Europe Tour Reviews — 2371 to 2400 of 6870

We had a wonderful trip from beginning to end. We decided to trust that it would all be good so we didn't research anything ahead of time so that we could be surprised. Every day was a pleasant surprise. We chose E-bikes and were very glad. We were all E-bike snobs and this trip totally changed that perspective. The routes were split between paved roads and dirt roads. The dirt roads were rugged and we loved them. The paved roads were well chosen. The side trips were well thought out and truly worth doing. We used the provided GPS device and the Ride with GPS device. We found the Ride with GPS easier to use and cross-referenced it with the GPS device for accuracy if we ever got off course.
The hotels were great. Each one was different and represented the region/village we were in. Part of the fun was seeing what would be for breakfast every morning. We were always greeted warmly and they accommodated the charging needs of the bikes. The hotels were convenient to towns to explore and sample the local cafes, mercados, etc. The one hotel that was not close to a town had an amazing restaurant, heated pool and beautiful farm to explore.
The local bike guide, Top Bike Tours, did an excellent job of planning the trip out and supporting us throughout the trip.

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

Seeing the beautiful scenery and riding bikes through it! We loved the trip overall. Suggestions for others - there are many smokers in Croatia - if you are sensitive it will be a problem. The rooms on the boat are generally small - pack light ! Make sure to bring your own shampoo, conditioner and soap - this is not provided. If you are a light sleeper the bottom of the boat is quieter and cooler - we slept on the main deck and people were up late talking and laughing, lights shown in the the cabin from the other boats stack parked along side us, and the air conditioner was not very good at keeping the room cool at night. The water is generally smooth for the trips between the islands - hardly ever needed Dramamine. There is no holder on the bikes for a water bottle - must be carried in a pack on the back of the bike.

We loved every part of this trip, but especially our guide, Giulia. She really brought Puglia to life for us, knowing the area so well! We left feeling as though we had made a new friend. The contrast of biking the countryside and the historic towns was fantastic.
Being avid cyclists we would have like to bike a little faster or been able to bike ahead of the slower participants. Since we had only one guide we had to stay together. Adding a guide to the trip would have allowed the group to spread out a little.

Sergio was an excellent guide. The accommodations far exceeded my expectations - extremely high end/luxury hotels. We had a large and diverse group - many from Brazil, Canada and US - with no language or riding skill barriers to making our journey an absolute blast.

This was a fantastic trip! The boat was great and the crew was the best. Meal were great and nicely served - significantly past my expectation for a trip focused on biking. If you are doing this trip, here are some things I wish I had known....

- You will spend more time on the boat than you might think - pack clothes for that and excursion days as well as what you were for biking

- Speaking of clothes, it is hard to get things to dry if you wash them out by hand - there is a clothesline in the shower but bring your own clips

- You won't have much shore time on biking days or excursion days, so don't bother looking up 100 things to do in a city. Think in terms of a few hours not a whole day

- That being said, I would suggest setting something up on your own in Vienna in the evening - especially if you are into Classical Music - that is, after all, the town for it. We went to the ballet and it was wonderful. Our friends went to the Opera - you might want to take nicer clothes for either of those - they still dress up for concerts..

- Don't bother getting Florints (money) in Hungary - everyone we talked to took Euros, but do get train tickets from your tour guide if they are offered - they are hard to find and the machines are not in English and VERY hard to figure out (we finally found some young people who graciously helped us out)

- Don't count on Wifi. Period. We never managed to pull in any

- The app they use sounds really good but we found it completely useless - even our cruise director said not to use it. It doesn't help, and most of the time when we had a question on the route I couldn't pull in cell service

- Speaking of cell service....play around with what service your phone pulls up. Sometimes if I changed carriers I got a much better signal

- Try to find a group to ride with - it really helps with directions and is much more fun

- The Ebikes are VERY heavy - someone said 65lbs - I don't know if that is true, but they are very heavy and hard to manage. They might help when you are riding, but they are hard to handle - not for anyone who isn't pretty strong especially stop and go in small towns - it is a challenge.

