River Thames, London, England
© Puthipong Worasaran/Getty Images
Row your boat gently down the Thames
Welcome to the Totally Thames Festival in London, England. Each year it brings together communities, artists, and nature enthusiasts in a month-long tribute to the river. Highlights for 2024 include the annual boat marathon, Great River Race, and the Clean Thames Challenge.
The Thames, the longest river entirely in England, contains more than 80 islands along its course. Starting in Gloucestershire in southwest England, it winds through cities like Oxford, Windsor, and London, pictured above, flowing for 215 miles before merging with the North Sea on the southeast coast. Once heavily polluted, it is now said to be one of the world's cleanest rivers flowing through a major city and is a haven for an array of wildlife including mute swans and bottlenose dolphins.