SwanR

So I ventured south all the way down the M3 to Bournemouth this week ... just for an overnight stay. Put a little video together for my own amusement so if you want to see why I made the 330 mile round trip from Essex, take a look.

Fleet Dyke is beautiful. Love your photos. We couldn't get moored there in June or September as it was too busy. We mud weighted for lunch on South Walsham Broad one day and I hoped that maybe after lunch someone would have moved on but no such luck. So that's another one I want to go back to as we haven't managed to moor at the ones nearest the main river yet.

I'm looking for ward to being able to get our caravan opened up again in a few weeks' time as we're planning on spending Easter there. Then back onto the rivers in May just for four days. As for that other word that must not be spoken ... I wasn't allowed to buy half price cards in January so have decided that this year my preparations will be done last minute. After all ... can't go getting ourselves into trouble Grace, can we now.

Welcome Jevski84. I look forward to reading your posts about life being back in Norfolk. I live in Essex ... and that's as close as I can get for now, but at least it's the right side of the M25!

Don't forget the Wayford Bridge Inn - again, not that much room at the moorings just before the bridge so going a little out of season you may be lucky. Easter is the following weekend so I guess it depends when the school holidays start, which will vary in different parts of the country.

I enjoyed reading about your holiday as well Helen. You certainly covered a good number of miles over those few days. I am sure that there are now many more places you still would like to moor up at and get to see. When we go back in May I am already thinking about which moorings we haven't used yet and hoping to tick one or two off the list. Simon I haven't hired this particular boat but on the subject more generally of the all inclusive price that you pay with Ferry Marina, I can say the following. Yes, you can look at similar boats and quite possibly pay less depending on how the fuel deposit works out for you. But what we like with Ferry Marina is that the staff are really helpful and friendly, the location is more central to the Broads so you have more choices of your first and last night's moorings and itinerary and the boats are very well turned out. As I already mentioned, they went out of their way to let us hire just before their season started. Plus we wanted to moor at the yard on our last night but there were no spaces at the front. We phoned them up and they immediately sent one of the lads to wait for us outside and he then moored us up. So the price might work out a little higher but we like what we get for our money.

Lovely to read your boating adventures. We were out on Rose Emblem the week before you. Ferry Marina were great and went out of their way to let us take the boat out the week before their season officially started. You will find my holiday tales written up on here if you haven't seen them yet. It serves as a good reminder later on of what you did, where you went and where you moored each day. We wouldn't hesitate to go back to them having hired Silver Emblem as well a few years ago.

Commissioners Cut sounds like a good idea but how many boats can moor there? It's been full on the odd occasion that we have passed by, as can any mooring be of course.

Hi Helen, That's a good question about what time is considered daytime mooring - I checked the BA's website but could only see the time by which you have to depart the next morning for an overnight stay. I haven't moored at Norwich myself but you're right in that it is next to a busy road. You're also right about needing to moor up before sunset and not knowing whether Bramerton might be full - it is such a popular location. You could consider reserving a mooring at the Ferry House pub at Surlingham, or mud-weighting in Surlingham Broad overnight, but that might be pushing it for cruising time from Norwich if you didn't depart until 6.30pm.

Welcome aboard to all the new members.

Enjoying reading your holiday tale. The length of posts is fine by me ... you can pick up ideas from knowing what other people have done, where they went, where they stopped etc. Ludham Bridge is an interesting one. I seem to recall that we gave way to any sailing boats waiting to come through. Now if only they would widen that bridge it would save a whole lot of problems.

Happy Birthday ... any plans?

Welcome along Helen. Looking forward to hearing about all your adventures. We've hired a couple of times from Ferry Marina and found them to be an excellent yard.

Great photos Howard. I can also say that the Swancraft boats we hired were very responsive and easy to steer, very economical on fuel, we always had plenty of hot water still the next morning with no need to run the engine ... and they have the best electric toilets of any boats we have hired ... in my very humble opinion.

