Germany Bike + Boat Tour Reviews — 541 to 570 of 1340

It was amazing biking through the country side of Hungary and Austria. It is not your typical USA tourist destination but I am so glad we were able to experience it.

Biking through the amazing Wachau alley wine region of Austria was a highlight, but the lesser-known towns of Krems and Melk were amazing, too. I just wish there had been more time to explore, but the 7-day tour needs to keep moving, so we understand. Great crew, if obviously overworked (7 days per week for 21 weeks straight?!), made the trip.

We had a fabulous trip down the Danube on the Fortuna. The staff was excellent-attentive, friendly and knowledgeable. The biking was amazing, I am so glad I signed up for an e-bike, it made a big difference.
The one thing that I would caution to future bikers is that the time to get from drop-off to pickup is often tight and it can be difficult to get too far off the designated path to explore (which is something I expected more of).
My group of 10 all had an excellent time and I highly recommend this tour group and boat.

My favorite ride was through the Wachau Valley in Austria. We really enjoyed all the rides, but riding between the Danube and the vineyards, seeing the small towns speckled along the way, tasting wine and ending at the Abbey in Melk was the ultimate.

The biking! Loved being able to be mainly on a proper bike path and not on roads. Freedom to explore along the way and take your time getting to the next destination by bike.
Last bike day through Wachau valley was very rushed to have to make it to the boat before 3:30pm. So much to see we were scared to miss the boat and skipped a lot of experiences. That section would be better down downstream than upstream!
Better, detailed maps would have been nice.
Wi-fi on the boat was terrible or no-existent!
Food was acceptable but not fantastic.
Thank you for always having vegetarian option!

Easy and Wonderful. Amazing destinations on a comfortable ship. There is no need to think. The staff does all the thinking for you so you can enjoy your visits and bike rides. The bike routes are well planned and explained, both in the guidebook and by the cruise director in his daily briefings. I highly recommend downloading the route for google maps so that you can trace your progress and find your location easily on your phone. The distances are reasonable and the sights beautiful. I rented a standard bike from the boat, and felt comfortable and secure. My travel companions rented an e-bike from a private vendor in Passau, and loved them (the ship ran out of e-bike rentals). Dinner was delicious. The ship clearly had a first-rate chef on board. The air conditioner in the suite worked very well (we like our rooms to get very cool at night)--so we loved the temperature in the room. The organized shore excursions were great, especially the city tours by bike. We had a suite, which was very comfortable. It came with a mini-fridge, a spacious bathroom with great water pressure and lighting, and plenty of storage space in the cabin.

My most important suggestions:
Dinner took a bit too long: on some evenings, almost as long as 2.5 hours.
I wish we had stayed a bit longer in some places (e.g., Melk, Vienna, Aschach).
For passengers with walking challenges, more assistance finding easy-to-board taxis or tuk tuks when docking.
Guide book could show where WC facilities can be found along the route (pls note, no WC facility at the ferry station in Szob, Hungary).
A supplementary, shorter bike route could be offered for the Devin-Bratislava day. The one offered is very long and most of it a bit boring and bit challenging (too many turns along with long bridge that is intimidating to cross if windy). The offered option is great for those interested in doing long-distance biking, but for those who want to spend a bit more time in Bratislava, a shorter route could be offered as an alternative, maybe a short trip to the the Schlosshof and back to Bratislava without doing the full loop.

Most memorable part of trip was seeing the Lippizon horses in Vienna.

I loved the Clam Castle we toured.
Amazing that a count and countess actually live there with their children!
One disappointment was that the cruise director spent most of his time giving cycling directions in German and very little time in English.
I found the route difficult to navigate but fortunately one of our friends was able to figure it out.

We loved our boat/bike tour but the absolute highlight was the day cycling in the Wachau valley. We just wish the day had started and ended later so we could have sampled more wine!

The boat staff were fantastic - they really went out of their way to make our trip easy, fun and memorable.

Most memorable part: Waking up to different cities. Tour director Leslie was very helpful and knowledgeable.

The trip was all memorable--the scenery from the boat, the biking in Austria, the cities of Vienna and Budapest. The staff and crew were outstanding, especially the tour director. Our only complaint was that a vegan menu option was promised and the kitchen struggled to deliver the quality and variety we expected.

Our first bike and barge and we are already looking forward to many more. We are two 60 yr old couple who all love the outdoors, adventure and travel. Our cabins were on the top deck of the Carissma, roomy enough, turn down service each night and big picture windows. Excellent food, especially the dinners. Albert was the tour guide on board and he was organized, knowledgeable and patient! No problems with the bikes or directions - we were self guiding, 21 speed bikes. Easy terrain. We highly recommend the city bike tour of Budapest and Vienna as you otherwise may miss great hidden gems, interesting stories and local guides. We stayed at Hotel Residenz in Passau for one night before departure and highly recommend the visit to this beautiful port city and the hotel! We could not recommend trying this style of vacation more. The staff on the Carissma did everything to make the week comfortable, easy and well organized. Wonderful way to see cities in 4 countries in a week.

