Why The Thames Feels Different With Salter’s Steamers — 165 Years of Heritage on the Water
There are river cruises — and then there is a journey with history beneath you. Since 1858, Salter’s Steamers has carried travellers along the Thames, not as passengers, but as part of a story that began more than a century and a half ago. Six generations later, this is still the most authentic way to experience the water — heritage, craftsmanship, and English river culture preserved with pride.
A Salter’s cruise is not simply a boat trip. It is tradition set afloat. You’re not just looking at scenery — you’re gliding through history shaped by Victorian boatbuilders, families who lived by the tide, rowers, tourists, and generations of people who came here seeking calm, green riverbanks and quiet beauty. The Thames is more than water — it is movement, reflection, memory. And Salter’s knows it better than anyone.
Public sightseeing cruises give you Oxford the way footpaths never could — lazy meadows, swans drifting past, the hush of water against the hull. Private charter transforms celebrations into moments that live longer than photographs. Weddings become riverside stories. Corporate events become evening horizons and warm deck-light conversations. A boat is not a venue — it is an atmosphere.
Self-drive hire is freedom. No schedule. No rush. Just river, wildlife, slow bends of green and gold as you pilot your own day on the water. Group and coach tours open the Thames to everyone — with discounted rates and comfortable capacity for large parties.
Some companies operate boats.
Salter’s operates heritage.
- 165+ years on the water.
- 20+ vessels.
- 7 departure locations.
- 6 family generations steering the river forward.
When you book with Salter’s Steamers, you are not booking transport — you are booking time. Space. Stillness. A river experienced the way Oxford was meant to be seen: unhurried, storied, unforgettable.
Taste history.
Feel the Thames.
Let the river carry you someplace timeless.