- Every day you have to catch the boat before it leaves port. You don't have to be a professional biker, but you do have to ride along at a pretty good clip. That took us by surprise...it was no jaunt through the countryside - but I am older (60) so maybe that is a matter of perspective

- They set out salad stuff for you to take with a sandwich for lunches - I would suggest taking a small tupperware if you think you want salad on the road, but I would also suggest taking baggies just in case you don't want their prepared sandwiches (which were OK, but not real exciting). They put out cold cuts and breads/rolls and several days we made our own (helpful hint - don't put mayo on in the morning - take the packets and put them on when you eat - just to be sure it is fresh). I also made up some trail mix and took rolls (with Nutella packets) for snacks so the baggies were really helpful.  SHOW MORE 

There were many highlights.
Poppies growing in the fields, fantastic meals, especially the dinners, amongst them. Thanks to the crew for very efficient bike deployment in the mornings and end of day. Captain very skilled.
We are used to boating, so cabins quite good. However some type of screens on the portholes would make sleeping a bit more comfortable without as many mosquitoes and not having to use aircon so much - so a good investment to invent some screens.
On the biking side, keeping the group together was good, but having one day being more free to bike with map and explore on our own might be nice. However we understand the importance of not loosing anyone. Stops in shade would be better than in the sun.
Loved Georgio's sense of humour and depth of knowledge.
Overall a fantastic experience and first time at bike and barge!

The genuine customer service of the guides and boat crew to make us feel welcome and taken care of.

Our favorite day was probably our stop in Bergantino - we knew the cheese tasting would be fabulous. The stop at the Museum of the Ride was unexpectedly terrific - a real highlight.

Really nice trip -- other than the rain and lousy visibility. We loved the ship -- had a cabin above the deck. Food was very good. The crew and guides were great. They worked their tails off to make the trip fun and keep us riding each day. We had rain most days which is very unusual for this time of the year -- May. The visibility was bad as well. So views from high in the mountains down on the sparkling sea were non-existent most days. Wind warnings kept us from sailing one day. Hats off to our guides who still found rides for us that were safe and fulfilling. They also found things to do like a dinner at a local home one night. We stayed a few extra days in Dubrovnik and Split and that was well worth it.

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.

The bike tour was everything that was promised in the description. Our guide, Sonia Teh was wonderful. She was knowledgeable about the area, pleasant and professional.

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.

Stunning views and quiet lanes are uniquely beautiful during the month of May in Puglia. Prime wildflowers, fresh food and easy navigating were assets . The route is practically perfect.

Biking through the countryside with new friends - over village streets, up on dikes, through forests, etc. Our group would stop each day for coffee and apple cake with whipped cream to try out the many delicious variations of baked goods. Best found in Bronkhorst.

The lodging and breakfasts were terrific, especially in Vienna, Bratislava, Gyor and Budapest. The bikes were very good; in excellent condition with good features. We have biked all over Europe along the main rivers, including the Danube. We expected to ride along the Danube more on this trip, but realize that Eurovelo does not have bike paths close to the river, for most of the trip from Vienna to Budapest. We did the Athletic tour which was good for us, but we did have challenging weather (rain, wind, cool temperatures) on one day.

In spite of an unusually rainy week that restricted our biking, the tour guides went out of their way to provide alternative tours and experiences.

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.

The beautiful places we bikes. The sights. The out of the way country roads.

We were taken on some one way streets in many of the towns which was a bit confusing but added to the story.

The food was incredible and the selection of restaurants was wonderful. It made it easy each night. We just went where the planners selected for us and we did not have to ponder each day where to go. One thing though....too much food! It was wonderful but three selections for each dinner was way more food than any of us could ever eat.

I had an issue with my E bike but was told I did not know how to use it which upset me. I did know what I was doing and one of the owners saw there was a problem but there were no extra bikes on hand to swap out with me. It turned out OK. My bike functioned when I most needed it but I had to switch it on and off frequently to get it to work. I managed just fine but at the end when I was told by one of the employees at the bike shop that the bike was fine...I just didn[t know how to operate it ....I was a bit upset. When I picked up the bike the person checking me out on it told me "people do not like this bike". I did not complain. I just wanted them to know that it should be checked out because the next person might have issues too and might not be as flexible as I was.

