4 Star Europe Tour Reviews — 1141 to 1170 of 1189

Our tour guide Marco was ok, but not outstanding. His commentary was adequate, but we got more from the notes provided.

This was our 4th trip with Tripsite - very reliable and good value.

We were switched to the Mosel at the last minute and apparently our guide didn't feel the need to learn much about this route. He was less than helpful and in a few cases gave wrong information that cost some individuals time and energy.

The bikes provided were crap. You could still see the cobwebs. What was particularly egregious was the lack of a decent bicycle pump to bring our tires up to pressure on a daily basis.

Overall trip came up to expectations. Crew was friendly and capable. The glitches to be expected on a new boat-new tour were minimal. Daily itineraries seemed to be well planned. Highlight was riding to Eiffel Tower and on to Notre Dame. Enjoyed tunnel cruise and free day in Paris. Meals on board were very good. Small group made dining fairly intimate. Bikes good but not excellent. Mine had a shifting problem that was a minor annoyance. Cabin accommodations were fine given the nature of the bike and barge experience. While this barge was in general less luxurious than those on our prior trips, (Mantova-Venice and Avignon-Comargue) it was fairly advertised as a ""Standard"" and priced accordingly. We thought that riding to the Eiffel Tower was pretty nifty and it became our main bragging points upon our return home. This was our third bike and barge with Tripsite. We recommend this type of experience and Tripsite to all.

Perfect weather, gorgeous scenery, wonderful riding--loved every minute of the trip.

"The ""recommend this trip (Tyhrennian Sea)"" question is a difficult question to answer. Scenery is great. Pompeii great. Guide good. Some passengers had issues with the Capt. At the end of our third day out we were secured to our sister boat in such a way that we had to walk across the railings (not on deck) to transfer to our vessel. It was unsafe, and honestly, uncomfortable for the women. When a few of our female passengers shared their opinion with the Capt he dismissed their concerns. In fairness, he had slipped and broken several ribs while handling bikes and was probably not in the best mood. When we finished biking on this same day (very hot) the crew/guide made all of us wait while they loaded the bikes. We all thought that was odd. They did not offer an explanation. The scenery was very good, guide was a nice guy and very knowledgeable. The crew was mixed. Cook & first mate great. Barista not so much. Capt....I don't know. After his accident he left to recover. Forgot about our second night. The harbor was unprotected from the prevailing wind direction and we rocked on 2-3 waves all night. No one slept-crew included. I told Marilyn if we encounter another night like that I was getting a room. It was miserable. The rest of the anchorages were fine. After writing this I changed my survey answer from Yes to No. I would send them to Metz if they want easy biking and Croatia for difficult.

On the plus side...The Metz (Merlijn 2013) & So Dalmatia tours (San Snova 2015) was excellent in every way. Crew, boat, scenery, guides. We'll return to Europe but events in Paris probably have many of us thinking about different options.

Best holiday ever. Great staff.

Overall great but cabins too small. Advertise air conditioning. There was none. the staff were great. The cabins were hot, no porthole.

My daughter and I had a great time.

Staff was wonderful. Weather not so good but we had a great time.

Was disappointed that there seemed to be less cycling per day that expected from the website description.

Wonderful trip along the Danube. If you are biker you will find the bikes lacking. My wife with her spinal cord injury used an electric assist which worked very well.

Most everything was perfect, especially our guide Lars for both trips. Only problem was lack of AC on boat so sleeping not easy.

Loved the trip and the Merlijn. Hoping to do another tour in 2017.

This was a nice trip which I chose after research. I learned that I prefer smaller groups.

I really loved: Tour guide, boat hosts, food, sights, other guests.
I only enjoyed: quality of bike (could've been a better bike, but it was well maintained)
Could've been better: speed of cycling (while I understand not everyone cycles at the same speed, there should be a ""fast"" group and a ""slow"" group
--overall rating: 4.5 of 5

Route guidance and maps need improvement. Otherwise, everything was great.

We were told the distances we would ride each day but these did not match the GPS we were given. Each day was longer and harder than we were led to believe. You need to make it clear that the ride is not for beginners as there are many hills and long distances most days. I would rate this as a medium ride, not an easy/medium ride. Our group could not complete the ride as it was too hot.

Loved the trip!!

Cabins were nicer than I expected. We stayed with the guide as found the routes hard to navigate and the guide knew all the great stops. Dinners were good, breakfast and lunches needed more variety by the end of the week. We had fabulous weather and loved the route. Lots to see.

