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Oxford River Cruises

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Oxford Sightseeing River Cruise Along The University Regatta Course

Oxford Sightseeing Picnic River Cruise

Evening Cocktail Cruise in Oxford

Afternoon Tea Sightseeing River Cruise in Oxford

River Cruise with Three Course Riverside Restaurant Dining

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Oxford River Cruises - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

Oxford Boat Hire

For those who wish to have a more hands-on experience, we offer a wide variety of self-drive craft for hire from Oxford.

Public River Cruises

We offer a variety of hugely popular river cruises through some of the most beautiful scenery in England.

Private Charter

Salter’s passenger vessels provide the perfect venue for all kinds of events from works parties to birthdays.

Salter’s have been building boats since 1858 and are renowned for producing high quality robust craft.

Our boat hire station is now open – please pre-book day boats in advance by clicking here to avoid disappointment.

We will be offering Boat Trips from Oxford & Marlow this summer.

We will also be running our Oxford to Abingdon Service to the Public during the summer school holidays – Monday to Thursday only.

Please see the Public Boat Trips page for more information.

Private Charters are available – please click here to enquire.

Our phone lines have now reopened however our incoming calls are extremely high, please contact us via email where possible alternatively please be patient and we will call you back as soon as we can.

160 years in the making.

Salter’s Steamers are a family firm that has provided first-class hospitality on the Royal River Thames for over 160 years  – Est. 1858. As one of the longest established firms on the Thames we own one of the largest and most exclusive fleets operating on the river. Our cruises combine traditional style, contemporary comforts and the highest modern standards.

We offer a variety of hugely popular boat trips through some of the most beautiful scenery in England. During the summer we offer boat trips from every major location on the Upper-Thames between the university city of Oxford and Marlow, including such famous places as Abingdon, Reading and Henley.

Celebrations on the Thames.

Our exclusive craft can be privately chartered as the perfect venue for all kinds of function, party or celebration, including showpiece events such as the Henley Royal Regatta.

We also hire out punts, day-boats and other small craft from Oxford, as well as operating charters on the Solent. In addition we are now offering a timetable of one-off special cruises held from a number of different locations throughout the year. These include public jazz cruises from Oxford and Windsor, special services along unusual routes such as Oxford to Wolvercote as well as different trips to mark certain events such as Bunkfest at Wallingford.

Instant bookings

Book your tickets within a few clicks to experience one of Oxford’s finest boat trips.

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Oxford River Cruises

Opening Times

From March until October (including private hires)

Oxford River Cruises provides a range of luxury boat trips, sightseeing tours and unique picnic cruises and afternoon tea cruises in the heart of the historic city of Oxford. Their vessels provide a comfortable and intimate setting for an unforgettable river experience and one of the most memorable things to do during your visit to Oxford.

Cruises depart from No.1 Folly Bridge, Oxford’s unique riverside restaurant where boat passengers can enjoy excellent food and drinks before or after their cruise.

Prices – River cruises available from £19 per person.

Opening times – Oxford River Cruises offers a number of cruises for which members of the public can purchase individual tickets. Cruises run daily from March until October. Group bookings and Private Hire are available year round. The cruises operate on a pre-booked basis. These cruises are very popular so early booking is recommended.

Privat Boat Hire – Private Hire and Group Bookings are welcomed. Oxford River Cruises private hire vessels are the perfect venue aboard which to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, company achievements and all manner of special occasions. Please email or telephone to discuss bespoke itineraries and to make a booking.

For information on pricing and suggested itineraries click on the ‘Find out more’ button below.

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Cruising the Moskva River: A short guide to boat trips in Russia’s capital

There’s hardly a better way to absorb Moscow’s atmosphere than on a ship sailing up and down the Moskva River. While complicated ticketing, loud music and chilling winds might dampen the anticipated fun, this checklist will help you to enjoy the scenic views and not fall into common tourist traps.

How to find the right boat?

There are plenty of boats and selecting the right one might be challenging. The size of the boat should be your main criteria.

Plenty of small boats cruise the Moskva River, and the most vivid one is this yellow Lay’s-branded boat. Everyone who has ever visited Moscow probably has seen it.

This option might leave a passenger disembarking partially deaf as the merciless Russian pop music blasts onboard. A free spirit, however, will find partying on such a vessel to be an unforgettable and authentic experience that’s almost a metaphor for life in modern Russia: too loud, and sometimes too welcoming. Tickets start at $13 (800 rubles) per person.

Bigger boats offer smoother sailing and tend to attract foreign visitors because of their distinct Soviet aura. Indeed, many of the older vessels must have seen better days. They are still afloat, however, and getting aboard is a unique ‘cultural’ experience. Sometimes the crew might offer lunch or dinner to passengers, but this option must be purchased with the ticket. Here is one such  option  offering dinner for $24 (1,490 rubles).

If you want to travel in style, consider Flotilla Radisson. These large, modern vessels are quite posh, with a cozy restaurant and an attentive crew at your service. Even though the selection of wines and food is modest, these vessels are still much better than other boats.

