https://www.scottishcanals.co.uk/visit/canals/visit-the-forth-clyde-canal/attractions/the-falkirk-wheel * Jump to main content * Business and Governance * Work with us * Contact us * Boating + Boating + Canals o Buy a Visitor Licence o Caledonian Canal o Crinan Canal o Forth & Clyde Canal o Union Canal o Short-Term Licence Terms and Conditions + Moorings o Mooring Locations o Mooring Prices o Frequently Asked Questions o Waiting List Information + Important Information o Rules and compliance o Before coming on to the canal o Boat launching o Boating Customer Charter o Boater Services o How to Boat on the Canals + Ongoing works o Report an Issue * Visit + Visit + Canals o Caledonian Canal o Crinan Canal o Forth & Clyde Canal o Union Canal o Monkland Canal + Things to do o Boat tours o Running, walking, hiking o Cycling o Canoe and Kayak Trails o The Great Glen Canoe Trail o Canalside fun o Fishing and magnet fishing o Water play activities o Wildlife spotting + Canal holidays o Boating holidays o Hotels on water o Motorhome Transit Stopovers o Motorhomes at The Falkirk Wheel o Canalside holidays + The Falkirk Wheel * About us + About us + Maintaining and developing the canals o How do we decide? o Our projects + What we care for o Freight and harbour operations o Our environment and heritage + Who we work with o Health and wellbeing o Education o Canal societies and industry partners + Business opportunities and how to work with us o Business Opportunities o Third Party Works o Procurement and Tendering + Public Benefit * Events + Events + Event spaces o The Treehouse o The Egg Shed + Upcoming events + Host your own event o How to host an event + Light up our landmarks + Filming and photography o Filming and photography on Scotland's canals o Filming With drones + Podcasts * News * Shop * Main please enter Search term [ ] please enter Search term [ ] * Boating + Back + Boating + Canals o Canals o Buy a Visitor Licence o Caledonian Canal o Crinan Canal o Forth & Clyde Canal o Union Canal o Short-Term Licence Terms and Conditions + Moorings o Moorings o Mooring Locations o Mooring Prices o Frequently Asked Questions o Waiting List Information + Important Information o Important Information o Rules and compliance o Before coming on to the canal o Boat launching o Boating Customer Charter o Boater Services o How to Boat on the Canals + Ongoing works o Ongoing works o Report an Issue * Visit + Back + Visit + Canals o Canals o Caledonian Canal o Crinan Canal o Forth & Clyde Canal o Union Canal o Monkland Canal + Things to do o Things to do o Boat tours o Running, walking, hiking o Cycling o Canoe and Kayak Trails o The Great Glen Canoe Trail o Canalside fun o Fishing and magnet fishing o Water play activities o Wildlife spotting + Canal holidays o Canal holidays o Boating holidays o Hotels on water o Motorhome Transit Stopovers o Motorhomes at The Falkirk Wheel o Canalside holidays + The Falkirk Wheel * About us + Back + About us + Maintaining and developing the canals o Maintaining and developing the canals o How do we decide? o Our projects + What we care for o What we care for o Freight and harbour operations o Our environment and heritage + Who we work with o Who we work with o Health and wellbeing o Education o Canal societies and industry partners + Business opportunities and how to work with us o Business opportunities and how to work with us o Business Opportunities o Third Party Works o Procurement and Tendering + Public Benefit * Events + Back + Events + Event spaces o Event spaces o The Treehouse o The Egg Shed + Upcoming events + Host your own event o Host your own event o How to host an event + Light up our landmarks + Filming and photography o Filming and photography o Filming and photography on Scotland's canals o Filming With drones + Podcasts * News * Shop * Business and Governance * Work with us * Contact us * Visit * Canals * Forth & Clyde Canal * Forth and Clyde Attractions The Falkirk Wheel The world's one and only rotating boat lift. A marvel of engineering and Scottish Canals' flagship destination, The Falkirk Wheel. Connecting the Forth & Clyde Canal with the Union Canal in a half-turn that takes only five minutes! https://d1hxd0sho1wxko.cloudfront.net/production/ imager-transforms-cache/general/377581/ Untitled-design-5_a37fc3781d14752ebf9d81956716e1cf.png * Details * Activities * Location Boat Trips Take a trip on the world's only rotating boat lift! Get tickets See all activities Take a look at all the things you can do at The Falkirk Wheel Falkirk wheel activities Further information Opening Hours Mondays & Tuesdays CLOSED until 16th February Wednesday - Sunday Open 9:45am Close 3:30pm From Monday 16th February Open 09:45am Close 4pm Prices Adult PS17.95 Concession * PS16.50 Child (5-15yrs) PS9.80 Child (under 5) * Free Registered Carers Free * 60 years+, students and Blue Light card holders (not valid June - September). Tickets are required for