Bike + Boat Tour Reviews — 2641 to 2670 of 4713

Most excellent trip! Beautiful country, people, art, and delicious food and drink! I was most surprised by the amazing churches and the cycling culture! Our crew, captain, chef, staff and guide were very helpful and informative. Everything was on time! Even made time for swimming! The route map provided and GPS Tracks were great. I was the only person aware of the GPS tracks on the trip, not sure if others missed this or if their agents didn't provide -Thanks Tripsite. Also, Tripsite Support Agents via LiveChat were very helpful prior to the trip! The only thing I would do different is bring my own bike seat, just used to it I guess...

Avoid trips on this barge!
Trip Name: Loire Valley rerouted to St. Mammés/Sens
We have new two lessons learned from this experience:
1. Never book on a boat that is not crewed by the owner; and
2. Never book accommodations that do not show you the state and size of the washroom.
After reading the mostly average reviews of the barge before booking, we decided to take a chance on booking the Loire Valley boat and bike itinerary on the Anna Maria IV. However, due to low water conditions on the Loire, the itinerary was changed to the Seine and the Yonne rivers. While disappointed in the change, the new route was more than fine with challenging rides and beautiful scenery.
John, the tour guide did a great job leading us through new territory.
The new bikes were excellent, and John was able to fix the odd flat tire along the way.
Unfortunately, no evening city walks were provided due to the itinerary change.
The boat captain was only on the barge for 4 days and 3 nights. While we had very little interaction with him, he was pleasant and got us from dock to dock with no problems- always a challenge with low water levels.
The barge. Well, we knew it would be small since this is our third bike barge on the same category of ship. But this was by far the smallest and least comfortable. The sinks are in the sleeping area and take up much of the non-bed space. One’s feet were actually in the shower when using the toilet. And, there was literally no room to unpack items - the small bins under the bed didn’t stay on their racks, making them useful for only the lightest of items.
But, the worst part of the entire week was the service provided by the crew/host. Unfortunately, there was only one crew member for 13 guests - thank goodness we were not at the 18 guest capacity.
Our feeling is that she did not like her job and found us an inconvenience to her social life. We felt like we had to fit into her schedule rather than her recognizing we were customers! And, boy, was she not a morning person!
While one can accept a person having a bad day or being a few minutes late once in a while, one should not have to experience the lack of organization and attention to detail that we received the entire week. If this was our first bike barge trip, I doubt we would ever do one again.
In summary, the captain was responsible for the movement of the ship. The guide was responsible for our cycling experience. The host was responsible for our on-board experience. But with no one in charge, there was no single person responsible for our overall experience.
While the on-board experience was extremely disappointing, the cycling was great, and the other passengers amazing. In fact, without the camaraderie of the other passengers this would have been a miserable week.

Did the Amsterdam to Bruges bike & barge tour on the Tijdgeest. My wife & I had a great experience. Arje was a great guide & the entire boat crew made it a fantastic trip. The riding was quite easy & the evening city tours fun & informative. Would recommend to anyone
Thanks All
Dane & Kim

We loved the biking! We realized very quickly that with the 'junction points' identified for us by the cycling guide, we were able to venture off on our own. That allowed us to stop when we wanted and still get to the boat on time. The meals on the ship were outstanding as was the crews' attention to detail! The owner of the boat was very personable and had history to share, which we really enjoyed. Getting to know 20 people by sharing breakfast and dinner was also very enjoyable. Paperwork provided prior to the trip was thorough. Payment efficient and accurate.

The self-guided cycling was, for us, the best item of a great trip. We were provided with an excellent, hard-wearing map which had the daily routes clearly marked. The bike paths were accurately sign posted with numbers corresponding to those on the map. Self-guiding meant we could go at our own pace and it also means that stronger riders can be accommodated, eg, if they wish to ride faster or to do more than the scheduled distances. The bikes were heavy but comfortable, quiet and well maintained. The ride leaders were always willing to provide guidance.

Most Memorable Part: How Saunder, Els, and Rola were all so committed to making sure we had a great trip with terrific cycling, fantastic food, and comfortable accommodations.

As always, Croatia excels!! The towns, the people and the unbelievably clean, warm waters were great!! Our guides and boat crew were also wonderful. For us, this trip had too much boat time and not enough bike time. For others, they enjoyed the ride and the scenery. We would also recommend stopping at the old penal colony rather than the mile walk into a state park as it was very pretty but no more so than most of the coast lines we had already seen. Thanks for a great trip - we will be back for a different tour next May.

The food on the Boat Romantica was wonderful.

Especially loved the area of the Dolomite Mountains, from Bolzano to Lake Gardia, for the beauty and then arriving in Venice.
Trip was extremely well organized; wonderful crew, special tour guides in Mantova and Venice, good food...and bravo to Vivian and Sonya, excellent guides
The cyclists really got along well so that was an added bonus.
First trip that was guided for us and I was pleasantly surprised. Other trips were self-guided and so was the first part of the trip, from Bolzano to Mantova.
Lack of toilets on the way...