Surprisingly, the luxurious boats are priced rather modestly, and a single ticket goes for $17-$32 (1,100-2,000 rubles); also expect a reasonable restaurant bill on top.

How to buy tickets?

Women holding photos of ships promise huge discounts to “the young and beautiful,” and give personal invitations for river tours. They sound and look nice, but there’s a small catch: their ticket prices are usually more than those purchased online.

“We bought tickets from street hawkers for 900 rubles each, only to later discover that the other passengers bought their tickets twice as cheap!”  wrote  (in Russian) a disappointed Rostislav on a travel company website.

Nevertheless, buying from street hawkers has one considerable advantage: they personally escort you to the vessel so that you don’t waste time looking for the boat on your own.

Prices start at $13 (800 rubles) for one ride, and for an additional $6.5 (400 rubles) you can purchase an unlimited number of tours on the same boat on any given day.

Flotilla Radisson has official ticket offices at Gorky Park and Hotel Ukraine, but they’re often sold out.

Buying online is an option that might save some cash. Websites such as  this   offer considerable discounts for tickets sold online. On a busy Friday night an online purchase might be the only chance to get a ticket on a Flotilla Radisson boat.

This  website  (in Russian) offers multiple options for short river cruises in and around the city center, including offbeat options such as ‘disco cruises’ and ‘children cruises.’ This other  website  sells tickets online, but doesn’t have an English version. The interface is intuitive, however.

Buying tickets online has its bad points, however. The most common is confusing which pier you should go to and missing your river tour.

“I once bought tickets online to save with the discount that the website offered,” said Igor Shvarkin from Moscow. “The pier was initially marked as ‘Park Kultury,’ but when I arrived it wasn’t easy to find my boat because there were too many there. My guests had to walk a considerable distance before I finally found the vessel that accepted my tickets purchased online,” said the man.

There are two main boarding piers in the city center:  Hotel Ukraine  and  Park Kultury . Always take note of your particular berth when buying tickets online.

Where to sit onboard?

Even on a warm day, the headwind might be chilly for passengers on deck. Make sure you have warm clothes, or that the crew has blankets ready upon request.

The glass-encased hold makes the tour much more comfortable, but not at the expense of having an enjoyable experience.

Getting off the boat requires preparation as well. Ideally, you should be able to disembark on any pier along the way. In reality, passengers never know where the boat’s captain will make the next stop. Street hawkers often tell passengers in advance where they’ll be able to disembark. If you buy tickets online then you’ll have to research it yourself.

There’s a chance that the captain won’t make any stops at all and will take you back to where the tour began, which is the case with Flotilla Radisson. The safest option is to automatically expect that you’ll return to the pier where you started.

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Oxford River Cruises

• Picnic Cruise

Our Oxford Picnic Cruise combines sightseeing with a leisurely picnic on a relaxing journey exploring the hidden gems of the city.

Nothing makes a trip feel more like a pleasurable adventure than a traditional British picnic basket, packed with treats to share as you take in the sights and sounds of the beautiful outdoors.

This small group cruise aboard one of our elegant electric river boats takes you along the route that Alice Liddell and Lewis Carroll took when composing ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’.

You will meander past some of Oxford’s most captivating scenery, passing quaint Osney Island, Port Meadow and Godstow. Plus, you will take in stunning views of Christ Church meadows, the University boathouses and regatta course, The Head of the River, and Folly Bridge.

Your picnic lunch is provided by riverside restaurant, The Folly, and typically includes:

• A Selection of Finger Sandwiches
• Homemade Quiche or Tart of The Day
• Homemade Scones, with Strawberry Jam & Clotted Cream
• Homemade Potato Salad
• Elderflower Presse
• Served in a traditional picnic basket, with napkins, crockery and glasses
• Other drinks to take aboard can be purchased at the departure point

The cruise departs from our moorings at The Folly, Folly Bridge, Oxford, OX1 4JU.

The cruise lasts approximately 3 hours. Advance booking is essential.

Private versions of this cruise are also available. This trip operates between April and October.

PICNIC CRUISE

Duration – 3 hours

Enjoy a freshly made picnic hamper whilst on a beautiful, leisurely 3 hour boat trip.

PRICES FROM

£59 Adults (12+)

£35 Children (Up to 11 years)

AT A GLANCE

• 3 hour sightseeing tour
• Picnic hamper aboard
• From £59pp Off Peak, £69pp Peak Times. £35pp for under 16s
• Pass through Osney Lock
• Stunning scenery at Port Meadow
• Short stop at a historic riverside pub
• Christ Church meadow and college glimpses
• University boat houses
• Private options available on request
• Public cruise daily April to October

“The picnic cruise felt like such a treat. A beautiful lunch in a beautiful setting. It was so relaxed – we enjoyed every minute thank you!”

SARAH HANKIN, DUBAI

A relaxing river trip followed by a spectacular 6-course tasting menu in The Folly.

This popular sightseeing tour offers a lively display of all that the river has to offer.

IN THIS SECTION

• Cruise & Tasting
• Oxford Experience Cruise
• Cruise & Dine
• Evening Cocktail Cruise
• Afternoon Tea Cruise