Merlijn boat/barge tour reviews — 211 to 240 of 272

Great Crew! Very friendly! Food was amazing. Never mind trying to pack a small suitcase, pack a big one there's plenty of room under the bed.

Beautiful scenery, interesting architecture, wonderful boat, staff , food, participants , but awful reminders of wars.

The most memorable part was seeing many historical sites in Berlin.

The most memorable part was riding through the beautiful countryside.

The trip was fun but I don't think the description of the trip was accurate. The trip was about 85% bike riding and 15% site seeing. I would have liked more time to explore the cities we were riding through but most of the time it was too late or placed were closed. Not sure if I would do another tour like this. The riding was beautiful but I really expected more site seeing according to the trip description.

This was a great trip that the group from Spokane (Tom & Mary Kay R. Mike and Mary M., Jan and Mark B., John and Helen W. -UK) recommends to anyone interested in seeing a beautiful part of Germany. It was not just the scenery that was great, but also how the Merlijn ""crew"" always made you feel at home and took care of any problems. Special thanks to Jantien, Henk and Jacques!

Klaus, Jantien and Henk!!!! This is a fantastic bike and barge trip. The rooms were the best we have ever had (this is my 3rd bike and barge trip). Very spacious bathroom and lots of storage in the room. Klaus, our guide, was the main reason I loved this trip. He didn't just cycle along the river trail. He took us through villages, back alleys, cobblestone streets, pastures, and hillsides. We never knew what adventure the day would bring. LOVED IT!! We learned about the history, geography and economics of the area. Jantien, our angel of the Merlijn, made every day fun and prepared wonderful meals. Henk capably mastered all the locks and made us laugh frequently! The level of cycling is very easy and can be accomplished by anyone. Miles and miles of vineyards, castles and churches. DON'T MISS THIS ONE!

The owners of the barge were outstanding, in every way!

The scenery was wonderful. We loved going thru the German countryside. The personnel were wonderful, they genuinely like what they do. The tour guide was fabulous! We suggest more attention to bike maintenance and using better bikes. They could have better quality and more attention to fitting bikes would be great! Thanks so much!

Boat staff was terrific.

Loved the entire experience. Barge accommodations and food amazing. Staff superb. Lea, our biking guide had such knowledge of area and was an expert at leading a group of different ability bikers. Also solving any problem which would arise. Cannot say enough positive about the Merlijn and her staff. Wonderful trip on so many levels. Kudos to Jantien and Henk for providing me with a trip to cherish!

We had a great time!! Our guide was fabulous!! Staff on the boat couldn't have been better. I would definitely recommend this tour. We would go on another trip on this barge in a heart beat!!

The wonderful people on the trip & excellent staff made this trip most memorable! Would highly recommend it to friends!

EVERYTHING stands out! From the greeting & service by the staff, (Lydia/Denisa) the guide Jack, the Captain & Jontein who ran the whole enterprise, Merlijn. The food. Lovely ever-changing table settings, The ample, fresh cabins, fresh flowers, excellent bikes and super maintenance & care, knowledgeable, friendly guiding thru the towns, memorials, history of the area. Capable, expert, amazing,skill of the Captain thru the narrow canals & rivers. The homegrown entertainment. We are putting a deposit on '18. ('17 is BOOKED!)

The Merlijn is a terrific vessel and the owners, Jantien & Henk and their staff are first rate.
Highly recommended.

Everything was great but it was our crew that made it so special.

We had a lovely time. The barge and entire crew were wonderful. We were very disappointed with the bike guide though. She was not at all knowledgeable with her directions and we many times retraced steps on the bike. We feel we could have seen much more but her choices for stops were terrible. We would spend way too much time at a stop when we could have been seeing a lovely park nearby. Her choices for stops were not well planned out and some were just very disappointing. The captain, in our opinion should consider another guide for this trip. There is much to see in this area and easily done so on a bike. The guide was not good with directions and perhaps a bit more planning on her part would have made it a far more enjoyable trip. Berlin and the surrounding ares are beautiful and offer a wealth of history to be seen. We have taken other bike and barge trips and honestly, the guide truly is the person that makes or breaks the trip.

We loved the trip. Hank, Jantien, & staff were super as usual. The electric bike was a bit heavy. My(Anita) electric bike at home feels much lighter--it's smaller. Look forward to another trip on Merlijn & with Jantien & Hank. --Anita & Duncan

The staff of the Merlijn were delightful and very personable. Enjoyed them thoroughly.

Travel aboard the Merlijn is always a wonderful experience. Our guide, Felix, was excellent. This was our fourth trip and we will return for more.

The barge - The Merlijn was unbelievably wonderful with huge cabins and wonderful big bathrooms with large showers.- very nice big dining room and bar area. All super clean! Wonderful hosts! The biking I found a bit disappointing mostly biking along the canals where there were trees on each side and not being able to see the countryside. Our last day we biked thru small villages and farms and I found that great!

My e-bike was great and I was used to it in a day or so. They are much heavier than a normal bike and if a bit off balance they are harder to right. They are a great help on the hills.

Our guide Lia was lots of fun. Very sharp map reader and knowledgeable regarding the history. The passengers were mostly German and very friendly.

Great experience! We loved the way the English-speaking and German-speaking groups coalesced - to a large part due to Jantien , our amazing hostess, chef and boat-owner!

The Merlijn is a very special barge full of character and charm, beautifully appointed and owned and operated by the delightful Jantine and Henk. They along with their crew spoiled us rotten with great food and hospitality. Our bike ride was thru beautiful countryside and expertly guided and interpreted by a delightful Dutch couple, Jack and Marianne. They gave us great local insight. We thoroughly recommend the Merlijn and can't wait to return.

I really enjoyed this trip. The barge was very spacious and the food was excellent. The staff were friendly and the atmosphere was very relaxing. The biking was just right and our bike guide was wonderful. Felix was knowledgeable and very helpful to all. I will certainly recommend this trip to others and can hardly wait to do another bike and barge trip.

We had a blast on this trip! My first Bike and Barge through Tripsite. Our captains, Hank and Yantine, made us feel like part of the family. The boat was very clean and we loved the table designs at each sitting! Our guide, Francine, made us feel very welcome and really went out of her way to provide us friendly travel tips as we continued on our journey! Thanks for such an awesome time!

Some of the other people that came on the trip were not prepared to ride a bike 20-25 miles per day. They said that they had not ridden a bicycle since they were a youth. Consequently, this significantly held up the entire group. I would recommend emphasizing the importance of being in good riding condition for the bike/barge trips. Thank you.
The staff of the Merlijn absolutely made the entire trip a pure delight! We would definitely sail with them again in the future!

Second time on the Merjlin. We would definitely book a third. Bike/Barge trips are so much fun!

It was a wonderful trip. The hostess is exceptional, the food fabulous, the guide very good and all the passengers were nice to be with.

I loved this trip. The Merlijn was well-above my expectations. Very clean and well setup. Everything on the boat was perfect. Now if only we had had better weather. :)

We had a super time. My only suggestion is have a snack for post bike ride and pre dinner. We arrived starving so that would be great. Otherwise this was just an amazing way to see Europe.