The last day of the beautiful rolling hills and gorgeous monastery on the hill and quaint historic towns along the way were the highlight of the trip.

I loved Jan's presentations. He was very well prepared and his delivery was great. You should keep him doing that. However, his personal customer service leaves something to be desired. He had no patience for details that were not perfect.

All guides except for one were exceptionally good. The one guide in Budapest was so bad we got our money back for the bike guide in the city.

Two wonderful ways to travel and see the world: on a bike and on the sun deck of a boat.

We really enjoyed Wachau. Definitely stop for the wine tour, and enjoy the biking through the vineyards. It was absolutely beautiful.

Wonderful experience on the Magnifiquell. Everything about the trip was great. The staff including the ship crew and guides were fantastic. This was a well organized and efficient trip.

The best part was the first three days self-guided tour near the Dolomites on our 10 day tour.

The Iris is a well equipped and comfortable barge with a fantastic crew. Our guide, Thomas, was knowledgeable and very helpful and the Italian chefs (husband and wife) cooked delicious food and were super cute! Lenny, the owner of the Iris, was present throughout the trip and this added a special warmth to the trip. This was the first time this itinerary was offered on the Iris and it went off without a hitch. Many of the guests had E Bikes (which I recommend even though it was rated as an easy route) which made the several small hills a piece of cake! Would definitely recommend this trip on the Iris.

Guides were very knowledgeable & helpful............ The crew went above & beyond...........

Great barge, good people, great guide and good food. The only thing missing was a good detailed map of where we were riding.

The food was terrific always (one of us is a chef, so that’s a big compliment). The guides (Corrie and Nel) are both amazing—really perfect at what they do. Their patience and positive attitudes and exuberance overcame little quibbles and challenges that were occasionally encountered (weather, construction). The bicycle routes were always interesting and the trip from Brugge to De Haan was especially memorable. The crew were always friendly and helpful, especially Sigrid.

If we changed anything, it would be to NOT bring our helmets; the helmets on board seemed more than adequate.

The Mantova to Venice bike and barge on the Ava Maria! The crew, the ship, the food and our guides were outstanding! Also all the guides we had in the cities and venues were fabulous!

Trip with some room for improvement.
As positive:
1. Bike guides were kind and always trying to fulfill all of our requests.
2. Waiter was really helpful, efficient and nice with all of us
3. Meals on board were tasteful
As 'not so positive':
1. All the the bike routes run 100% by car roads
2. We just were able to take a swim from the boat 2 or 3 times during the full week
3. Captain had to change the itinerary, that initially it did not sound as a problem until we finally spent 24 hours with the ship docked beside the garbage containers in a city with absolutely nothing to visit or to do... while enduring flies and really unpleasant smell...
4. Captain and part of the crew far from 'nice behavior' during the full trip until the last moment that they started to open the tip envelopes and count the money in the dining room with all of us still on board

As a summary, this National Park 'bike & Boat' trip was far from expectations.

I thought the most memorable part of the trip was going to be the scenery and the bike riding, but most of my memories are of the people I met and the connections we have made sharing our stories with each other. The trip was very well organized and our guide Arie did his best to make sure each day had the best bicycling experiences. The accommodations aboard the Magnifique were wonderful and the staff exceptional. I would highly recommend this trip to anyone interested in exploring and learning about the area between Amsterdam and Bruges and having some easy physical activity along the way. Each day had new things to see and learn.

Our week on the Quo Vadis was fantastic. The Captain,crew and cycling guides were all wonderful. The served up tasty, beautifully presented, filling and nutritious meals. Our cycling routes were interesting and fun. I’d do another trip on the Quo Vadis

Staff and guides Comfort of boat, the daily tours and the scenic bike paths

The boat and crew and guide were all top notch

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!!

The best way to have a holiday - you do not have to think about logistics, unpack and enjoy:) The Carissima was awesome, our every need was taken care of - the staff were super friendly and the food amazing!

Easy riding in a beautiful settling with a great group spirit. The boat was very comfortable and clean and the staff made every effort to ensure we had everything we needed. Would recommend to anyone to have a look at this trip to see if it will suit them, all the information on the site was reliable and the experience was really enjoyable.

My onboard experience was wonderful. The staff was awesome, very helpful and accommodating. The biking was quite an experience, a bit challenging at times due to some unpaved paths, however it was rewarding.

The boat was very clean and spacious. The crew very friendly and accommodating. The food delicious and a good variety.
The trails we rode on were not very good, however. A lot of pot holes and very narrow. We could not look around and enjoy the scenery as we had to keep our eye on where we were riding.

It was a good experience for all of us.

The general biking was above average , with some awesome sites visited.
As far as the accommodation was concerned this was below average.
Although the space was confined more emphasis could have been done to the quality and hospitality of stay.