS BOATS · RIVER BOATS · SEA BOATS · NEW BOATS · USED BOATS · PROFESSIONAL BOATS · AMATEUR BOATS · COME AND TRY A BOAT!

The Etruria Canals Festival is back for 2020 taking place on Saturday 30th and Sunday 31st May 10am-5pm. The event is free to attend! We’re busy planning the 2020 event. If you visit the What’s On pages these will give you a feel for what has happened at previous festivals. If you’re a trader or charity who’d like to attend the event you can now download 2020 booking forms (under the contact us tab) The festival is run by Etruria Canals Festival Group and B arts and supported by Arts Council England and Stoke-on-Trent City Council and Appetite through the Stoke-on-Trent Festival and Event Fund.

As in previous years, we will be offering an inviting selection of Main stage and Fringe music in various venues around the town, backed up by the colourful array of Narrow Boats along the canal. We are also proud to continue our tradition of Morris Dancing displays, a Celidh night, stalls, workshops and celebration of the rich heritage of Middlewich.

As every year, the two-day FREE celebration for all the family is organised by Stratforward - Stratford-upon-Avon's Business Improvement District, which represents over 465 town centre shops, cafes, restaurants and other businesses. Since it was established the Stratford River Festival has grown to become one of the region’s leading free festivals.

THE BRISTOL HARBOUR FESTIVAL IS THE CITY'S ULTIMATE DAY OUT FOR FAMILIES. NOT ONLY IS THERE CHILD-FRIENDLY ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAMMED FOR BOTH DAYS, BUT IT'S ALL FREE. WE'LL HAVE CIRCUS ACTS, DANCE PERFORMANCES, ARTS AND CRAFTS AND PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITIES TO GET INVOLVED.

Blisworth Canal Festival spreads up from the atmospheric waterfront with its line of colourful trade boats and trip boats into 8 other nearby village venues. Come and see for yourself why tens of thousands of visitors flock to Blisworth each year to enjoy the event. It is now a major County and Canal event and the largest and most successful that we know of organised solely by volunteers from a small village community. *FREE MOORING *FREE PARKING *FREE ENTRY *FREE WALKS & TALKS

The Brecon Beacons is one of the most inspiring locations in the world. Surrounded by miles and miles of mountains, forests, waterfalls and rivers, the Settlement is your opportunity to make the most of Green Man’s magical surroundings.

Come to IWA's Festival of Water 2020 Join us in Perdiswell Park 29th - 31st August 2020, Worcester. 2020 marks IWA's 75th Anniversary year and where better to start the celebrations than on the waterway where it all began, the Worcester & Birmingham Canal? A weekend of fun for all who love spending time by the water. A full programme of music and dance will entertain the crowds at the IWA Festival of Water over the August Bank Holiday weekend. Entry to the festival and car parking is free. Come and join us.

This annual one-day festival is based around the City Road Lock, Basin and towpath alongside the Regents Canal, also local streets and a park, in Islington, North London.