FOUR WAYS TO SEE BRITAIN BY WATER

LAZY DAZE

Virgin Voyages (020 3003 4919; virginvoyages.com) has also entered the UK-only market this summer, and is offering six adult-only sailings on the Scarlet Lady – all in August, all from Portsmouth, all largely sailing in the Channel.

The four-night Summer WeekDaze cruises cost from £599 per person; the three-night Long Weekenders from

£499 per person.

NARROW HORIZONS

If you want to have a go at being your own skipper, the self-contained realm of Britain’s canal network offers plenty of scope for slow, safe escapes. Hoseasons (0345 498 6589; hoseasons.co.uk) can hire out the Gailey Kestrel for a week starting August 30, from £1,803 in total. Available from the marina at Gailey in Staffordshire, this narrowboat sleeps four, and offers a chance to explore the Staffordshire and

Worcestershire Canal, which links the River Severn to the Trent and Mersey Canal, over the course of 46 miles.

CANAL PLUS

Scotland, too, has man-made waterways. Not least the

Caledonian Canal, which may be Britain’s most spectacular in its 60-mile run from Inverness to Fort William via the deep souls of Lochs Dochfour, Ness, Oich and Lochy. Rental specialist Le Boat (023 9222 2177; leboat.co.uk) still has summer availability in the area. The three-cabin Elegance can be picked up from Laggan for the week commencing August 23, from £3,263 in total.

BROAD APPEAL

Norfolk can also – of course – be a perfect playground for amateur boaters. You can still book a 2021 break via Waterways Holidays (01252 796400; waterwaysholidays.com), including a trip aboard the Concerto 3, a 35ft cruiser that sleeps up to six. A week’s hire, starting on September 21, costs from £1,169 in total. The boat is based at Wroxham, near Norwich – with immediate access to the River Bure, as well as the wider Broads.