Belgium Tour Reviews — 241 to 270 of 1071

The crew was the best! A definite ten + in every way. Dinners were excellent and crew always available to us. Nelleka lent us her fan at night! Harm great guide. Fiona excellent skipper and Reinier always helpful. Great atmosphere. It would have been nice to have some special stops, maybe a cooking class, winery and more info about special sites would be good. Tour description clearly stated that barge has Wi-Fi and air conditioning. It was very hot and ac very spotty and not available at night. No wifi.

This trip was truly enjoyable. The accomadations on the barge were comfortable and very clean. The staff was knowledgeable and pleasant. The food was great and because I was there for the bike ride, the organization of the leaders and the routes planned each day were exactly as presented, plus there was always time for exploring the destination cities/towns.

I will definitely be planning another bike and boat/barge trip soon.

Time spent in Bruges. Bruges is a beautiful small city.
Suggestions: More information for unguided bikers, e.g. places to stop, places of interest

The excellent mix of people on the boat from at least 8 different countries. Everyone was very friendly and interesting. We ate dinner with different people every night. A very fun group! My advice to other is to step outside of your own group and talk with your fellow travelers, the crew and the guides. Struggle through using your high school French or German. It's well worth it.

The food, crew, and guides were top-notch. It was our first barge trip. It was a very relaxing yet active way to explore historic cities and the roads and waterways connecting them.

The staff was absolutely tremendous. I have nothing but praise for them. The boat was very well appointed and meticulously maintained. Thank you all so much for fabulous trip and memories that will last a lifetime!

Riding through the countryside. Historic buildings.

The daily bike rides! With our group of 26 it would have been nice to have had 2 guides for 2 groups.

Loved the biking along the coast of the Netherlands, beside the sea! Very scenic, but also very windy, more wind than I expected. Using an e-bike was most beneficial for the entire route. I highly recommend the e-bike on this tour, especially due to the strong North winds!

The boat and staff were amazing, really informative and couldn't have been more helpful. Boat and rooms were beautiful, food was amazing, cycling was easy if you are used to do any level of cycling but still varied and interesting with different options.

We had a wonderful experience on this trip. The owner of the barge and his crew were just like family. lovely meals from our wonderful cook and the first mate was always there to help and a plush was him doing washing every day for all of us. Our guide was very experienced and was always available. Our captain was unbelievable. This was our second bike, barge trip, and crew could not be faulted. my only suggestion would be if you are not a real good cyclist consider using an electric assist bike France has a lot of hills. On the hole a wonderful two weeks. Thank you. FENIKS

Our boat, crew, tour guides, food, accomodations and overall experience was exceptional. The Magnifique II is a great boat. The small size of the group and the alternative mileages each day with two guides allowed everyone to find a pace and distance that suited them. A gluten free meal plan was available for a small additional cost and for the most part was as good as gluten free food can be. Everything was run on time but without hurry.

The trip guides were great and the ship was very comfortable, with friendly and welcoming staff. We also loved the areas we visited. Beautiful countryside that we probably wouldn’t have seen any other way. Amsterdam was interesting, but be careful of all the bikes, which rule the streets. Bruges was smaller and older. We had a fun time.

We loved all of our trip! The barge was lovely, the food first class and the 2 guides were excellent. We enjoyed meeting new people, the relaxed atmosphere and our daily rides.

Biking through the countryside and villages of Belgium and the Netherlands is just a wonderful way to really "see" these countries and their people. This trip was well organized, provided an excellent dining experience, and camaraderie of fellow passengers. Bikes were comfortable and in great condition, and our guide was informative and fun. Tip for others: clothing layers!! Also, utilize the e-bikes if you are not routinely biking 20-30 miles beforehand.

Did this tour in August 2019. Had an incredible time. Benny is an amazing host. The B&B is so comfortable and the food is incredible. Our breakfast lasted us most of the day. Benny oriented us to the routes and gave us great advice on what to expect. Almost the entire route is on cycling/pedestrian paths so no worries about fighting traffic. The scenery is amazing. Lots of places to stop for refreshments on the way. The only advice I would give anyone is make sure you stay a few extra days in Bruges. It is so beautiful we would have loved to spend some more time just enjoying the town..

Daily countryside rides were wonderful. Our guide Marianne was great.
Suggestions- staff should wait until all courses are served and tables cleaned before eating. Waiting half an hour between servings not good and takes too long. Should make enough for seconds! Missed out on visit sites due to timing. Everything was closed by the time we were done with dinner. Notwithstanding the above, was a wonderful trip.

The interaction with your wonderful crew and guides. They made everyone and every day special.

