“Slow travel” is trending, and from my experience, there’s nothing slower—or more relaxing—than canal cruising. And it’s not just because the average speed is 6 mph.
Unlike river cruises, which hop in and out of bustling ports along major waterways, canal cruises are far more tranquil. They float along calmer, narrower channels, typically aboard small houseboats that only accommodate intimate groups.
My first multiday canal cruise was with European Waterways along France’s 17th-century Canal du Midi, aboard an eight-passenger barge-turned-floating luxury inn. We cruised slowly through the countryside, stopping for guided visits to wineries and medieval towns, and dined onboard with meals from a private chef. Self-guided cruising, on the other hand, strips away the luxury hospitality and adds a healthy dose of adventure—and that’s exactly what I did this year.
I booked a canal houseboat through Erie Canal Adventures, just outside of Rochester, New York. They rent vessels equipped with comfortable beds, full kitchenettes, bathrooms, and air conditioning—plus, they provide the mandatory training course required to pilot the boats yourself.
I had heard about houseboat rentals on the Erie Canal many years ago, and it always stuck in my mind as a must-do experience. The appeal? Unlike rivers or open water, canals are narrow, calm, and easy to navigate. You can’t really get lost—it’s a direct route, and there are no currents or rough water to deal with.
Brave World Media/Visit Rochester
My adventure began with an hour-long orientation session, complete with videos explaining the do’s and don’ts of operating a boat on the Erie Canal. While I listened studiously, the real learning happened during the three hours of hands-on, real-world training aboard our rental: a 41-foot Lockmaster named Cayuga. The exercise—a two-mile round trip to the nearest lock and back—was a confidence booster for a first-time captain like me, with no prior boating experience.
With my minimal crew of two trusted, intrepid friends, we gained firsthand knowledge and muscle memory on how to navigate, and more importantly, how to work as a team. Passing through locks meant communicating with the lockmaster via radio, steering the boat parallel to the chamber walls, securing it with ropes as the water rose or fell, and cruising forward once the gates opened. After completing the locking process twice, and practicing how to steer, dock, make an emergency stop, and tie a cleat hitch knot, we’d literally learned the ropes and were ready for our self-guided adventure on the illustrious Erie Canal.
Once hailed as the most ambitious engineering project of its time, the Erie Canal links New York City harbor to the Great Lakes, creating a 350-plus-mile waterway from the Hudson River in Albany to Lake Erie in Buffalo. It was a vital transport and trade artery for decades, until railroads—and eventually, air travel—eclipsed its purpose. Today, the historic canal lives on, but primarily for recreational use. In fact, it celebrates its bicentennial this fall, in 2025.
Cruising beyond the lyrics of the classic American folk song, “Fifteen Miles on the Erie Canal,” we traveled 62 miles over four days through the Finger Lakes-adjacent Greater Rochester Area. Our journey took us westbound from Erie Canal Adventures’ headquarters in Macedon, New York, to Spencerport, New York—and back again.
While the canal’s width varies, even its narrowest sections easily accommodate two-way boat traffic. Our houseboat felt like a floating RV—cruising at 6 mph, canal boating isn’t far off from slow-motion road-tripping.
Traveling at such a leisurely pace, we found ourselves spotting ducks, kingfishers, and great blue herons. We waved to fishermen casting lines into the nutrient-rich waters that flow down from Lake Erie, which feeds both aquatic life and the farmlands that border the canal. Hours would easily pass as we glided through bucolic scenery and maneuvered around kayakers (only once using the emergency stop technique I’d just learned). Scenic trees shaded private and public docks scattered along the towpath.
But there was no time to get bored. After all, we weren’t just passengers—we were the crew. Radioing ahead for bridge crossings, navigating the boat through locks, and taking turns on the helm kept us engaged and entertained.
Inside the boat, things were cozy but manageable for my group of three. A little tight, sure—but totally fine, and honestly, sleeping on the quiet canal without city noise was great.
We quickly fell into a daily rhythm: wake up with no real rush, have breakfast, cruise all day, and port in the evenings. For breakfast, one morning we went out, one morning we used the boat’s kitchen to make shakshuka, and another we just reheated frozen breakfast sandwiches we had stashed away. For lunch and snacks, we kept it casual— think crackers, cheese, chips, and even leftovers. Pro tip: bring whatever you like; the boat has a full refrigerator for perishables.
John Baker/Getty Images
We docked overnight in three different port towns during our journey. First, we wined and dined in Pittsford, New York, which felt almost European with its tree-lined towpath, charming bistros, and even a crêperie. In Spencerport, New York, we leaned into the RV-camping vibe by biking the Towpath trail and cooking meals ourselves. But we saved the best for last: a visit to Fairport, which is known as Greater Rochester’s go-to destination for live music, breweries, and distilleries. Here, we wrapped up our night with the area’s quintessential late-night indulgence—the “garbage plate,” a glorious heap of home fries, macaroni salad, and butterflied hot dogs smothered in spicy meat sauce.
As the saying goes: work hard, play hard. Captaining the Cayuga got easier with each day. By the end of the second day, I was steering confidently without doubting my instincts, and my friends-turned-crewmates could handle a lock like seasoned pros. We may not be quite ready to crew a luxurious barge on the Canal du Midi just yet, but I’m confident it would be one strange (nay, eerie) adventure.