every passenger boarding a boat trip, including children under 5. Facilities Cafe Dog friendly Gift shop Family friendly Venue hire * From 6th January to 17th February 2026, we will conduct our annual maintenance works at The Falkirk Wheel. The Wheel and attractions will be open for most of the period, but please check our winter works dates here when planning a visit. Check winter works dates No boat trips are running at The Falkirk Wheel until February 17th due to our boats and the Wheel undergoing their annual maintenence. About The Falkirk Wheel The world's only rotating boat lift, The Falkirk Wheel links the Forth & Clyde Canal to the Union Canal 35 metres above, allowing vessels to sail through the sky thanks to a unique fusion of art and engineering - and the same power it would take to boil eight kettles. Transforming the contaminated site of a former tar works, The Falkirk Wheel opened in 2002 and replaced a flight of 11 locks that once stepped the Union Canal down to the level of the Forth & Clyde, more than 100 feet below. Whereas weary travellers once had a day's heavy work opening and closing 44 lock gates to complete the journey between the two canals, The Falkirk Wheel allows vessels to transit between the two waterways in just a few minutes. Now one of Scotland's busiest tourist attractions, The Falkirk Wheel attracts around 500,000 visitors each year. The Wheel has transformed Falkirk into a key tourism destination, with visitors traveling from all over the world to marvel at the working sculpture which combines modern engineering and technology with ancient principles set out by Archimedes more than 2000 years ago. When one of the structure's gondolas is lowered, the opposite one rises, keeping the vast, 1800 tonne boat lift in perfect balance as it carries canal barges 35 metres into the air in a matter of minutes. Incredibly, the structure uses just 1.5kWh for each rotation. Motorhomes at The Falkirk Wheel Motorhomes at The Falkirk Wheel Plan your overnight stay at the world's only rotating boat lift and experience the spectacle of The Wheel's light show at night. Staying with us Host an event Host an event We have three commercial spaces available to hire for meetings and events. You could even hire the entire Visitor Centre! Click here to learn more Sustainability spotlight Solar Power Solar Power In May 2024 our solar panels provided us with 9% of the energy we used - a whopping 3,743 kWh! Green Tourism Green Tourism We're proud to have been awarded the Gold standard in Green Tourism. Sustainability Sustainability We're working hard to bring the choice of as many eco-friendly, sustainable and locally-sourced products to our gift shop as we can. Useful information Frequently asked questions about visiting The Falkirk Wheel. Accessibility Level Access * There is level access the full the way around our main site and inside the Visitor Centre from our drop-off area, which also has a limited number of blue badge parking spaces. * We have one disabled toilet facility inside the Visitor Centre, located next to the gift shop desk. Please ask one of our staff if you have difficulty finding anything. AccessAble Detailed Access Guide Click here to view our AccessAble Detailed Access Guide for The Falkirk Wheel. Useful information Accessibility The Falkirk Wheel site is fully accessible for visitors with mobility problems and is wheelchair friendly. We have limited Blue Badge parking spaces directly outside the Visitor Centre. Facilities on-site can be used with ease, and a wheelchair or mobility scooter can also be taken onboard the boat trip (please mention this when booking so we can reduce capacity slightly on-board to allow for a chair). Disabled customers are offered boat trip tickets at a concessionary rate. If accompanied by a carer then the carer goes free (but still requires a ticket - please select the correct option when booking). We have concession rates for our young at heart visitors, so our boat trip tickets for over 60s are also available at a discounted price. Do I need to pre-book a boat trip? While we regularly have ticket availability on the day, we strongly recommend booking any tickets in advance to avoid disappointment. We welcome a lot of touring coach parties who regularly fill up our boat trips - our boats only have limited capacity, and we've only got the one Wheel! Dogs Dogs are allowed on-site and in our Visitor Centre, but should be kept on leads at all times. Dogs are allowed to sit at the high tables, but for hygiene reasons only assistance dogs are permitted in the cafe. We have water bowls for dogs at various points around the site. Well behaved pooches are permitted onboard our boat trips, however the experience can be quite overwhelming for those of a nervous disposition, so we advise only confident (and continent) doggies board. What times are the boat trips? During the summer we usually operate a 10-boat schedule daily, with