Christchurch River Pageant – 25th July 12pm – 2pm
Starting point Tuckton Tea Gardens with finish line at Christchurch Town Quay
The event will open from 10.30am with a number of stalls, activities, water safety demonstrations and presentations about the history of Christchurch. Refreshments will be available to purchase from The Tea Gardens. The Pageant will start at 12 noon.
JOIN US FOR A PARADE OF ALL TYPES OF WATERCRAFT ALONG THE RIVER STOUR IN CHRISTCHURCH ON 25th JULY 2026
RAISING FUNDS FOR THREE FANTASTIC LOCAL CHARITIES
The River Pageant
In 2025, Rotary Clubs of Christchurch and Boscombe & Southbourne launched the spectacular Christchurch River Pageant as a fantastic floating fund-raising event for three local charities and raised over £2500 which we distributed equally between them. This year, we hope to make this river spectacle bolder, brighter and better. Once again, we are asking you to come along, participate and dig deep, in order to help us make it an outstanding success and a marvellous addition to the Christchurch Calendar of Events.
We are inviting owners of small boats, kayaks and SUPs to join us in a leisurely and laid back flotilla down the beautiful River Stour in the sunshine.
Why We Are Running the Event
Stour River is at the heart of our community, and the sea is in our blood. Three seafaring charities have made the river their own for their very different purposes. One to help people to learn to sail and have fun in doing so, and the others to provide a space of recovery and recuperation for survivors of cancer, helping them restore and improve both their physical and mental well-being.
This event raises essential funds so that these charities can continue their support to local people and improve their lives. Your support truly matters.
Our local charities:
The Hengistbury Head Outdoor Centre is a recently created charity whose goal is to take over the disused Hengistbury Head Outdoor Education Centre and run it as a facility for local people to participate in a wide range of outdoor activities and sports.
Bourne Water Dragons (BWD) is an inclusive dragon boating team on the River Stour for all cancer survivors, enabling them to stay active and enjoy themselves by participating in local dragon boating activities which have been shown to aid cancer recovery.
Pink Champagne Breast Cancer Survivors’ Dragon Boat Team was established by a group of breast cancer patients alongside the breast cancer team at the Royal Bournemouth Hospital. Dragon Boating is excellent exercise for Breast Cancer Survivors and has been shown to improve physical and mental wellbeing for those who take part regularly.
Donations
You can donate to our charity fund without taking part in the pageant. Should you wish to take part though we would encourage you to consider the following donations:
Stand Up Paddleboards, Kayaks, canoes: £5
Small Boats: £10
Large Boats: £25
Corporate entries: at your discretion
Terms & Conditions
During the registration process you will be asked to agree to our Terms & Conditions in order to take part in the pageant. You can view our Terms & Conditions here.
Registration
If you own a boat, are a canoeist or paddleboarder then come and join the pageant. Online registrations for 2026 are now closed. You can however register on the day from 10am to 11.15am To save time, you can download the form here.