All in all it was a wonderful trip. The cooking class at the bike owner's mother's home was so much fun.

There were so many memorable parts of the trip. The places we biked to were amazing. Astrid's meals were exceptional and beyond 5 stars. The staff was so friendly and helpful with any concerns we had.
However, the bikes we had were awful. The majority of the group had problems with both the ebikes and the regular bikes. My wife's ebike did not work properly for the first 2 days and she had an accident because of it. The power kept going off and the guide set it permanently on turbo, however, when she was going up a hill and turning onto a bridge the power cut out again and she was not able to pedal and fell into the cement barrier. Fortunately, nothing was broken but she was very bruised. Each day there were a number of bikes needing repair with problems with brakes and gears. We had friends who biked the same tour in the fall and he said the bikes were terrible then and was told it was the end of the season and that all the bikes would be refurbished and repaired before the tour began in May. I guess this wasn't done as only 2 or 3 actually had no problems.
Also, the guides were not that familiar with the routes and we went off track a few times. There seemed to be a personality clash between them and at one point they actually argued in front of the group, which was not very professional. Both guides, however, were personable and helpful when needed.

This is a wonderful way to see Croatia! All the islands are beautiful and being on a bike gives you the best views!!! Loved our trip and can’t wait to book another bike & boat!!

This was a lovely bike ride. The scenery was beautiful. The tour operator was very helpful and responsive. The hotels were all very comfortable. We loaded the GPX tracts on a Garmin making it easy to stay on course. On the day we road through Foligno, the Giro d'Italia was taking place. It was fun to watch. The village of Gubbio (my favorite next to Assisi) was still decorated for the Corso dei Seri. As far as the ride, we knew that the some of the roads would not be the best quality, but the elevation was more difficult than we were expecting. We were on a road bike and a low end hybrid. The hybrid was too heavy for the elevation. Even walking the bike up some of the hills was difficult. The poor condition of some of the roads made it difficult for the road bike. We were given route options to avoid gravel roads, but there were some asphalt roads that were not the best quality. I would do this ride again, but on a different bike, possibly a gravel bike if it is available. All in all, this was a great bike ride. The Umbria region is a beautiful area, but without the crowds.

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!

My wife and I just finished this beautiful tour of Segovia and the medieval towns nearby. This was our 6th self-guided bike tour in Spain and we loved this tour. The roads in general were quiet and when you did encounter cars the drivers were very considerate and went well over to the side of the road to carefully pass us. We live in California and it's nothing like this in California, an understatement. You start off in Segovia which is a remarkable city with the massive Roman aqueduct dominating the city as you enter. The hotel was nice and we spent an extra day there walking the city and that was well worth the time. The accommodations were all nice with excellent staff. You will find it challenging if you're a vegetarian on this tour. This is land of meat meat and more meat with pork being the dominant meat. One special surprise was the wildlife. Eagles, storks, foxes, massive vultures in the canyons outside of Sepulveda. I grew up a birdwatcher and the rides were filled with incredible birds and wildlife. Quite incredible. We biked Umbria, 300 plus miles and didn't see anything like that there so that was a special treat. The storks on top of the churches were fun as well and you could see their offspring spreading their wings. A great tour and one we both highly recommend.

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.

The scenery while biking. The small towns we explored along the way. The staff on the boat.
The upscale dining experience each night.
The comfort, storage options, and arrangement of our cabins. The wonderful duvets on the beds. The large windows in our cabin.

Cycling along the Mosel was magical! Vertical Vineyards! Who knew? Fabulous rides!

The wonderful paved cycle paths

The biking on dedicated bike paths through vineyards and apple orchards with soaring mountains in the background was the most memorable part of the trip- so beautiful! My only suggestion for improvement would be to provide one handlebar bag for each person on the trip- they did come in handy!