PRIVATE HIRE WANTED

[egbert nobacon]

hi heyjude, i have just hired from black prince. if you hire now for easter you will get 10% off the brochure price. if you book within 7 days of your holiday you get 20% off.

really impressed with the layout and cleanliness. i booked through the central booking office, nice and friendly and gave me the 20% earlier than the 7 days.

dont know if thats any good for you.

btw i dont work for their pr dept. i really was impressed after looking at a couple of the other companies in our area.

[RichardH]

I really rate Black Prince boats - that's why we bought one !

 

Boat 2 arriving shortly.......

[crispy]

If you mean a full topside repaint, I would have thought virtually every hire company in the land would fail that test.

 

A program of repairing damage to the paintwork, yes, but surely nearly every company leaves it several years between full repaints ?

 

Yup we do repaint each of our boats totally every year!

[COLVIC]

Hello,

did anyone have suggestions about the hire of a cheap narrowboat?

 

I am looking to buy one and would like to hire one to see if I realy want bto buy one,

 

I have done most of my boating getting blown about on the Atlantic.

 

I looks as though I need to pay a fair sized lump of my kitty to buy a boat just to rent one for a week!

[Alan de Enfield]

Would a Colvic be your lumpy water boat ?

[Paul C]

Hello,

did anyone have suggestions about the hire of a cheap narrowboat?

 

 

Are you unable to scroll up and review the thread? Posts #14 and #15 are probably the best responses, in relation to actually sorting out a cheap holiday. Phone around the "normal" hire companies.....or take a chance and wait for a late booking at a discount....or don't be too fussy on location and boat etc, and you'll pick up a reasonably-priced hireboat holiday.

[Guest]

Are you unable to scroll up and review the thread?

Is that a serious question or just a rather snotty welcome to a new poster?

[COLVIC]

 

Are you unable to scroll up and review the thread?

Yes I can, and have, thank you Paul.

[Athy]

Perhaps as the thread is at least six years old, information contained in it will no longer be valid.

 

Colvic, welcome to the forum. No boat hire is cheap - it can't be because the boats cost so much for hire companies to buy - but some are less expensive than others. Rates vary seasonally - avoid school holidays. There is a clearing house which offers last-minute bookings at discounted prices, but I'm not sure of its name. I hope that someone else on here will know it and will tell you.

[Rob-M]

Perhaps as the thread is at least six years old, information contained in it will no longer be valid.

 

Colvic, welcome to the forum. No boat hire is cheap - it can't be because the boats cost so much for hire companies to buy - but some are less expensive than others. Rates vary seasonally - avoid school holidays. There is a clearing house which offers last-minute bookings at discounted prices, but I'm not sure of its name. I hope that someone else on here will know it and will tell you.

http://www.latelink.commaybe the one you are thinking of.

[Athy]

Sho' nuff, thank you Rob. Have a look, Colvic - still not cheap (and you virtually have to have a bag packed ready to dash straight out of the door and over to the boatyard) but one example I looked at saved £150 on the brochure price, which is better than a poke in the eye with a sharp windlass.

[Paul C]

Speaking with hire firms, they "like" to get their boats out and on hire, but the discounts to do so basically mean their profit margin is gone. They'd much prefer to sell the hire period well in advance, with the money in the bank, at full rate. I think about 35-40% discount is pretty much all the profit gone.....which gives you a good idea of the base price it actually costs to run the business and provide the boat and the services/employees that go along with it. Looking at the bottom end of the hire market, that equates to approx £420 (40% off £700). Speaking to another hire firm business in our local area, she told me that its £300 in fixed costs per hire. So that gives an idea of the absolute minimum you could pay. No hire firm is going to let their boat go at a loss - they'd rather keep it in the yard, and a "rest" week gives a chance to catch up on minor jobs needed on the boat, etc.

Edited February 28, 2016 by Paul C

[valrene9600]

Hello,

did anyone have suggestions about the hire of a cheap narrowboat?

 

I am looking to buy one and would like to hire one to see if I realy want bto buy one,

 

I have done most of my boating getting blown about on the Atlantic.

 

I looks as though I need to pay a fair sized lump of my kitty to buy a boat just to rent one for a week!

You must have very small kitty if renting one would be a fair sized lump of you boat purchase. Hire one now and it would be around £6/700 per week. A small price to pay if it saves you wasting money on a purchase. Bit like cost of a survey difference with the hire is you get a holiday.

[valrene9600]

Ashby short breaks till end march £559.

Kate £699 week into March.

[COLVIC]

Thanks everyone.

 

http://www.latelink.comlooks like a really useful site.

 

The few advertisers I had contacted before making my initial post wanted way more than these late booking prices.

[BMC problems]

Thanks everyone.

 

http://www.latelink.comlooks like a really useful site.

 

The few advertisers I had contacted before making my initial post wanted way more than these late booking prices.

 

Check the Facebook user groups

[Peter X]

For anyone wanting to try some boating at a much lower cost than hiring, there are alternatives:

 

You can start a topic in Crew Swap; this will probably be more effective for someone who's been around on the forum for a while and is therefore not an unknown quantity. Sometimes a boater needs crew to help make a journey, typically because they don't want to do it single handed, or cannot for medical reasons (dodgy knees, not strong enough to operate locks etc.), or they're inexperienced and need crew who know what they're doing and can teach them steering and/or lock operation. As crew you have to be prepared to fit in and make yourself useful, and be fit enough to wind paddles, open and close lock gates and sometimes do a fair bit of walking, and a boater who takes on crew in this way may well want you to put in a long day to help get the boat from A to B. I make a habit of crewing for other people on the forum like this, and I love it. It's generally legit if no money changes hands.

 

Also, there are various charities and other organisations operating boats who need volunteers to crew for them. They'll prefer people with boating experience, but will often be prepared to give a complete beginner a chance to learn from others. I don't know of one in your area Colvin, but someone else might. Or the Narrow Boat Trust could suit you:

http://www.narrowboattrust.org.uk/vacancies.html

 

Of course the above ideas mean being a guest on someone else's boat, expected to follow their timetable and rules and put in some work, but that's the quid pro quo for saving on hire fees.

[valrene9600]

Yup we do repaint each of our boats totally every year!

Napton repaint every year as well.

[Bunny]

Wowcher occasional have a hire firm on there offering discount breaks . Might be worth keeping an eye on the site . Not there at the moment, just checked .Bunny

Wowcher occasional have a hire firm on there offering discount breaks . Might be worth keeping an eye on the site . Not there at the moment, just checked .Bunny