Sailing Home

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

Windmills, cycling and millions of tulips. What could be more wonderful? The barge, Sailing Home, was by far the nicest vessel we have stayed on for a bike and barge. The food was amazing, the Captain very welcoming, and the staff efficient and friendly. The itinerary was interesting and well planned. Do be sure to dress for the changeable weather!

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

This was a most excellent way to explore the county, with most excellent service on the boat, Sailing Home. We liked the small size of the group (23 riders, 1 tour guide, the captain, the chef, and 2 assistants). And the chef was amazing. She served superb dinners from different regions or counties, each with a guided explanation of what the foods represent. After dinner we had well paced guided tours of the cities we were docked at. Ghent, Belgium was my favorite. The guest quarters were top notch and we’ll maintained. I would love to sail with them again.

  Sailing Home Sul da Holanda
Holanda

Sailing on the barge through Rotterdam harbour. This bike and barge tour was amazing. The barge was so comfortable,the crew were wonderful,food was absolutely first class.Our guide did a fabulous job,and was so nice.We would urge anyone thinking about travelling in Holland to consider doing a bike and barge tour with this company.We are in the upper age group,and had no trouble keeping up.

  Sailing Home North Holland Tour
Holanda

A perfect experience - great staff - very flexible - excellent meals

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

I cannot say enough about this trip. The entire experience was amazing. We were on the Sailing Home which is beautifully appointed and the rooms are small but quite comfortable. The crew made sure that our every need was met. We got caught in a bad rain storm one afternoon and when we arrived back at the boat we were greeted by the crew with baskets for our wet shoes and jackets to dry everything for us before the next day. The food was amazing, every meal was 5 stars and the chef was not only talented, but charming! Our tour guide, Seitse, was a true scholar who loves his country and is proud to share his knowledge of the land, the people and the rich history. Every night he offered walking tours through the town for anyone who was interested. We saw the country up close and personal, riding through the fields, towns and neighborhoods in a way we we could not have done without the bikes and our guide. We will definitely do another trip, however the next one will have a lot to live up to!

  Sailing Home Bruges a Amsterdã
Bélgica, Holanda

Coming around a corner in rural netherlands and seeing a tradition windmill complete with thatched roof! Beautiful!

  Sailing Home Bruges a Amsterdã
Bélgica, Holanda

The Sailing Home exceeded my expectations! The crew was excellent, the scenery magnificant, and I totally didn't expect a French-trained gourmet chef to prepare our meals complete with nightly explanation of each dish and it's country of origin. This is an intimate cruise ship experience for only 24 persons.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

The most memorable part was getting to see the countries from a bicycle. The weather was not good and the tour guide did an excellent job of juggling the personalities with varying degrees of athletic fitness. At 53-58, there were people on the boat that were over 20 years older than my wife and I, and as a result, some rides were cut short somewhat - this was a bit disappointing as my wife and I had hoped to ride at least the distances advertised. One additional constructive comment - some of the bikes were not in good shape. The bike set aside for me had its front brakes permanently rubbing and the solution was for me to ride a women's small bike for the week. Disappointing. The trip was excellent overall and we will do a bike and barge tour again.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

The food on the barge was amazing! We had strong winds for the bike but our leader made modifications to give people options for shorter routes. Amazing trip!!

  Sailing Home Sul da Holanda
Holanda

My wife and I had never done a bike trip before, let alone a boat and bike one. Our South Holland Tour turned out be fabulous that way exceeded expectations. The Dutch landscape was beautiful. Our boat, Sailing Home, was charming and immaculate. A daily highlight was getting to know our fellow shipmates over dinner. And what dinners! They were of varying cuisines lovingly prepared by Eline, our Cordon Bleu-trained chef. Some random thoughts: 1) we brought our own helmets, but it was unnecessary as the boat had helmets of varying sizes, 2) I was anxious about the quality of the bicycles on board which turned out to be needless worry; our 24-speed bikes were in great condition, 3) we had no idea who our fellow travelers might be, and strangers became friends who shared email addresses at trip’s end. We’ve had multiple vacations in Asia and Europe; our South Holland Tour was one of the memorable.

  Sailing Home Autêntica Holanda
Holanda

We really enjoyed the rural countryside for our biking tour. We would bike past horses, cows, swans and goats and stop in very quaint towns. I rented a regular bike because I thought the Netherlands was very flat, there was more incline and distance than I was prepared for. I was able to borrow another guest e-bike a few days and in retrospect I should have rented one. But it also made me realize I can go to other countries that are more of a challenge, I would just rent an e-bike. We also brought our own helmets, but the ones they had on the boat looked fine. My husband brought his cycle computer which was a good idea to see our distance etc. We really enjoyed the biking tour!

