Royal Yachting Association

Realistically most people can learn to handle a narrowboat and turn locks pretty quickly, but it’s understandable that some people want specific instruction beyond the cursory training the boat hire offers. The Royal Yachting Association offers several two-day courses that would be appropriate for narrowboaters and you would have the prestige of displaying your RYA diploma at home (smoking jacket not required). You can also buy the RYA International Certificate of Competence Handbook for further study, although the ICC is not required to operate a narrowboat. You can also find training just by searching for “narrowboat training” and adding the name of the waterway you’ll be traveling.