4 Star Belgium Tour Reviews — 31 to 60 of 175

The crew were super friendly and worked tirelessly to keep us comfortable and happy. The meals were delicious and beautifully plated. Our cycle guide Kitty was patient and friendly in spite of an unexpected reroute. Unfortunately this reroute had us cycling 50-60km each day with very little to see other than country side. Cycling shorter days would have allowed more time to explore the towns & villages. When we docked, our suppers took 2 hrs which prevented us from seeing some villages in the daytime. One final observation: we felt that the cyclers should have been split into two groups each with their own guide. One faster group and one slower group. The faster group often had to wait for the slower group to catch up.

Overall, it was an amazing experience. A huge thank you to Paul, Pim, Inma, Karin & Kitty for making us feel so welcome on the lovely “Sailing Home” barge.

Scenery and the food was delicious every meal. Rooms were better than expected.

We throughly enjoyed cycling through the villages and rural landscape.
We had a few days of strong winds which we understand is very normal for this region - this made for challenging cycling on a hybrid bike.
The bicycles were very old and needed replacing plus 2 bike bags should have been provided to hold rain gear. The GPS app wasn’t reliable and required frequent rebooting. Our cabin was infested with sewer flies - very off putting and disturbing.

We loved the beautiful countryside of the Netherlands and Belgium! The cities of Amsterdam, Antwerp, Ghent, and Brugges were all so unique and beautiful! We thoroughly enjoyed our time on the MV FLUVIUS. The captain and staff that run the boat were excellent! Our cabin and the rest of the boat were freshly updated and extremely clean. The chef was outstanding and made every meal unique and delicious! His curried soups and lasagna were especially popular! The most memorable part for us is the wonderful people that we met and travelled with!!

Meeting other ship mates, seeing the country side of The Netherlands and Belgium, relaxing after a great day of riding.

Scenery, staff was wonderful.
Need better lighting in bathrooms. Hard to put on makeup with a tiny light behind you in ceiling.

O que mais gostei foi passar pelas cidades pitorescas e lindas do trajeto, ver o mar e a natureza singular dessa região. A manutenção das bikes deixou muito a desejar, por duas vezes tivemos que parar e buscar apoio para conserto, o que também ficou por nossa conta apesar de utilizarmos os telefones de apoio. Já tive outras duas experiências com a tripsite e as bikes eram ótimas, o que não posso dizer dessa vez.

The vibe on the boat was great! The chef was amazing, and so accommodating to my food allergy! Two great bike tour-guides!

Suggestions - budget for at least one beverage included for dinner. It was a nice treat on the first and last day to have a complimentary drink pairing. The wifi on the boat was really bad; I know we were warned that it might not be strong, but it just didn't work most of the time. That was frustrating, not being able to communicate with family, check the scores of Eurocup games, etc.

the best part was the absolutely most beautiful scenery in Belgium and the Netherlands! Be sure to check ahead for the latest weather to be prepared for biking and be prepared to have very spotty internet on the boat.

A fantastic trip. There were so many great town and villages along the way. The bike routes and hotels were very good. Unfortunately there was a strong prevailing wind from west to east. If we were to do this trip again we would go from Bruges to Amsterdam.

We have done many biking trips in Europe, most self guided. We did find the pace a little slow, but got into the groove with the group on the very good hybrid bikes-thanks Coene. Cristina's hospitality and food was wonderful and both her and Coene are very good hosts. Their staff were also extremely good.
The boat was very comfortable, cabins big enough to not feel claustrophobic, beds comfy, appreciated the heated towel rail to dry washing.
For us the best part of a trip is seeing the countryside, smelling the roses and taking time to look at the scenery.

The crew was great and the food was excellent. The bikes were good.

The route, due to detours had its challenges

Loved the Merlijn boat , Coen & Cristina were wonderful hosts , Cristina was a fabulous cook & hostess, so accomodating. Coen very knowledgeable & helpful.
Might be helpful to have 2 cycling guides as we found the pace very slow at times , even though we were on the hybrid bikes. Francine did let us go ahead at times. Bedrooms were very comfortable, heated towel rails great for drying biking shorts overnight.
We would consider going again but probably a week trip.

The itinerary for this trip was very scenic with a good mix of countryside and small towns. The hotels were nicely located and appointed.

Route: nice combination of countryside and small towns. The GPS tracks that were provided worked great on our Garmin device. Getting into Amsterdam was a bit unnerving so not sure if there would have been a little less busy route to the hotel.

Hotels: all were located near city center and within walking distance of town sites and restaurants. The Hotel Mondragon in Zierikzee was wonderful; the host at Hotel Loskade was very helpful and accommodating. The NH Bruges was an ‘upgrade’ and while the location was very good, the hotel itself was worn and in need of maintenance and upgrade. All hotels provided nice buffet breakfasts.

Bikes : the hybrid bike was comfortable and well maintained. The e-bike was comfortable and the battery had a very long charge time. The hybrid bike came with handlebars that adjusted with a lever however the e-bike did not. The e-bike required a multi-tool to make this adjustment. A crank arm and pedal fell off the e-bike while riding and the thread was stripped taking some expertise to repair. Thankfully, our travel companion brought a multi-tool otherwise we would have been unable to fix these two issues in the field. Our travel companions had a couple mechanical issues and were told to find a bike shop for repair. That is fine if you are in a large town during the week, but on the road there were very few. Highly suggest including a multi-tool in the repair kit that is provided.