  Sailing Home Autêntica Holanda
Holanda

The whole barge experience with fellow bikers was awesome. There were only 23 of us and we all connected. The dining was exceptional. Our guide lacked knowledge of the tour and did not provide enough cultural experience.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

The mighty River Rhine was very memorable

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

This trip was fabulous! The biking in the countryside was beautiful! I especially enjoyed seeing the bounding hares, swans, sheep, flowers and lovely homes. The tulip, daffodil and hyacinth fields were spectacular and an experience I will never forget. The traditional Dutch dinners were delicious and the stories about the food were entertaining and fun. I did find the city biking frightening at times with the crowds. One tip is be prepared for this and stay near the guide in the heavy traffic areas. I thoroughly enjoyed the sites especially the factory in Delft, Harlem, biking through the Sand Dunes and Keukenhof gardens. A lovely country with so much to experience.
I think this trip is an incredible value for the price. I can’t wait to take another bike and barge trip.

  Sailing Home Bruges a Amsterdã
Bélgica, Holanda

Sailing Home was a great boat, well finished, very clean, lots of room and nice staff. The trip from Bruges to Amsterdam was very scenic and flat country yet the riding did not offer the flexibility friends had experienced with other tours.
We had expected to ride 30kms (+or- 10) a day and were somewhat surprised to hear the daily ride was 60 kms. That said, on one day, it was possible to ride 20 kms in the morning then 40 kms in the afternoon as the bike route crossed the boats route.
There were nine in our group and to a person we thought it would have been far better to have the boat dock at mid day for people wanting to ride a shorter distance, then head to the overnight stopping point. We would have liked the option to stop in some local villages, had lunch in a cafe and strolled at some of the scenic spots. It is not supposed to be the Tour de France.
Would we do it again, yes, but at our own pace, so we would do it 'self guided' next time as I don't think our guide could comprehend our desire to enjoy all the joys of the ride.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

Great staff making us feel very welcomed and well cared for, from our guide Pete to the lady captain. I would highly recommend this company.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

Best part of trip traveling with friends old and new. Beautiful scenery. Great food. A great challenge. Looking forward to my next trip

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

Most memorable part? Scenery and food and small group size

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

Our trip on the Sailing Home Amsterdam to Brugge was far more than we expected. The cabins are spacious enough for 2 people and the bathroom was well equipped and plenty enough space. The outside deck area was very social and the best way to finish the day with sundowners and your fellow cyclists. Loved this trip and would highly recommend.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

The scenery - Bruges was like a storybook. The food - The chef on our barge went out of her way to accommodate my family’s vegan requirements, and she did it with style.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

Enjoyed the accommodations, crew was great, and cycling was easy . Looking at another Bike & Barge adventure!

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

Amsterdam to Bruges July 2018. We loved the whole aspect of cycling to meet our barge (our floating hotel) at the end of each day. The accommodations on the Sailing Home were great and the barge is a handsome one. Staff were friendly and relaxed but attentive and personable. Our cycling guide Karline was very competent and kindly took us into almost every town each night for a walking tour. Her historical knowledge of the areas in the Netherlends and Belgium we visited were an unexpected bonus. The food was great on board and most enjoyable. I will definitely recommend this trip to others.

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

I loved being part of the Southern Holland Tulip Tour! The biking was wonderful, the scenery was unparalleled, and the Sailing Home was comfortable and well appointed. Staff was uniformly pleasant and accommodating. I enjoyed bonding with the other riders in the group , mostly from the Central and Western US and Canada. Our guide was knowledgeable and entertaining, however I feel that keeping our large group of 26 riders together on the rides was a challenge, and he would have benefited from the use of "corners" to make sure that all the riders were clear on the turns. Also, we were each given a booklet with the daily ride routes, but it would have been helpful to go over the next days map each evening so that we could visualize the lay of the land.
Great trip all around and I am hoping to join another in the future!

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

We came to see the tulips and that was definitely accomplished. Albeit a bit late for most of the major fields, but Keukenhof was spectacular. Cycling through the polders and quiet countryside was also very enjoyable.
On the negative side, the last days cycling into Amsterdam and departure from the boat was a bit rushed.

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

Loved the comfortable accommodations on the barge.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

This was our first trip and we weren't sure what to expect. We had a phenomenal time. It was just the right level of difficulty in riding and a perfect amount of time to explore the area. The barge was a good, clean place to stay and the staff did an excellent job keeping it clean and keeping us well fed. We would highly recommend to our friends.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

The whole experience was wonderful. Pete was an excellent guide, crew and cook great and the group was very friendly.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

Enjoyed biking through the fields of heather, beautiful! Tip for others: use a gel seat!

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

We had an exceptional guide. He had a lot of local knowledge and often altered our route in order to extend our cycling experience.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

Most Memorable Part: Amsterdam and a week of perfect weather

  Sailing Home Bruges a Amsterdã
Bélgica, Holanda

I have done this trip from Amsterdam to Bruges as well. I found this version to not be as enjoyable. The reason was there was not as much on the route to see and take in. I think that there are some differences do to which barge you are on which may restrict the routes. Bruges is amazing as was Amsterdam but in between nothing exciting. The barge was amazing (Sailing Home) with a wonderful chef. I love this style of touring and have done 8 of them and will do more!

