What is punting? What is a punt? These are serious questions that demand serious answers! Are you a tourist about to embark on a waterborne journey of guided discovery? Or are you simply a resident of our City who hasn’t cottoned onto the lingo? Either way, this article is for you! Don’t you want to get yourself informed before your up-and-coming cambridge punting tour?
What is punting?
A punt is a small rectangular-shaped boat, and punting describes using a punt to transverse a body of water. The front and back sides of the vessel are squared off, making punts optimal for carrying passengers and maintaining stability. You can maneuver a punt with equal facility in either direction, making it the perfect vessel to navigate narrow river bends! This makes punts an excellent choice for ferrying passengers up and down the river Cambs. It’s a relatively shallow river, making it easier to maneuver and turn a punt in its waters.
Cambridge punting tours have been optimized for this purpose, creating unforgettable memories for countless people. Pleasant recollections of peaceful meandering down Cambridges tranquil waters. These boats used to be built as floating platforms for fishers and those hunting waterfowl. However, since the beginning of the 20th century, punts have been popularised as vessels used for leisure.
What is a punter?
The punt is propelled by a “punter” who stands on a platform at the stern of the boat. The punter, or chauffer is able to advance the boat using an aluminum punting pole 4.3 meters long. The chauffeur produces momentum by driving this pole into the water and pushing against the riverbed. This results in a relaxing glide down the river, a wonderful way to take in the sights and tranquil sounds of the countryside.
How do you go punting in cambridge?
As proud recipients of a gold accolade from VisitEngland’s attraction quality assurance scheme we can attest to the quality of our customer service, cleanliness, staff engagement, and overall visitor satisfaction. These aspects of our services have been inspected by independent assessors and we have been awarded one of the highest honours as a result.
You can book a cambridge punting tour with us online through our booking portal here. You are also able to reach us over the phone. Please call us on 01223 651 659 and press option 2 to speak with our office team. Our dedicated staff will be delighted to assist you in completing your booking over the phone. Email is another convenient option, you can contact us at info@letsgopunting.com and simply send us the details of your booking request and we’ll promptly get back to you with the necessary information and confirmation.
You’re welcome to visit our physical location at Landing Stage, Thompsons Ln, Cambridge CB5 8AQ if you are interested in making a purchase in person. Our on-site staff will be happy to assist you with booking your tour. Please be aware that our online prices are significantly lower than our in-person prices. Additionally, it is always advisable to book in advance, as you may be limited by availability on the day.
Types of punting in cambridge
Before you book you must have an idea of the type of punting experience that you wish to have. In both types, you’ll experience the same interactive commentary from your chauffeur and the same beautiful sights.
There are many organisations that offer this service in cambridge, even self hire punts where you can have a go at steering the boat yourself, accompanied by friends! However, you cannot allow the calm ease of our talented chauffeurs to deceive you. Using a punting pole to steer a punt is a deceptively difficult task. We however do not offer this service, we only offer chauffeured punts.
Shared tours
During shared tours, different groups of people are seated on the same boat. We have a system where seats are correlated with spaces, for example, two people are marked as taking up the same space as three people. Our boats have a capacity of 12, in rows of 3. Therefore this ensures that we can comfortably seat guests in a way that preserves personal space for all. Different groups of people may be seated across from each other but not next to each other.
Private tours
If you would like to enjoy your tour with a little more exclusivity, then you should consider booking a private tour. These are tours where one group occupies a single boat, and all members of the group have booked together. This option is popular with larger bookings, as well as romantic punting experiences. It’s the privacy afforded by private punting tours, there is something luxurious about having a private chauffeur and something wonderful about a slow meander down the river with your personal entourage.
What makes punting in cambridge special?
Only in cambridge do you have the opportunity to voyage through the unforgettable iconography of Cambridge University. To witness the stomping grounds of its esteemed student body, and capture a snapshot of their scholarly toils.
Our tour travels the length between Magdalene Collage and Silver Street Bridge on a two-mile return journey to the collage backs. From this renowned riverside path, we can see into College courtyards and footpaths that are either often cut off from public access, or are available to the public on an irregular basis. We have to remember that these College gardens are not just the heart of Cambridge. They represent the homes of countless students and research fellows. A punting tour in Cambridge is an excellent, non-invasive way to tour these private premises. A chance to witness these well-treaded courtyards and secret gardens that are sequestered from the public.
Why go on a Cambridge punting tour?
That’s the thing about cambridge punting tours, you get to see the city from such a unique angle. You may have heard of the gondolas of Venice, a striking way to experience the City through its intricate vasculature of canals. In Cambridge, you would embark on a similar sightseeing enterprise. Cambridge punting tours have become a very popular pastime for tourists and residents alike!
Cambridge emerges as a top destination when it comes to the most scenic places to go punting in the UK. With daffodils and cherry blossoms lining the river in the warmer months, and beautiful willow trees, branches dancing against the surface of the water. Not to mention the striking Boston Ivy of St. John’s College turning crimson in the autumn.
