3 Star Bike Tour Reviews — 1 to 30 of 379

The destination cities were very memorable as well as the ancient olive trees. The seashore was lovely. The wine tasting couple were delightful.

The trip was great, we really enjoyed the freedom of biking during the day and the amazing signage for the trail. The boat accommodations could improve. It is clean and new but the beds could be as one and the comforters and pillows a better quality. A coffee maker in the room would also be a great addition as there is no where to go if you rise before 6:30. It would be nice to have cushions or proper sitting on the balcony. Lunch was supposed to to be prepared but it was a scramble to get food before it was all gone. The bikes were great and in perfect condition

The reason I didn't give a two-star is because the customer service of Tripsite was very responsive and I liked them. The service on boat Primadonna was okay or a thumb down. My husband and I caught a flu on the way flying to Germany so we asked to sit away from other passengers, the waiter did arrange that but then he often forgot to serve us (sigh). Because of the water level was low so they changed itinerary so many times, I could understand but was not pleased. The bus tour in Vienna was not impressed. The communication on boat was mainly in German and the English briefings were not communicated well. If they want more American customers, they should sharpen up their staff's English.

The crew and the group of bikers were wonderful. Our food was delicious.

Most memorable part of the trip was cycling along the coast, staying in small villages, most nights that were on the beach. The accommodations were fine. Really enjoyed the rooms with a balcony. The 1st hotel room in Porto (Trindade) was extremely dirty with stains on the carpet. They actually gave us access to the room before it was cleaned. The balance of the hotels were much better. I would highly recommend using the Ride with GPS navigation system. the organizer supplies the routes to upload. We had difficulty with the navigation system supplied by the organizer. At times it would guide to ride through thick forests, through farmers corn fields, across lakes without a boat. Their navigation system at times told us we were off course, when we actually were not. The ride with GPS gave us more comfort. We did make each segment of the route.

Worst; wine tasting dinner, sleeping hotel duchi and sleeping hotel bontadosi
best; wine tour lungarotti, hotel grappolo d'oro
good; bicycles, service ecologico tours
Already sent extended comment to them, in Dutch.

The boat facilities were good and as described in the material. Quality of food was excellent and the staff on board were amazing - polite, helpful, friendly and the bar prices were quite reasonable. The two guides for the biking were similarly very helpful and friendly, making sure we understood the routes, our bikes were in good order etc. We were warned ahead of time that the biking involved a number of hills and strongly advised to stay with the recommended ebikes, which all of us did. We have been on a number of bike and barge trips in Germany, France, Holland etc and perhaps it is not fair to do a comparison, but we found the following differences:
Most of Croatia was on roads, and although not overly busy, compared somewhat unfavourably with the high quality and extensive bike path systems in other parts of Europe.
All other bike and barge trips involved a breakfast on the boat, then we would make our own bag lunches, leave around 9:00 and have a leisurely ride until noon, stop for an hour at a nice spot, eat lunch then bike for a few more hours before getting back to the boat for supper. In Croatia, it was fairly hard steady biking with most short stops out in the open and very little shade available. Although we were regularly told we could stop and take pictures any time we wanted, it felt like there was a push “get it done”. Most riders were in their 60’s and 70’s with some even older and a few did not do all of the rides.
On other ventures, we would typically have one supper off the boat at our own expense. On the Magellan, some rides were in the morning and some in the afternoon, but all lunches (excellent by the way) were on board and we were left on our own except for only two suppers on board. Bottom line is we had too much “free time” (ie not much to do except for a few ocean swims off the back of the boat), and the evening meal costs added up.
We had understood from others that the Croatian coast was beautiful with so much to see and while we were only exposed to a very limited part of Croatia, we were underwhelmed.
These comments are not meant to disparage Magellan, the guides and the other staff, but are based on our personal preferences.

Beautiful area to ride through. The days were varied and lovely.
The trip needs to have the accommodations changed. Other than the fantastic stay at the rural farm they are very economy and the hotels assign the worst rooms. Some without ac and it hit 101 one day of the trip. We were able to get that room without a change to another one but only when we reached out to the local operator ourselves because the hotel staff were not helpful and told us that they were full so the only room we could have was the one with no AC . Breakfast at that same beachside hotel was really poor.
Bikes needed better maintenance (chain replacement and derailer adjustment) .
If these things were addressed, this would be a five star review for sure.
Local staff were great. Very helpful and responsive.

The trip was great but Unfortunately we had cold wet weather for a few days which was annoying. The staff were good and very helpful. The scenery along the trails was mixed from incredible to okay and we had some special moments throughout the tour . The bikes could do with being upgraded to be more comfortable with wider tires for safety and suspension for comfort. . Overall the tour was fun and we made a lot of new friends.