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

What a dream vacation! Eating like a king every morning & night, and riding far enough in the time between to feel like you're burning it all off. My wife and I had a wonderful time with the three couples from our church who made the trip with us; the pace was leisurely enough for the least athletic of us, yet brisk enough to keep everyone's attention, with lovely scenery throughout. We're only back a few weeks and already thinking about where to take our next biking vacation! Thanks for such a memorable trip.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

This is the BEST way to experience Europe! The countryside, scenery and little villages were breathtaking! We absolutely loved the food and experience on the barge! An experience for ALL your senses!

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

This was such a fabulous way to explore a new country that we had never been to before! Waking up in a new town every day, with all of our food & lodging needs cared for, and our only job was to SEE NEW SCENERY! Such a fun way to get up close & personal with the people & culture of the Netherlands & Germany! The staff was amazing, food was DELICIOUS, bikes were practically NEW. We are already researching our NEXT bike & barge trip! THE BEST!!!

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Bruges
Holanda, Bélgica

The most memorable parts were the scenery, the cute villages, the windmills and the dunes with great people and staff.

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

The biking and scenery was amazing. The collective group, including staff, became family. The best was the fields in bloom with tulips and such. Wow!

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

This trip was absolutely wonderful. Even with a day or two of challenging weather.....with the right clothes it didn't matter. We were surrounded by such beauty every day and the people of the Netherlands are top notch.....you really couldn't find people that are sweeter and friendlier anywhere. Five Star Plus!!!

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

Fantastic dinners & wonderful guide, captain, staff!

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

Loved the Netherlands countryside. Beautiful flowers and farmland and great trails.
Also the friendly and professional staff.

  Sailing Home North Holland Tour
Holanda

It was a great bicycle trip. Beautiful countryside, bike paths were excellent and the guide "Hugo" was exceptional. Barge was perfect. We were able to see the real Holland, not the typical tourist city Holland. Communication and arrangement of the tour with Tripsite was very good. Thanks.

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

Overall I really enjoyed our trip. However, our guide Piet left a lot to be desired. He got us from the boat and back each day but that was about it. We had very few stops during the day for water breaks or photos. He did not provide any "tour guide" type of information like history or pointing anything out of interest, or even a clear idea of the details of the following day. While we got to all the towns on the itinerary, everything was pretty much closed after dinner so we couldn't do any sightseeing in towns on our own. The guide on our sister ship "Liza Marleen" did much more with her group.

On the plus side, the barge Sailing Home was excellent and the crew was great - very friendly and helpful. Our chef Markus was amazing.

I had an electric bike and I loved it. It made the trip much easier and enjoyable. Highly recommend it for inexperienced bikers.

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

The tour was wonderful! We had clear weather the entire week and a great group of people to ride with. The "Sailing Home" really was comfort plus, with an attentive and helpful staff.

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

Loved it all! Wonderful staff, wonderful route, wonderful fellow passengers, wonderful guide! We could not have asked for anything more except less wind as we rode through the windmill area into a very strong headwind! Hardest day's riding we've ever done! But hey, this is Holland renowned for "wind"mills!! Keukenhof was amazing, everyone should visit this place once in their lifetime!

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

It was our first bike and barge trip and we loved it so much we've already booked next years trip!

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

Our guide was ok but I've had better ones on previous trips. It was a lot of going through the motions since he had done 15-20 trips prior to ours it was maybe a case of being burned out. A bit more interaction on where we were going and what we were seeing would have been nice. Overall trip was top notch though as usual.

  Sailing Home Sul da Holanda
Holanda

The food was spectacular on both tours. The crew and guides were excellent on both tours. In particular, having guides with expertise in the history and art of the area is much more important than expertise in cycling. We have been recommending these tours to friends and family all summer long. Thank you.

  Sailing Home Amsterdã a Colônia
Holanda, Alemanha

The Amsterdam to Cologne Bike and Barge trip overall was very nice. I would have altered some of the biking to avoid Dusseldorf's industrial areas which were not very appealing. Otherwise the barge and their staff were excellent, the guide was good, but got lost a few times. In any case I would recommend it to friends.

  Sailing Home Tour das tulipas no sul da Holanda
Holanda

Here it is almost 3 months following our trip and I'm just getting around to writing how wonderful everything was. It exceeded our expectations (which were high to begin with). To refresh your memory,we were the Nisky Riders.Our focus of the trip were the flower fields in the Netherlands and they were spectacular. We were on the Zwaan's maiden voyage for 2012 and loved the entire experience of being on the barge. The crew were very endearing, food was delicious (Dorus, the cook, had us hooked on the first dinner). We were accommodated beautifully. I have a gluten allergy and they took great care of me.

 A group of friends is currently on the Brugge to Amsterdam ride and LOVING it.

 We are exploring your site for our 2013 ride,  we would like to plan something for late spring or early summer. So I will be in touch in the near future.

It all started with you and our experience with you sealed the deal. You added a personal quality that is much appreciated.