Narrowboat canal trips are all the rage in the UK, drifting through the countryside at four miles an hour and calling it wellness. But if you want a stateside Rat Pack weekend with a little grit on the glass, look to upstate New York and the Erie Canal: a road trip that forgot the road.
Out here it feels less like you’re “boating” and more like you’ve rented a studio apartment, bolted it to a barge, and pointed it west. You’re puttering through the scar tissue of American industrial history—brick mills, grain elevators, and towns you assumed flat‑lined when mules still had a union. Around Fairport and its neighbors, you can stitch together a surprisingly dense canal‑town playground of food, booze, and live music, all within stumbling distance of your tie‑up.
The hysterical part is you drive the damn thing yourself. No captain, no crew—just you, a throttle, and the vague hope you read the orientation binder correctly. A retired lock‑keeper in an orange vest watches you like he’s seen every kind of idiot and is ready to meet a new one, then you putter into a village where the big drama of the evening is about to be you and your friends stepping off the boat like the boys are back in town.
At canal speed, fight‑or‑flight doesn’t have much to do. There’s nothing to outrun. The trip becomes a kind of accidental retreat—no yoga teacher, no curated “experience,” just miles of flat water, low bridges, and time you physically cannot turn into productivity, no matter how addicted you are to the grind. Your days shrink down to three simple questions: How far are we going? What’s the weather doing? Where are we tying up and eating tonight? Somewhere in that narrowing of focus, your brain finds room to wander, to file old thoughts, to let a few new ones in.
By the second or third day—somewhere between the soft slap of water on the hull and the faint, regrettable stink of dead cigars overflowing in the ashtray—you realize what this really is. Not a vacation in the brochure sense, not an “escape” with a spa menu and a checkout time, but a temporary transfer of custody. You’ve handed your life over to the canal and these towns for safekeeping. They hold onto your worries for a while, tuck them behind the bar with the lost scarves and forgotten credit cards.
Why it works for a Rat Pack weekend
At canal speed, the world drops to five miles an hour and fight‑or‑flight doesn’t have much to do. Your life shrinks down to three questions—how far are we going, what’s the weather doing, where are we tying up and eating tonight—and somewhere in that narrowing your brain finds room to wander. It’s a floating apartment on the rust belt, with nightly bar and cigar crawls in Fairport, Pittsford, and a string of little towns that still know how to pour a drink and fry something.
Boat rentals / where to base
For a weekend on the Erie Canal, the sweet spot is a self‑piloted houseboat charter plus a base cluster of canal villages.
- Erie Canal Adventures – Lockmaster houseboats (34–42 ft) out of Macedon/Fairport with 3‑, 4‑, and 7‑night self‑piloted charters, fully equipped and often with bikes.
- GetYourGuide (Erie Canal self‑piloted boat) – Resells the same trips from the Macedon marina with easier online booking and clear date options.
- Low Bridge Charters – European‑style bare‑boat rentals out of Hidden Harbor Marina in Waterloo, more traditional “narrowboat” aesthetics and Finger Lakes‑adjacent starting point.
If you’d rather stay ashore, pick a waterfront rental or inn in Fairport or Pittsford and use day boats, but the full Rat Pack move is sleeping on the canal.
Where to drink (and eat) along the canal
Fairport – One of the strongest bases for food and nightlife right on the water.
- The PorterHouse – Canalside steak and seafood with a full bar and heated patio overlooking the canal.
- Donnelly’s Public House & Mulconry’s Irish Pub – Classic pub food, good beer lists, sports and live music steps from the water.
- Lulu Taqueria + Mezcal / Iron Smoke Distilling / Triphammer Bierworks / Tin Cup Social – Tacos, mezcal, craft cocktails, whiskey, and brewery options packed into the historic American Can Factory and nearby blocks.
- Nice Ash Cigars & Lounge – Large walk‑in humidor, leather seating, TVs, and regular events; one of the best‑equipped cigar lounges in the region.
Pittsford & Bushnell’s Basin – Thick with towpath‑side food and drink.
- Erie Grill – Modern American menu and cocktails with big canal views inside the Del Monte Lodge.
- Label 7, Simply Crepes, Neutral Ground Coffeehouse, Pittsford Pub – From brunch and coffee to wine, cocktails, and pub food, all within a short stroll of the water.
- Richardson’s Canal House (Bushnell’s Basin) – 1818 tavern turned casual‑gourmet restaurant with a canalside patio, plus ice‑cream and beer stops like Abbott’s Frozen Custard and Aurora Brewing nearby.
Spencerport & Brockport – Solid overnight or dinner stops with easy dock‑to‑table walks.
- Spencerport – Canalside spots like Clutch on the Canal and Texas BBQ Joint, plus small cafés and bakeries near the Canal Museum and Welcome Center.
- Brockport – The Custom House for waterfront dining, 58 Main BBQ & Brew, Barber’s Grill & Tap Room, and other bars and diners clustered near the Welcome Center.
Cigars and where to light up
- Nice Ash Cigars & Lounge (Fairport) – Big humidor, lounge seating, TVs, and events; the main “Rat Pack” lounge play on this stretch.
- On board – Stock up in town and smoke on the aft deck at anchor where local rules allow; late‑night canal cigars are half the point.
How to run the weekend
Day 1 – Macedon/Fairport and first crawl
- Pick up your Erie Canal Adventures or similar boat in Macedon/Fairport, do orientation, and clear the first couple of locks.
- Tie up in Fairport by late afternoon; walk the village and hit PorterHouse for a canalside dinner.
- Crawl Donnelly’s, Mulconry’s, and the American Can Factory cluster (Lulu, Iron Smoke, Triphammer, Tin Cup).
- Finish with cigars at Nice Ash before crashing back on the boat.
Day 2 – Run east or west: Pittsford/Bushnell’s or Spencerport/Brockport
- Push off late morning and cruise at five miles an hour through farm country and old waterfronts.
- If you go east, aim for Pittsford and Bushnell’s Basin: lunch or drinks along Schoen Place, dinner at Erie Grill or Richardson’s Canal House.
- If you go west, aim for Spencerport or Brockport: simple BBQ and bar food, small‑town bars, and a final drink near the Welcome Center.
- Build your own Rat Pack crawl in whichever town you choose, then head back to the boat for cigars.
Day 3 – Slow return and hand‑off
- Make a lazy brunch stop (Pittsford or Fairport) for coffee and a proper breakfast.
- Cruise back toward Macedon, savoring the last stretch of cottonwood fuzz, church spires, and clapboard porches sliding by at five mph.
- Hand the boat back, drive home with your head quieter and shoulders lower than when you left.
Quick planning tips
- Orientation: These outfits are built for beginners; show up early, pay attention to handling, and ask questions at the dock and first lock.
- Designated skipper: Even at canal speed, keep one sober pilot and watch your drinking while under way.
- Lock hours: Check lock operating times so you don’t get stuck on the wrong side; plan overnights where you can walk to bars.
- Seasons: Late spring through early fall is prime; shoulder seasons mean fewer crowds and cheaper boats, but cooler nights on deck.