The best part of our trip was the crew! Our captain, guide, cook and cabin staff made this trip special. From the first day we were welcomed, encouraged, and accommodated. After 600km of memorable cycling it was indicative that the entire group chose to “sail” the last 20km. into Paris with our new family. A fabulous ending to a great two weeks.

This was such a special experience to visit small towns and areas we would never see otherwise. Using e bikes was a breeze and allowed us to focus on the scenery.

The accomodation was excellent. The Netherlands are a wonderful place to explore on a bike, it looks like a natural park in whixh a few people live. I have rarely seen such respect and care for nature and animals, it was breathtaking.
Bike lanes are also in a very good shape.

We particularly enjoyed the four crew members who took care of us. The guide, captain, cook and cabin leader couldn’t have better. They cared for each cyclist in every way. We all chose to ride the barge into Paris on our last day and it was a very special day.

This was our 3rd. Bike and Boat trip and by far the best. The smaller boat experience on the Magnifique III was wonderful, it gave everyone on board an opportunity to meet each other and become friends. Our tour guides, Arnold and Marie-Jose, were excellent. Both gave informative narratives on various cities and local stops, Arnold's witty sense of humor added an extra touch of enjoyment. The entire crew; Captain Hank, Emily and others, whose names I cannot recall, were all above and beyond. Now for the meals, absolutely delicious! Every dinner was wonderful with a different flavor each day, his "presentation" of the meals was outstanding. We had a suite, which was comfortable and slightly larger than the standard rooms. I'm not sure if the extra $$$ was worth the cost of the suite, but having a sliding glass door that opened was a nice feature. We are planning next years vacation on the Metz to Cochem trip, which the Magnifique III will be featured. I would highly recommend spending an extra 2-3 days in Bruge at the end of your journey..................amazing city!

Excelent experience. All was Anna tell us.

The hotel & bikes woooow!!!

The only why, the Tulipanies was cut 1 week before. We don’t see this espectacular view.

All right. Great travel.

Walking through the Keukenhof Gardens and seeing the blooming fields of tulips, and smelling the fragrant fields of hyacinths as we were riding was amazing, especially as the pouring rain held off until almost the end of the day! But walking around Ghent, and Bruges were equally delightful, if for a different reason. Of course the fabulous meals Christina prepared for us on the Merlijn were memorable. For future riders on this trip, know that the tulip experience is only one day of the entire trip so that you aren’t terribly disappointed, and be sure to have rain gear at that time of year!!

The tour was wonderful and our guide, Francine, was terrific. This trip was well organized, the equipment was first rate. The bikes and helmets provided were wonderful. Our guide categorized this trip as a "sightseeing by bicycle" adventure and that is a perfect description. There are fast-paced bike rides if that is what you are looking for, however, we thought this pace was excellent for seeing the countryside, taking photos, and visiting smaller towns/cities that we would have otherwise driven past.

The barge we were on, the Merjlin, was amazing- first rate service and food. The rooms were very comfortable and quiet. The common area was a great place to relax before meals and converse with our fellow travelers. The food was amazing and the service was great.

One thing we were not prepared for is the issue of tipping- the suggested tip was for $10/pp/day for the ship staff and $10/pp/day for the guide- which would add $440 to the cost of the trip. Of course as we are from the US, we are very familiar with the tipping culture but we were not expecting it on a European adventure. Yes, it's mentioned on the information section but I guess we skimmed over that. I would prefer they pay their staff a living wage and skip the tip. It costs the customers the same.

The staff and guide were wonderful. My only criticism is regarding the food: put out some snacks when returning to the barge after riding. One small bowl of chips for 22 people is insufficient. Secondly, the time from start to finish dinner talked too long ( 1 1/2 hours). While of course the staff must eat as well, they shouldn’t be eating after putting our plates down. Our dirty plates sit in front of us for 30 minutes while they eat. The food is very good though.

The crew of the Quo Vadis and the guide were excellent, treated us like family. Food was excellent and plentiful. Bikes were great. The only thing I would suggest is that you put mirrors on the bikes for safety reasons. USA people are not used to having someone pass on our left without an announcement or bell ring.

I highly recommend this tour. It was more comprehensive than any other bike tour I have taken, with unique opportunities to interact directly with locals - i.e. millers who tended a windmill, a baker with an extensive collection of WWII memorabilia in the back of his bakery, a boat captain who took us for a ride through the canals in his small boat, etc. Most nights also included a walking tour of the historic city centers for those who wanted to participate.

The crew aboard the Quo Vadis were so friendly and accommodating, the food was delicious, and our bike guide (Rikko) shared a wealth of information about the history and culture of the area.

Lots of most memorable parts of the trip - biking the countrysides and quaint towns throughout Flanders and Holland and the food and service on board Magnifique II.