departures at*: 10:00 10:40 11:20 12:00 13:10 13:50 14:30 15:10 15:50 16:30 You can view available slots on our departures schedule by clicking here. * Due to operational demands it may be necessary for us to reduce our boat schedule at short notice. Missing booking confirmations If you have booked one of our boat trips but are missing your email confirmation please check your spam/junk folders. If you still can't find your confirmation please email the team at TFW_Bookings@scottishcanals.co.uk. How long does the boat trip take? Our boat trips take approximately 1 hour, depending on traffic on the waterways. Food, drink and gift shop Our cafe and gift shop are always open during opening hours. We also have a number of food outlets that are open during the summer months* that serve everything from ice cream and pizzas to chilli chips and hot dogs, as well as our famous mac 'n' cheese, toasties and seasonal food offerings. * Subject to availability. Venue hire The Falkirk Wheel has a visitor centre that provides information about the history, operation, and significance of the wheel. The Falkirk Wheel offers three spaces for venue hire - Blueprint Room , Wheel Room, Visitor Centre. How do I book a free carer's ticket? There is an option to select a carer's ticket when booking here. Please bring proof of your carer status to present on arrival. Can I book by phone? We're unable to accept any bookings by telephone. You can book activities and boat trips online by clicking here, or by purchasing on the day (subject to availability). Can I cancel or amend my boat trip booking? We are unable to accept any cancellations or amendments to pre-booked boat trips 48 hours before the scheduled time of departure. Our team will endeavour to make amendments to bookings outwith the 48-hour period, however we cannot guarantee any requested changes. Cancellations before 48-hours will be refunded in full. To make an amendment or cancel your boat trip please email TFW_Bookings@scottishcanals.co.uk with your booking details. Booking with an ASVA pass We always look to welcome our ASVA partners whenever we can. If you're in possession of an ASVA pass please email TFW_Bookings@scottishcanals.co.uk to reserve a booking. Valid ASVA passes must be presented upon arrival. Do you sell gift vouchers? Our Scottish Canals Experience Gift Vouchers gift the key to some of Scotland's most iconic attraction experiences. Perfect for birthdays, anniversaries, special occasions, or just to say thanks, these vouchers can let your loved ones experience parts of Scotland's canals that are rarely seen. Our wide range of gift vouchers can be purchased online only by clicking here. How do I book a group on a boat trip? Groups of more than 15 are entitled to a discounted group rate. Please email TravelTrade@scottishcanals.co.uk to enquire. What happens if I miss my boat trip? We always recommend being in the Visitor Centre at least 10 minutes before your scheduled time of departure. If for any reason you are late for your booking our team may look to rebook you on a later sailing, however if there is no availability we are unable to refund any missed bookings. Is motorhome parking availabile? Yes! We love having our motorhome friends over to stay. You can find out everything you need to know about staying at The Falkirk Wheel overnight by clicking here. Please check in at the Visitor Centre during opening times upon arrival if you're wishing to stay at The Falkirk Wheel. https://d1hxd0sho1wxko.cloudfront.net/production/ imager-transforms-cache/general/252215/ FalkirkWheel-vs_fb7b1150ec0bfe80c95272a1a2d70d7a.jpeg https:// d1hxd0sho1wxko.cloudfront.net/production/imager-transforms-cache/ general/235804/falkrik-wheel_2e4baf5ea190efc7b6bec8b1b0d4eeba.jpg https://d1hxd0sho1wxko.cloudfront.net/production/ imager-transforms-cache/general/252205/ FalkirkWheel_Boat_04_fb7b1150ec0bfe80c95272a1a2d70d7a.jpg https:// d1hxd0sho1wxko.cloudfront.net/production/imager-transforms-cache/ general/252349/ The-Falkirk-Wheel-c-Scottish-Canals_fb7b1150ec0bfe80c95272a1a2d70d7a.jpg https://d1hxd0sho1wxko.cloudfront.net/production/ imager-transforms-cache/general/202944/ The-Falkirk-Wheel-at-night-c-Nick-Millson-960x0_fb7b1150ec0bfe80c95272a1a2d70d7a.jpg https://d1hxd0sho1wxko.cloudfront.net/production/ imager-transforms-cache/general/202919/ The-Falkirk-Wheel-also-features-an-array-of-family-friendly-activities-960x0_fb7b1150ec0bfe80c95272a1a2d70d7a.jpg Contact us Call us 0300 373 0868 Find us The Falkirk Wheel Lime Road Falkirk FK1 4RS Email us TFW_Bookings@scottishcanals.co.uk * Media centre * Accessibility * Privacy Policy * Freedom of Information * Website T&Cs * Work with us * Sign up to our e-zine * Scottish Canals Data Portal Copyright Scottish Canals 2026 * Visit Scottish Canals on Facebook * Visit Scottish Canals on Twitter * Visit Scottish Canals on YouTube * Visit Scottish Canals on LinkedIn * Visit Scottish Canals on Instagram