Biking was more strenuous than anticipated. Didn’t realize there was so much van transportation from boat to biking locations. Very disappointed in Normandy and American Cemetery experience. Only 35 minutes allotted. Should have spent at least two hours there. Guides were excellent. Boat service was excellent.

This tour gave us lots to do, and lots to think about once we got home. Northern Zealand is beautiful, even when seen through lots and lots of rain. We were prepared for the rain with rain gear. We were not prepared for the impact that heavy rain (and one day with hail) would have on the unpaved sections of the tour. Most of the unpaved sections included large gravel pieces, and navigating though these areas was particularly difficult in the rain. In addition, one of our e-bikes quit working and so this person got to ride his heavier e-bike without the battery function for two days. He was eventually given a new bike, and a refund to make up for the inconvenience. We also think it would have been helpful to have a way to attach our phones to the handlebars so it was easier to hear and see the GPS directions. When it was raining and the phones had to be in the plastic covered attachment on the front, you couldn't see them. And when it was hot, the phones overheated in the plastic. I would say that the biggest positive surprise of the tour were the evening meals. We had opted for full board, and the dining experiences in the evening were amazing. The food was delicious and the presentation was beautiful.

Time on the beautiful Thalassa was wonderful. Some of the rides were quite challenging, both in the elevation gain, length of elevation gain and traffic. However, others were amazing, especially when we were in areas with very little traffic. I would not rate this, an easy ride by any means. Each day started with an uphill climb because that’s the topography however, there were plenty of undulating hills, delightful, switchbacks, great views, and the smell of pine and thyme. I liked the swim stops and liked the combination of eating on the boat and eating at local restaurants. I appreciated hearing about the Greek gods that “inhabited” these islands. It would have been great to have access to a cappuccino machine, a luxury some boats provide.

I had a good time but I think a lot could have been done better. I was concerned about the health and safety of those participating, including the guide. The weather during the tour was very hot, yet the guide said there was no heat protocol in the company. I worry about the next group that would have been cycling in +40 C temperatures. There was a bit of discussion every evening about the heat and consequent route modifications, and everyone was offered an e-bike because of it, but the young people in the group (and some of the older ones) mostly wanted to take the preestablished route. That meant that I spent half of the trip on the boat. Why wasn't there a system where the cyclists could leave considerably earlier to avoid the afternoon heat? There were various arguments given why this couldn't happen, but none of them seemed very convincing. On one day it took the barge a long time to get to the destination, so the argument was that we'd be waiting at the other end in the heat for the boat. But from a health perspective, waiting in the shade for the boat would have been safer than cycling through the very hot afternoons. Other days the boat got to the next destination early. We could have done our circuit and gotten back to it early.

The company should have had systems in place to deal with the heat. The only one they offered was an e-bike (I had already paid to hire one, so this wasn't a modification for me). The tour guide was a nice guy but his favourite expression seemed to be 'what can you do?'. I would have much preferred someone who took charge, recognised the dangers, and was more forward in suggesting modifications. Overall I felt quite unsafe.

As an example of feeling unsafe, on one day I was left behind by the group because I faced a large deal of traffic. Even the 'sweep' went ahead of me. Eventually the sweep saw me and waited, but we had lost the group. I was amazed that the sweep didn't have the phone number of the guide or the ship. Why wasn't it mandatory that we all write this down/create a contact, before we embarked on the first day. The tour guide said his number had been on the board since the beginning, but had never urged us to write it down. It would have been such a simple thing to do.

There was also poor route planning. On one day the route took us up a very steep potholed path (to the Sancerre village), and three cyclists came off their bikes, each with considerable bruises and cuts. My friend was one of them. The tour guide washed her wound at the top, but wasn't aware of the catastrophe on the route till we all pushed our bikes to the top. He was quite hard of hearing, so I'm not sure if he didn't hear from others what had happened or was himself too exhausted to descend to give help. On this matter, he wasn't young, and I worried for his health having to ride in the very punishing heat too.  SHOW MORE 

Our 5 star rating is based on Sophie and her team looking after us from when we organised our trip in Australia. Although I won’t go into detail in this review survey. We will personally write to Sophie with a number of improvements to improve local operations to help improve the experience of future travelers on this tour.

Overall the trip was wonderful but I only got to ride the bikes one day. You incorrectly described the biking as easy/ moderate. After booking and paying for plane tickets, right before we left, I got information describing the biking as 4/5. I would not have booked this trip if I had known it was not easy. Some other passengers and the guides were also upset. It put us all in a difficult/ dangerous position. I would appreciate a response concerning this matter. Thank you.

