Newbury to Great Bedwyn (3 nights) Monday 24 April 2023

Newbury to Great Bedwyn

Join the Wessex Rose at the vibrant town of Newbury and enjoy a relaxing and scenic three night cruise through Royal Berkshire and Wiltshire to the picturesque village of Great Bedwyn.

Your cruise departs from the West Mills area of Newbury where a row of pretty whitewashed 17th century cottages and a tastefully converted former silo form an attractive canal scape.

From here the navigation winds West through the beautiful Berkshire countryside, lifted by six locks to the picturesque village of Kintbury, once home to Charles Dundas, the first chairman of the Kennet & Avon Canal Company who opened the first stretch of canal here in 1797. Today the village is home to the horse drawn boat operated by the Kennet Horse Boat Company which runs daily trips along the canal from its wharf below the lock.

Leaving Kintbury, we follow the canal through one of its most scenic stretches as we cross Hungerford Common to reach the charming and interesting town of Hungerford. Located at the centre of the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Hungerford is an interesting historic town most famous for its numerous antique shops and often featured on television antiques programmes.

Beyond Hungerford, the canal channel cuts across the beautiful Freeman’s Marsh nature reserve and passes through Hungerford Marsh Lock, the only lock on the Kennet and Avon to have a swing bridge across the lock chamber. Leaving Hungerford behind, we follow the canal on the final leg of our journey through scenic rural landscape and eight further locks, crossing the county border into Wiltshire near the village of Froxfield to reach our destination at Great Bedwyn. This delightful village, remarkably unspoiled by the presence of a main line railway station, is an attractive settlement with a rich history and well worth exploring.

To book please select the required number of cabins below. Our three cabins are identical and can all be configured as either twin or double bedded rooms according to your preference.

Please refer to our terms and conditions before booking. If you have any questions or specific requirements please contact us.

*Price based on 2 people sharing a twin/double cabin. Cabins booked for 1 person incur a single occupancy supplement of 50%.