Three generations on the cut: Middlewich's family narrowboat builders

Middlewich has always been a canal town, sitting at the meeting point of the Trent & Mersey Canal and the Middlewich branch of the Shropshire Union. It is fitting, then, that one of Cheshire's best-loved narrowboat holiday companies has been quietly crafting its own fleet here for half a century.

Andersen Boats was founded in the early 1970s by Johan Fredrik Andersen, a Norwegian boat builder who set up on a small plot of land beside the canal in Middlewich. The business has been part of the town's waterways story since 1975 and, unusually for the hire industry, it has been run by the same family across three generations.

What began with just two boats has grown into a fleet of 16, which the company describes as a four-star boutique fleet of handcrafted vessels. Crucially, Andersen builds and maintains all of its own boats, drawing on decades of boatbuilding experience, so that each one is distinctive, reliable and designed specifically for life on Britain's waterways.

That attention to detail has been recognised over the years, including a Best in Britain title in 2014 for its canal boating holidays, and the firm continues to describe its breaks as award-winning.

The base on Wych House Lane, on the Trent & Mersey, puts some of the country's most celebrated cruising routes within reach. Chief among them is the Cheshire Ring, a circular route that links several canals through countryside, market towns and the edges of Manchester, and which the company highlights as one of its signature itineraries.

For first-timers, the attraction of a narrowboat break is its gentle pace. Days are measured in locks and swing bridges rather than miles, with canalside pubs, villages and towpath walks along the way. For Cheshire residents, it is also a reminder that one of the most relaxing holidays in Britain can begin just down the road. Autumn and spring, when the towpaths are quieter and the hedgerows are at their most colourful, are particularly rewarding times to try it.

Andersen Boats is based on Wych House Lane, Middlewich. Details of boats, routes and availability can be found at andersenboats.com.