The other passengers, fellow riders were skilled annd pleasant. August and head server high quality. . Boat clean. Crew AOK. Boat doesn't use sails. Mainsail boom bolted in place and inoperative

Wonderful scenery , small villages , the Danube River, the accommodations on the Vivienne were satisfactory .
The staff were friendly and accommodating, our dining room waiter Canon made us feel welcomed and looked after all our needs.Dietary requests were not completely met compared to previous tours.
If we were to compare this tour to a tour on a smaller barge ,as opposed to a larger barge we would definitely opt for a smaller vessel after this experience .

Our stay at the Convento de São Paulo was exceptional. Lots to explore in the hotel and grounds. The food was great.
The 12 speed ebikes were the best we have used on several trips we have taken in Europe. Having the extra lower gears makes a big difference if you want to minimize the amount of power used. The tour staff service was excellent.

The food was very simple and the tour , very fast , all the Guides run a lot , we donn't have time to stop , take photos. The scenery was beautiful, but we couldn't enjoy it while cycling. The tour of the Netherlands and Germany was much more pleasant. But the boat's crew was very friendly.

I enjoyed cycling through scenic villages, seeing wildflowers, visiting the Watersnood (Flood museum), sampling amazing meals by fabulous chef, cavorting with small group passengers on this guided trip. The Feniks is an old small barge with lots of character.

I was disappointed the Tulip trip was tulip-less, thus my reason for knocking off 1 star. I understand there were maintenance issues on the canal that prevented us visiting Keukenhof Gardens & seeing tulip fields, just wished Tripsite notified us at least 1-2 days in advance so that we could make our own arrangements to see the fabled gardens. Another star knocked off due to guiding portion of trip which could be better managed: stick with nightly overview for next day's riding, biking more along canals and less through farmlands, and include stops to visit St. Bavo’s Cathedral. I emailed in advance confirming if Kinderdijk was on itinerary and was informed it was not. So I booked separate trip afterwards to visit the place. On the bike/barge trip we ended biking to Kinderdijk, so we were not able to get our separate tickets refunded.

We've done a few, this wasn't our favorite. The guides and the staff were lovely. Aside from the island of Ven we weren't too impressed with a lot of the scenic routes. I feel bad saying this but if they're really looking to make a better experience, the food could use some improving. The soups were wonderful, desserts too. My husband doesn't eat fish, he noted that, but no options available, breakfast after 8 days was unappealing. The rooms could use a little air fresheners too. It smelled quite moldy. The staff was lovely though. We will book again.

The Torre do Rio and Parador de Baiona hotels were the highlight of the trip.

I had some frustrations:
1. The Ride with GPS directions did not match the GPS device directions
2. The GPS device directions were wrong for the boat crossing and no advanced warning that the boat launch location may differ was given.
3. The route lead you to paths that were clearly marked as bicycles prohibited
4. The elevation gain numbers did not match across any of the literature. It was off by hundreds of meters depending on where you looked.

The scenery on the biking routes were incredible and Brugge was amazing

The scenery on the biking routes were incredible and Brugge was amazing

The terrain made this a difficult and technical ride. The word ‘easy’ should not be included in the description.
Also I thought the group size, 21, was too big. It is listed as an e-bike tour but 6 people elected to ride regular bikes, which caused problems on the steep uphill portions.
Except for Porto, the hotels were very nice but we didn’t get much time to enjoy them. There were too many stops during the day but mainly for snacks (provided), rarely did we stop for an actual lunch.

The bike rides and the scenery. Sorry to have missed Deventer but got to see a bit of Nijmegen instead

Our cabin was extremely cramped and unsatisfactory. There was no emergency evacuation drill. The bike tours had too many people to feel safe. Food was mediocre.

Country side riding. Excellent crew. The crew was excellent. Boat was nice

The trip itself was fine. My rating of 3 out of 5 is due to inexperienced cyclists in our group. My option is that this trip is not easy as advertised. Holland and Belgium are flat but wind and rain add to the difficulty level. Also, the trip involved crowded bike paths and urban cycling especially in Antwerp, Ghent and Brugge. Crowded cycle paths, cycling in traffic and cycling over tram tracks really freaked out some of our group. eBikes are not the answer. Our group had inexperienced cyclists on eBikes and they created the majority of the problems. There were at least seven falls from bikes during our week of cycling. That said, Marco and the staff of the Clare de Lune were fantastic as well as our guide, Annita.

The hike through the cloud forest with the very knowledgeable guide was amazing, seeing and learning about the wildlife and flora.
The hotel in San Jose (1st & last nights) was marginal compared to the others. The tour information provided while accurate was lacking in detail, particularly concerning transportation between venues. I found all the individual guides for each of the several activities great and very helpful - five stars for the guides!