Marbury park to Anderton boat lift walk

This Marbury park to Anderton boat lift walk is a lovely short walk. It’s suitable for all ages but if you’re looking for a short family walk (around 3 miles) then you should consider this walk. There is a fantastic play area at both ends, it’s a traffic-free walk and it is suitable for prams. There are plenty of facilities both at Marbury park and Anderton boat lift. Find more Family walks North West here.

Table of Contents

Parking

You can park at either Marbury country park or Anderton boat lift visitor centre. There is plenty of parking at both Marbury Country park and Anderton Boat lift as well as toilet facilities and a play area (at both sites).

Both car parks are pay and display. At Marbury Country Park it is £1.50 for up to 3 hours and £2.50 for all day. At Anderton boat lift visitor centre, it is £2 for up to 3 hours and £3 for all day parking.

Anderton boat lift visitor centre

I have written a separate post all about the visitor centre here – Anderton boat lift visitor centre.

Walk route

Walk summary

Start and finish – Marbury Country park main car park
Approximate duration – 2-3 hours (allowing time to explore the visitor centre and both play areas!)
Distance – approx 3 miles
Accessibility – This route is possible for pushchairs but it is a little muddy in places.
Public toilets – Find public toilets by the play area in Marbury country park and at the Anderton boat lift (when the visitor centre is open).
Other Facilities – coffee van by the play area at Marbury country park, canal boat cafe (near to Anderton boat lift) and cafe within the visitors centre at Anderton boat lift.

The walk starts at the main car park for Marbury Country Park. You might like to start by going to the play area with Marbury country park which is only a few minutes walk from the car park.

Castle-themed play frame with a sign that says Marbury hall

When you return to the car park you need to walk along the private road which is by the entrance that you drove in. The road is marked “authorised vehicles only” so it is generally car-free. Follow this road past the woods on your right.

There is a route to Anderton through the woods but this includes lots of steps. In addition, when we visited in February 2023 the bridge to cross the canal by this route has been deemed unsafe and is currently closed.

Follow this road until it crosses over the canal. This is roughly half a mile from the car park.

Once you have crossed the bridge you need to go down the steps to your left to join the towpath. Or if you have a pushchair, you can walk a little further down the road and follow the muddy path on your left.

Once you are on the towpath, looking across the canal to the way you have walked, turn left and pass under the bridge you just walked across.

Towpath with blue canal boat in the distance

From here you simply follow the towpath to the Anderton boat lift visitor centre. You will need to leave the towpath at one point near the marina but follow the path up to the road and then after a very short distance, you will be able to rejoin the towpath.

Just before the visitor centre, you will pass a canal boat serving food and drink. We stopped and had cake (homemade) and hot drinks. They were delicious and very reasonably priced.

Canal boat in the sunshine, behind a large, leafless tree

Entrance sign for Anderton nature reserve and boat lift visitor centre

Once you are at the visitor centre you need to go through the centre to visit the play area. I’d advise you to check their opening times if the play area is important to you as the toilets and play area are both within a fenced-off area so only accessible when the visitor centre is open. The visitor centre is free to enter. Until April, they are only open at weekends. Check the opening times here – Anderton Boat Lift.

The visitor centre has an exhibition where you can learn all about the boat lift and there is lots for children including a dressing up area and a table with lots of colouring and activity sheets.

In the grounds outside the visitors centre, there is a boat lift-themed play area that my kids love as well as toilet facilities and a small but fun maze.

Anderton boat lift with a bright blue slide in front

Once you have explored this area and it is time to head back, simply follow the towpath back the way you came.

Towpath with trees on one side and boats on the other

There are possibilities to increase the length of the walk. For example, you could explore the Anderton nature park. You can also walk around Marbury park more on your way back to the car park.

I’ve also realised it is possible to do a circular route, taking a path back to Marbury park through the saltscape trail. We haven’t done this route yet so I’m not sure how long it is or if it is accessible. We’ll just have to go back soon!

4 vertical strips of photos of countryside including mountains, waterfalls and a wooden gruffalo sculpture

Enjoy family walks? Join the Family Walks North West Facebook group to be part of a community sharing the best walks for families across the region. Join here.