Birmingham’s extensive canal system exceeds the length of Venice’s waterways, with over 35 miles of canals. Paddlers can expect to see both industrial heritage and leafy suburbs from the water. (Waterways licence required. Find out more).
Distance: 14km (8.8 miles)
Time: Full distance 3 hours
Sat Nav: B1 2AN
What3Words: ///pass.spit.belt
Find the full route for this trail on PaddlePoints >>
There are so many routes you can take in Birmingham thanks to its huge network of canals.
If you have a Paddle UK membership you can explore as much of the canal system as you like.
We selected a route from PaddlePoints, starting from Cambrian Wharf, in the heart of the city, and ending at Cadbury World.
This is about 14km (8.8 miles), there and back.
We parked as close to Cambrian Wharf as possible.
This meant having to park in Edward Street about 100 metres away.
Parking meter rates vary by location and time of day, but range from around £1.70 to £5.20 per hour.
We carried our equipment from there to the Canal & River Trust’s Cambrian House.
The Canal & River Trust own a building there which has toilets, showers, and a place to change.
To use them you need to buy a key from the Cambrian shop, which costs about £7.
However, once purchased you can use anywhere in the country.
Alternatively, for facilities, there’s so many pubs, cafes and restaurants, in the Brindley Place area.
If you’d prefer a guide of the canals Roundhouse Birmingham offer a range of experiences by kayak and paddleboard.
There are also toilets at the Roundhouse visitor centre, which is run by the National Trust.
It’s a grade II* listed building was given a new purpose as office space, a hub for city tours on foot, by bike and on water.
After we put our kayaks in the canal, near Cambrian House, we paddled past the Ultilita Arena Birmingham, before we went right at the Old Turn Junction.
The National Sealife Centre was on our right as we paddled towards the Regency Wharf area.
There are many bars and restaurants, along the canal’s sides.
Lots of people were enjoying the sunshine.
From there we continued along Birmingham Canal Old Line, and under Love Lock Bridge, merging into the Worcester and Birmingham Canal.
The area gets much greener as we paddled past the University of Birmingham’s campus and through Edgbaston Tunnel.
The short canal tunnel was opened in 1795 and is 96m long.
On the other side is Bournville, where Cadbury’s World can be found.
A possible stop if you’re fond of chocolate!
After getting a whiff of chocolate, we turned round and headed back to the city.
A Paddle UK membership covers you to use this waterway. Find out more >>
