Unless you are into clearing weeds on behalf in Inland Waterways i’d avoid the Grand Canal/River Barrow at all costs. We had hired a barge from Monasterevin for the bank holiday weekend at a cost of 465euro for 3 days only to have to abandon the holiday after only one day due to a constant struggle with a canal choked with weeds which made navigation nigh on impossible. Not the sort of relaxing holiday we had envisaged and not one we’d recommend to anyone. It took us 3 hours to navigate less than one mile as the weeds were constantly choking the propeller and tiller of the barge.