Greetings!
I'm still in "la-la-land" thinking back on all the fabulous crew, adventures, sites, food (Did I say food---delightful), wines, and incredibly beautiful rides along the Mosel and Sar rivers. Day 1: meet the superb crew, fun travelers (11 in our group, 7 others, also fun) and make our home-away-from -home cabin cozy and prepare for our first dinner. Each day began with a hearty, fresh breakfast as well as choices for making our packable lunches. Days were filled with the most beautiful sites of castles, to wineries, to intimate villages as well as the opportunities to stop and have lunch in local restaurants. View, views, views! Yes, bring raingear, enjoy the clean air and winding river bike paths (95% paved) as you are guided (thanks Weiggart!) through each unique village, winery, town, and forest. If you are the "sweep", make sure you remind your riders to "give each other space for slowing" and as you ride, watch for riders who may not be using their ears/eyes/gears effectively. Bike-up, car-back, clear!!!! Now, as you return to the Flora and her fabulous crew, take in all the conversations of the days' adventures and unwind with a drink as you prepare to have incredibly prepared "foods from around the world" from your chef! (Loved your stories of each meal). Thanks again for the best 8 days of true joy! "Coach" Elliott. (Sweep)

The ability to cycle along the countryside, enjoying a peek around the many small villages/towns, and be exposed to the 'day to day' observation of locals e.g. harvesting wine, picking walnuts, walking paths. The scenery along the Mosel River was absolutely stunning.

We did the Mosel-Saar B&B trip on the Quo Vadis that began Sept. 5, 2021. We had fantastic weather virtually the entire trip, which helped. My wife and I were part of larger group of 4 couples from Boise, ID, and one couple from Detroit, MI. We had a fantastic time; the Mosel wine country is spectacular. The Dutch crew were not only outstanding running the boat, they were compassionate, sensitive, helpful and fun human beings. I cannot say enough good about them. As representatives of the Netherlands, they did a real service for their country and for Tripsite. Thanks for such a memorable experience!

Our bike and barge was changed two weeks prior to leaving - that was hard - had to change plans and do a different barge trip
This was our second trip with Trip Site (which we really enjoyed the first time). This one was hard because of the change BUT
we did enjoy the Patria and did enjoy cycling down the Mosel river. Dagmar was a great tour guide. The younger staff were very pleasant but
Smoking outside the doors where we entered was not too pleasing.
Even with the changes - we had a good trip and hopefully will book again with TripSite.

We really enjoyed the diversity on the ship. English was definitely the second language, but people did their best to be welcoming and accommodating. It’s important that people understand and are willing to go with the flow! The paths weren’t always as clear as they were supposed to be, so be prepared. We were thankful that all paths eventually went to the Danube!

The Merlijn was the best way to see Germany! It's a clean beautiful haven to come back to after touring the countryside on our bikes with our fabulous guide! The crew made sure we were always prepared and ready to go, and made sure that our return was relaxing and fulfilling. We all enjoyed interacting and learning from them, and the food was delicious. I cannot say enough about the experience!

This was our first bike and barge tour and it was great. The Merlijn is a beautiful barge that is extremely comfortable and well maintained by the owners. The food was sooooo good and the atmosphere, even in the midst of Covid, was friendly. Our trip leader, Lia, was absolutely the best. Her upbeat demeanor, her competence in handling all the “little things” that could have interrupted the pleasant days of biking was amazing. I’d highly recommend this trip but folks should realize an “easy” tour is still 30-50 km/day

Looking forward to another one next year.

The most memorable part was biking with new friends we made on this trip, also the 80s dance night was very very fun. I would suggest to not include every lunch in the package as usually we are out no need for sandwiches, and give the option to have dinner out when we dock in a city. The organization was great, the self biking part very easy as the cruise director was amazing. We felt safe and taking care off very well. I would recommend a longer time in Vienna.

The boat, staff and tour guide were all absolutely amazing. The boat was clean and the food was great, having dinner on the boat each night was a blessing after a long day of biking and sightseeing. Biking through the small towns and along the river was very scenic. The tour guide was very prepared and handled any small hiccup along the way. I've never really biked or did a tour like this before and most days were fine, but I was glad to have been able to switch to an E-bike for the day we had to do more of a uphill climb.

The views were amazing and the staff was great!

More biking per day would have made the trip perfect!

I understand the latitudes taken in promotion and advertising. That being said, I highly resent being intentionally deceived. We were “warned” prior to leaving that there might be last minute changes in where the ship docked in Passau. Sure enough, 2 days prior to boarding we were informed of the change “due to construction.” There was no construction around the docks. We walked by there several times each day, and ships were docking all the time. No, this had to do with not wanting to dock in Germany where COVID restrictions were tighter for the ship to set sail.

