Built on the Thames. Built for the Thames.
GoKayak grew out of Thames Kayaking — a business started by one man with an inflatable kayak and a simple idea. We're carrying that spirit forward, with more collection points, more equipment and a whole new way to get people on the water.
A Three-Day Paddle and a Question That Started Everything
Thames Kayaking was born on the river. Dave Gregson spent three days paddling the Thames from the River Thame all the way to Barnes — and the entire way, people stopped to ask him the same question: "Are you allowed to kayak on the Thames, and where can we go?"
He flew to South Africa the same day he got off the water. By the time he came back two weeks later, the idea had taken shape. Dave started Thames Kayaking to answer that question properly — and for years, he did exactly that, introducing hundreds of people to the Thames by kayak.
What Dave understood from the start was that most people arriving at the riverside are first-timers. The barrier isn't the river itself — it's the confidence to try it. Thames Kayaking was built to lower that barrier, and that instinct runs through everything GoKayak does today.
Dave Gregson — Thames Kayaking
Dave Gregson is the kind of person who paddles the length of the Thames on a whim and comes back with a business idea. He started Thames Kayaking after that three-day trip — not because he spotted a gap in the market, but because people kept stopping him on the bank to ask how they could do the same thing.
"Many people stopped and chatted, and the most common question asked was: are you allowed to kayak on the Thames and where can we go kayaking?"
Dave Gregson, Founder — Thames KayakingBeyond the paddling, Dave brought something harder to replicate: a deep knowledge of the Thames, its history, its wildlife and the communities along its banks. He knew the river the way people know a place they've spent years on — the quiet stretches, the landmarks, the stories worth telling.
That knowledge, and his instinct for making people feel at home on the water, is the foundation GoKayak is built on.
Dave is now retiring, and GoKayak has taken on Thames Kayaking to carry the business forward. The river is the same. The welcome is the same. The scale is just a little bigger.
More Locations. More Equipment. Same River.
GoKayak is operated by Saxon Outdoors Ltd and trades across four collection points on the non-tidal Thames — Datchet, Runnymede, Laleham and Walton-on-Thames. Where Thames Kayaking operated from a single spot, GoKayak brings equipment directly to the riverside at each collection point, so customers can start their adventure without travelling to a hire centre.
We offer kayaks, paddleboards and bicycles — equipment suited to different abilities and interests, all on the same stretch of river Dave paddled when the whole thing started. The same safety-first approach, the same welcome for first-timers, and the same belief that the Thames is one of the best places in England to spend a day outdoors.
Laleham is where in-person booking is available: our partners at Laleham Camping Club can take a walk-up slot booking on the day, subject to availability. Every other booking is made online, and every hire — walk-up or online — is still a booked slot.
How We Do Things
Come and see what Dave started.
Four collection points, one river. Choose your equipment and slot, and book online.
Built on the Thames. Built for the Thames.
GoKayak grew out of Thames Kayaking — a business started by one man with an inflatable kayak and a simple idea. We're carrying that spirit forward, with more collection points, more equipment and a whole new way to get people on the water.
A Three-Day Paddle and a Question That Started Everything
Thames Kayaking was born on the river. Dave Gregson spent three days paddling the Thames from the River Thame all the way to Barnes — and the entire way, people stopped to ask him the same question: "Are you allowed to kayak on the Thames, and where can we go?"
He flew to South Africa the same day he got off the water. By the time he came back two weeks later, the idea had taken shape. Dave started Thames Kayaking to answer that question properly — and for years, he did exactly that, introducing hundreds of people to the Thames by kayak.
What Dave understood from the start was that most people arriving at the riverside are first-timers. The barrier isn't the river itself — it's the confidence to try it. Thames Kayaking was built to lower that barrier, and that instinct runs through everything GoKayak does today.
Dave Gregson — Thames Kayaking
Dave Gregson is the kind of person who paddles the length of the Thames on a whim and comes back with a business idea. He started Thames Kayaking after that three-day trip — not because he spotted a gap in the market, but because people kept stopping him on the bank to ask how they could do the same thing.
"Many people stopped and chatted, and the most common question asked was: are you allowed to kayak on the Thames and where can we go kayaking?"
Dave Gregson, Founder — Thames KayakingBeyond the paddling, Dave brought something harder to replicate: a deep knowledge of the Thames, its history, its wildlife and the communities along its banks. He knew the river the way people know a place they've spent years on — the quiet stretches, the landmarks, the stories worth telling.
That knowledge, and his instinct for making people feel at home on the water, is the foundation GoKayak is built on.
Dave is now retiring, and GoKayak has taken on Thames Kayaking to carry the business forward. The river is the same. The welcome is the same. The scale is just a little bigger.
More Locations. More Equipment. Same River.
GoKayak is operated by Saxon Outdoors Ltd and trades across four collection points on the non-tidal Thames — Datchet, Runnymede, Laleham and Walton-on-Thames. Where Thames Kayaking operated from a single spot, GoKayak brings equipment directly to the riverside at each collection point, so customers can start their adventure without travelling to a hire centre.
We offer kayaks, paddleboards and bicycles — equipment suited to different abilities and interests, all on the same stretch of river Dave paddled when the whole thing started. The same safety-first approach, the same welcome for first-timers, and the same belief that the Thames is one of the best places in England to spend a day outdoors.
Laleham is where in-person booking is available: our partners at Laleham Camping Club can take a walk-up slot booking on the day, subject to availability. Every other booking is made online, and every hire — walk-up or online — is still a booked slot.
How We Do Things
Come and see what Dave started.
Four collection points, one river. Choose your equipment and slot, and book online.