The guide was not well prepared with maps and the boat kept changing docking locations. The Rhine is very industrial from Basel to Mainz. The rides were not very interesting or long. It was not one of your better offers.

The bike part was more challenging than in the discription. You have to be a strong biker used to hills. There are many hills and one very challenging hill. So I would not consider this an easy tour as in the description. However it was well worth the effort if you are well trained. Our guide Wiro was awesome and kept us together and on time which was very much appreciated. I would recommends this trip in spring or early summer. By the time we went end of August the vegetation was all dried up and there were no flowers because they had such a hot dry summer. I prefer a comfort plus boat as you have more space in your cabin. These cabins were very small. However all in all it was a beautiful, historic and worth while tr which I would recommend to avid cyclists.

On some days, we could have biked more. Very pleasant walks in the evenings.
Very small window in our room.

I ordered an electrical bike and found it VERY TOP heavy, causing me to take a fall and injure my hip.

Amazing scenery, great company, delicious food, kind staff and somewhere comfy to sleep - with no unpacking! However,the crux of these trips stems from the quality of the guides. Our first trip, to Vienna, Had a guide that knew the route well, but smoked at every stop, and wanted to always eat dinner at somewhere he could buy alcohol; we preferred to eat our rolls in the fresh air, which sometimes was tricky. He tended to ride off without checking we were all ready, leaving riders behind until someone caught him. Our second trip (Merzig to Koblenz) had a lady guide who was not at all familiar with the area, but used her GPS to locate landmarks and routes (sometimes taking the shortest, not the most scenic). She didn't give an initial safety talk, she changed the route from the easy one offered to a more scenic but quite difficult one, causing one older, inexperienced lady to fall (end of trip for her and her husband,, hospitalisation for almost a fortnight, skingraft). Our replacement guide tried hard, but couldn't seem to match the route to the one we'd booked, so we missed seeing things we'd looked forward to. So our last trip, Koblenz to Amsterdam, was not one we would recommend unless they sorted the route out. Apart from the above, we'd recommend this mode of travel.

The guides are young and very athletic. People who sign up for this level of bicycling aren't usually top bikers, unless they are doing it to be with friends or spouse. I think a bit more thought could be put into the introductory ride the first day, bridge crossings, sudden merging into traffic, sudden turns to go steeply uphill. I've done much longer bike rides, but at this age, I didn't want that much challenge.

Barge Quo Vadis was intimate and comfortable. Although small, our cabin had sufficient shelving available to store our clothes (we used ebags pouches to keep biking stuff and hanging out later stuff organized). Our very large roller duffels collapsed enough to store under the beds. The bathroom was fine and we eventually realized the shower squeegee was for the floor - to bring the water towards the drain in middle. Wifi was very limited as the captain made his hotspot available to us but that only seemed to work at the end if the dining room closest to his quarters. We would have liked more seating areas as you had a small sofa/ chairs seating area bordering the dining tables but once filled you would have to sit at a dining table to read etc. The outside seating area actually would seat twenty but appeared smaller....would have liked a bigger outside area too. The staff was wonderful. The bikes were great and i loved my ebike (you have to pedal every bit as much as on a regular bike but you are always "assisted" so you never break a sweat or have to huff puff if encountering an incline or a headwind. In truth i probably would have liked some kind of arrangement where we had the option to do a bit more touring on foot/ time in cute little towns, vs all the time on the bike. We did see things I never would have seen on my own and Belgium is fascinating....hence the wish to actually have had a bit more time in towns like Mechelen where we had a one hour lunch stop and then were on our way. For my next trip i would also invest in a pair of rain pants. I did not know about them but all the Swiss ladies jumped into them as well as their rain jackets when clouds opened up three times as we cycled. One other wardrobe tip...we were spending four weeks in Europe and packing was an issue. I did not bring sneakers which i would only have used while biking, then having to lug for three weeks through fashionable France. Instead my black Sketchers, GO WALK line, did the trick for both a great bike shoe and a walking shoe in France.
We really enjoyed the trip in general and would just search out a barge with a bit more public space were we to do a future trip. "

I thought we would bike every day, not a problem, but it would have been nice to know.

I had a good time on this trip, however, there was not enough time on the bicycle. As well, compared to the other biking trips we have taken, this one was very dependent on time. We did not have all day to get to the next spot. I felt rushed on three of the days, and we only biked on four. Also you lose the sense of discovery when every spot is picked out for you ahead of time, as to where to eat, shop, etc. The cruise staff were wonderful, but it seems to me that they think people only want to see cities, whereas I love the countryside and the villages. I would not do a combined boat and bike again.