Experience the John Bunyan Boat

Welcome to the John Bunyan Boat

The John Bunyan 2025 cruise season starts in April and finishes in September. Our 2025 Public Cruise Brochure is now available to download below.

Charter enquiries for 2025 are now open, so please head to our charters page for more information.

The John Bunyan Community Boat offers a range of scenic river cruises along the River Great Ouse in Bedford from April to October, enabling both local people and visitors to Bedford to access the wonderful river environment. 

   We’ve got a little Spring treat for you 🌷
 
   🪙 Get £2 off selected cruise tickets this April and May 🎟
   🍰 Special Afternoon Tea Cruise 20/04/25
   🍟 Fish and Chip Lunch cruise 24/04/25
   🎷 Jazz Cruise 22/05/25
  🍺  Anchor Lunch Cruise 28/05/25
  ☀️  PLUS All Bank Holiday Cruise dates in April and May!
 
   Just apply the code SPRING2 in the promocode box at the checkout.
 
   Offer applies to tickets pre-booked via the website only. Excludes the booking fee.
 

The John Bunyan Community Boat was launched in July 2013 and is operated  behalf of the Bedford & Milton Keynes Waterway Trust. All funds and donations raised from the John Bunyan Community Boat go towards the development of a 16 miles (26Km) new waterway park, which will link the River Great Ouse in Bedford to the Grand Union Canal in Milton Keynes. The boat is run entirely by volunteers and is open to everyone. Our cruising season starts each year in April and runs through until the end of October each year.

  • star rating  If there is anybody out there interested in superb soul music, get on the Soul Boat Bedford for a great soulful afternoon/evening. NOT TO BE MISSED.

    Raymondo65
    August 29, 2019

    star rating  What can I say, had the boat on a charter and what a great day we've had. Boat was lovely and the crew even better, all volunteers with a real... read more

    715carls
    September 1, 2019
  • star rating  A fun learning experience for all the family.  - We went in the local history trip with our grandchildren. We all learnt something and had a wonderful time despite the rain. This was our second trip but it won't... read more

    avatar thumb Tom C
    July 13, 2024

    star rating  What a fabulous trip the Soul Cruise was from start to finish ! Had so much fun dancing & singing to some excellent tunes from the 2 master DJ’s... read more

    Mandy A.
    June 1, 2019
  • star rating  A great journey  - Lovely tranquil trip along the canal. Fish & Chips were served hot & were delicious. Friendly service throughout. Would recommend.

    avatar thumb Benoore
    July 4, 2024

    star rating  Enjoyable 5 hrs. Cruise on canal.  - Very enjoyable trip. Friendly staff. Good food and drink. Ploughman's lunch was good. Coffee and biscuits were great.

    avatar thumb AandR3
    July 11, 2024
  • star rating  What a fantastic evening on the John bunyan.... a cruise down the ouse with perfect weather and great tunes of soul and Motown this a private charter so I was... read more

    Audra T
    August 29, 2019

    star rating  Spent a great afternoon on a Soul Cruise with a few friends. Both the DJs were excellent and play a great mixture of Soul tunes enjoyed by everyone on board... read more

    T Davies
    August 1, 2019
  • star rating  We were on the Motown and soul cruise, what a fantastic way to spend an evening cruising the embankment with the excellent on board DJ getting all involved even the... read more

    ben a
    August 1, 2021

    star rating  Wonderful afternoon cruise along the river ouse Lovely friendly staff all covid precautions in place Very tasty afternoon tea Thank you to all concerned Mum loved it for her birthday

    lizzie288
    July 8, 2021
  • star rating  Spent a great afternoon on a Soul Cruise with a few friends. Both the DJs were excellent and play a great mixture of Soul tunes enjoyed by everyone on board... read more

    MitzyD123
    August 29, 2019

    star rating  Wonderful afternoon cruise along the river ouse Lovely friendly staff all covid precautions in place Very tasty afternoon tea Thank you to all concerned Mum loved it for her

    lizzie288
    June 1, 2021
  • star rating  Enjoyable trip on the canal. - Very pleasant, peaceful experience. Interesting to see bird life on the canal. Very good cake and cuppa! Friendly staff. Clear instructions. Lovely way to spend a... read more

    avatar thumb Elizabeth I
    July 13, 2024

    star rating  A lovely way to spend a couple of hours, the free were really friendly, welcoming and interesting. Very COVID secure.

    sparkler10
    October 1, 2020
  • star rating  Cruise on the Great Ouse  - This was a lovely and informative cruise along the Great Ouse from Priory Marina to Kempston. 4 hours in total. We all really enjoyed the experience and would definitely do... read more

    avatar thumb Sue A
    July 2, 2024

    star rating  We were on the Motown and soul cruise, what a fantastic way to spend an evening cruising the embankment with the excellent on board DJ getting all involved even the... read more

    ben a
    August 26, 2021
  • star rating  We were on the Motown and soul cruise, what a fantastic way to spend an evening cruising the embankment with the excellent on board DJ getting all involved even the... read more

    bena249
    August 26, 2021

    star rating  We went for a 2 hour boat trip on board the John Bunyan boat with a local social club. We all had a ploughman's lunch & hot drink served by... read more

    _pauldorow
    June 6, 2022
  • star rating  We had a lovely tip on the JB boat, just a lovely way to explore the river and going through the lock with an inch either side, the team certainly... read more

    908harveyc
    May 27, 2022

    star rating  What a fantastic evening on the John bunyan.... a cruise down the ouse with perfect weather and great tunes of soul and Motown this a private charter so I was... read more

    audratimmins
    August 1, 2019

Get in touch with us!

To make an enquiry about one of our public cruises or a private charter, please get in touch using the information below.

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John Bunyan Community Boat Partners