We had a pleasant week exploring!

Your website should warn people if they choose a tandem bike, that only one pannier is provided for two people. No handle bar bag is provided.
An additional very low cost tool that should be included in every pannier is a bike multitool. You are riding a bike in the countryside and most times not near a bike store, let alone one that is actually opened when you need it. We had parts fall off bikes (e-bikes and tandem) that were not able to be fixed unless you had a multitool. A pedal fell off while riding, and of course no town in site for miles. We happened to have a bike multitool so we could continue on our ride.
The hotel provided in Willemstad was not satisfactory. We had low angled ceilings that you can easily bump your head on when turning around. The sky light leaked. The room had a bad smell.
The tour instructions for Amsterdam could have been updated to reflect all the bike path closures in the city. These paths had been closed for a long time, so alternate instructions to maneuver around the city would have been very helpful.

Food on boat (ship ) as they refer to it was wonderful. Chef was full of energy and very creative

The countryside was extremely beautiful. The meals were extremely delicious and the dinners were exceptional. The boat was clean and updated with very attentive and positive staff. The bikes were in very good repair and we found the directions to each site/city and the boat generally very clear.

Communication from bike tour leaders was not great. Also, we had major engine problems on Day 1-3 necessitating us to miss 1 day of riding. The communication around the mechanical problems was very poor and initially we found out about this by accident. Once rectified the tour continued as promised.

The cycling through beautiful trails, seeing the country in a way you would not by car or train. Meeting the lovely people on Board geeting to know them, and also our tour Guide Albert, He was so good and kind. Our Chef Marcel and the crew.
Looking forward to doing another trip next May with more friends.

The food was excellent. Ebikes are the way to go. Know your route so not surprised. Book an upstairs room.

Some great self-guided cycling routes.

Would have appreciated more information en route regarding points of interest, not just directions.

Oddly, water was not provided at dinner except at an additional cost - unusual for an active cycling trip when hydration is important.

Also no coffee or tea expect at prescribed times, unavailable if one arrived back to barge later than the prescribed time.

No wifi except at an additional cost.

Well most memorable was the people who rode into the canal. Fortunately they were ok. And there was the man who hit the tunnel wall and took out another cyclist. It was rumored he was drinking vodka in his water bottle. Besides these incidents the best part was the daily riding through idyllic towns and pastoral areas where birds had their young, fields of flowers abound and people were so friendly.

The scenery was very picturesque. It was amazing to witness the incredible bike infrastructure and culture, which made for some relaxing rides.
Kinderjik was a highlight. Ghent was beautiful. It would have been nice to spend a little more time there. If possible, plan to spend extra time in Bruges and Amsterdam. Both cities have a ton to offer. The service onboard the ship was excellent, as was the food. Chef Mikkah did an amazing job!

Unfortunately, the conduct of our bike tour leaders, Tom and to a lesser extent Laura, was disappointing. Communication was poor. Tom seemed bored, and uninterested in the wellbeing of the guests. Laura guided a group of two, and had very little interaction with the rest of us. When they took us on a guided tour of Antwerp, neither guide could give us much information. In future, it might be useful to hire a professional guide for the walking tour.

It would be helpful in there was a fully stocked first aid kit on board. One passenger had a crash into some stinging nettles, and no one seemed to know how to help him.

Excellent, tasty dinners! Chef (Meeka?) prepared delicious, well-displayed meals

Riding our bikes through the countryside and small towns. The staff and food on the Fluvius was spectacular. Renting e-bikes was definitely a plus

Trip was a good value but communication was not very good . The chef and the food and waitstaff were very good . There was a huge engine issue and we lost a day of biking . This was out of your control but the communication about what was going on was really poor .
Meike the chef should be the standard , she was terrific .

I loved the scenic routes through multiple towns every day. Take some time to stop and walk around in some of the along the way each day. The hotel accommodations far exceeded my expectations. They were all fantastic and in great locations. The staff at each were very helpful.

Be prepared for any weather. The weather can be unpredictable, so it's better to be prepared for anything!

A trip of a lifetime. The best way to see the small cities of Holland and Belgium at a leisurely pace with like minded people. Our North Star our guides Hester, Ester were amazing. They had very good understanding of the routes and the history of each city. Drum roll for an amazing crew on the barrage. The food and service was spectacular . If you want a slow, luxurious bike tour this is the trip to do!

The most memorable part was being with friends and meeting new friends from Australia!
Pack clothes for both extremes hot and cold!
Food was just okay

Small suitcase, rooms have little storage
Super nice shower
PLEASE have Tripsite reflective vests available at the START of the trip NOT mailed to us. That would make us a more safe and cohesive group on the roads and especially in crowded cities

The people on board. And the food. Stella was great, too. I liked the open windows in the upstairs rooms. Also, coffee or cappuccino, espresso 24/7.

The quality of the boat's amenities, the cuisine and the areas travelled through were exceptional.
My last bike and barge was more than a decade ago. Since then the growth of e-bikes has accelerated. On this tour, 24 of 34 riders were using e-bikes. I'm not convinced that mixing e-bikes and regular bikes is viable.