What we were left with instead was a vague set of instructions that led us to the wrong place and a group of suspected fellow passengers (none spoke English) also waiting in several places for the bus. We tried your 800 number. No one answered. We tried the local “help line”. The person who answered did not speak English. There was no one at the presumed site to board the bus to inform us that we were at the correct location. Had the original one not broken down and caused an unexpected delay, we would have never made it to be bus, even though we left our hotel two hours earlier. Two unexpected cab fares and hours of stress wondering if we would actually make embarkation is not the way to start a voyage. We must have been your only clients on board, and that explains quite a lot of what happened. The only other English-speaking passengers were Danish. Daytime announcements were only made in German.

FOOD

If I were asked to describe the food on this voyage with one word it would be: BLAND. Presentation 10. Taste 3. Selection 2. They need to invest more in spices to make it taste better and less on garnish to make it look good.

PERSONNEL

The saving grace was the attitude and professionalism of all those who worked on board, from the Captain helping get the bicycles ashore, to the ladies at the information desk, to our waiter, bartender, and cabin stewardess. All worked hard, were extremely helpful, and I have no complaints whatsoever.

CYCLING EXPERIENCE

The bicycles were good quality, well-maintained, and those who instructed us in their use were quite helpful. The young lady who instructed us each evening about the day ahead was superb. But her graphics, maps, handouts, were awful. The biking experience itself was nothing like I imagined. Cars, trucks, pedestrians, and multitudes of other cyclists all trying to pass on the left at any opportunity. Some very dangerous gravel trails and quite a bit of city riding with cars whizzing by at breakneck speed. The distance vs. time allowed created a “race to the finish line” experience rather than the comfortable, leisurely ride through the countryside with frequent stops to take in the scenery that I had come to expect from your promotional materials.  SHOW MORE 

The Barge and Ride tour of the Danube was outstanding. Providing more detailed directions to the demarcation point in Passat would have helped. The staff were excellent as were the meals and the scenery.

The setting, the sites, the views, the experiences... it's all memorable. But what was most memorable for me was being able to have a packaged vacation and not have to worry about my food or lodging. I have a food allergy, which makes travelling a challenge - especially in group tours. I usually have to bring my own food, make sure we stay where there is a kitchen, visit a grocery store, etc. The cook and other crew on the Quo vadis made sure that i was well-fed with healthy, appetizing food. On some other types of tours i have been accommodated, but the food was just basic (or awful). This was the first trip i have ever been on where all of my dietary needs were met - i did not have to worry at all about getting sick (which can ruin a vacation). So while it was all absolutely wonderful, for me the "icing on the (gluten free) cake was that i was able to eat so well!
Also great: the information sent ahead of time was extremely useful. It was hard to go through it all at once, a suggestion i might have is to send topic specific emails. Maybe not weekly, but maybe monthly. Especially appreciated the extra work that was done to make sure we were prepared for the covid requirements, and especially that you took the care to make the decision to change the route to ensure there were no issues.
The crew and guide were all great. Some of the time I wished there could have been a little more education about the area and the things we were seeing.

Please do not consider this a review of your company, but a review of the cruse company. First, this garbage of moving the dock location from Passau to a small town in Austria was a total sham. They said that was done because of dock construction in Passau. This was a Trump type of Lie! There was no dock in the city of Passau being worked on. Total BS!
Secondly, the bus pickup at the train station in Passau was a real mess up. No one was there to help direct or at least tell people there were in the correct place. You could not talk to anyone to make sure you were in the correct place because there were at least four different languages being spoken. Then the bus was about an hour late - not helpful to already lost and confused people.
Other than the above, I enjoyed the trip. I really want to express my thoughts about the staff on the boat. In all my travels, I have NEVER seem a staff who worked so hard, friendly, and helpful. Them never ran from work or being helpful. Everyone from the captain to the dock workers jumped in when needed. This was the best bunch of service staff that I have had the privilege to observe and interact with.
Thank you for your efforts and willing to listen. Sincerely, Leo Dennis Roos

There were so many memorable experiences on this trip. The Moselle River area is spectacularly scenic, and fortunately we had perfect weather days to enjoy the river, the towns, the castles, and the vineyards. We also loved returning each day to our "home", the Quo Vadis for yummy dry Riesling, exceptional food and social gathering with our trip mates. Highly recommend this trip!

It was fantastic. The tour guide was amazing and really connected with you so much that he would bike with you and converse with you on each bike excursion. the scenery was so beautiful and was the best trip experience we have every had hands down!

The boat, staff and passengers were a delight. They were very COVID conscious. We loved the meals, and relaxation time on the deck. I would totally recommend the Quo Vadis! Hope to do another tour with them next year?