Hi Tony, I wish your mother-in-law well. Swan Radiance looks like a lovely boat - only slightly older than Swan Reflection but looking very much the same kind of fit-out and design. Being 35 foot it has more room in the bedroom and the bathroom by the look of it. I could be very tempted to try this one myself if I was looking to book something up. We loved Swan Reflection but felt that we had perhaps outgrown it now so with this one having slightly more room but still the same wonderful truly walk-round bed that you can hang your feet off, it would suit us. Richardson's are hiring out these ex-Swancraft boats at very reasonable prices too which is reflected in the fact that they are already so booked up for the coming season.

Quoting from the website "Therefore a refundable damage deposit of £500 will be payable in addition to evidence of boat handling experience." It would be interesting to know how one has to evidence suitable experience. Also what are the conditions attached to the £500 deposit. That alone would put me off completely.

Interesting. The staff at Horizoncraft did tell us last year that the cafe and shop on the other side by the bridge was up for sale. Not sure what it will mean for the moorings on that side of the river. It will be interesting to hear of how things develop at Acle this year.

Something I was once told and have long remembered is that a complaint is a gift. If customers don't complain then the business doesn't have the chance to put things right. A lot of people don't like to make a fuss and so are less inclined to want to say anything if an experience was not up to standard. But if you don't let the management know then they can't stop the same thing happening to other people and they aren't given the opportunity to rectify the mistake. I work in customer service and I know how tricky it can be and how much you just can't get it right every time. But I'm sure that every business wants to deliver something that they are proud of.

Very interesting to read the updates from those who have been in the area. We can get Anglia News on the cable tv so were watching that last night. But I agree that the east coast doesn't tend to get that much coverage nationally.

Wow they certainly do get rave reviews. If ever I'm tempted to try a narrowboat I must remember them. The question is whether I could do a few days without coming up to any locks?! We've only been on the Norfolk Broads and never tried the canals.

I've never hired from Silverline but given that we would like to return to the southern rivers at some point I have often looked at their boats on Hoseasons. The reviews tend to be quite mixed as is also the case on Trip Advisor. But then you have to remember that the majority of people don't probably bother to write reviews so those that do will generally have something that has motivated them to do so - and this tends to be because you had a view at one end of the scale or the other. Either your experience was so good that you want to encourage other people to go there or you felt that something was very wrong and you want to warn others. I think that every business has their good days and their not so good days. As many of you know, I loved hiring from Swancraft and would always have gone back. This was because their boats were immaculately turned out, the yard was welcoming and the men who did our handover were usually friendly and quite thorough. Having said that on the last occasion that we were there we got a newbie and we felt that we knew more about the boat than he did. On returning the boat they always wanted to get on with preparing to turn it round again and we found on one occasion that not a single person even bothered to ask if we had a nice time - that might have put us off had it been our first hire with them. We also enjoyed hiring from NBD until one bad experience has put us completely off them for now. But we know that was probably completely out of character so maybe we'll go back eventually ... or maybe we won't. The point I am getting around to is that if you had a topic about any of the boatyards I think that you would get very different opinions and experiences from different people. And partly that will be down to our own individual expectations as customers given how much we look forward to our holidays and how hard we work all year to save our pennies to make our dreams a reality. Plus I do think that if you go back time after time and become known as "regulars" you may feel more that you are amongst friends ... but they've got to deliver the service that makes you want to go back in the first place. What I have always enjoyed about this forum, even before I was a member, is being able to read other people's opinions and experiences and thoughts on boats and holidays and the Norfolk Broads. Then I can make my own mind up. And long may it continue.

Enjoyed the blogs as usual Robin. It was really interesting to see the rivers at such a different time of year. Thank you for sharing your Christmas with us.

Lovely photos. I especially like the second one, very atmospheric.

I heard about the flooding on the railway line at Brundall on the travel news on my way home from work this evening.

I love prime numbers and squares. The next square year is 2025 ... which is 45 squared. The last one was 1936 and the next one is 2116 ... only one square year in my lifetime then. I'd better make a note of that now!!