France Tour Reviews — 811 to 840 of 943

Sorry, it rained the entire trip. Route and scenery would have been fine if not for that. Barge has seen better days. Staff (Stephan and Florence) are very pleasant.
Suggestion: Give the tour riders a sew-on patch to remember the tour.

For the most part the trip was wonderful, I would like to put most of my answers right in the middle of satisfied and not satisfied, I just thought the scenery and the landscape etc. was not what I expected. That is not your fault, enjoyed my trips to Italy and Germany were much more scenic

Nothing bad or ugly. Scenery got better as we moved north. Group on our trip (both crew and guests) were great. Enjoyed the Soleo.

The guide seemed lost most of the time. He didn't know where to stop for a picnic and one day we ate our lunches at a bus stop. I realize cafes mostly close in France between 12 and 2, but his lack of knowledge of where to find a toilet after lunch was a problem. He chastised us for being slow to re-organize, but then later we'd stop for no reason and wait for up to a half hour with no info from him. He was good at describing architecture.

The trip was great! Mostly all positive. Tom and I would like to have the pace a bit faster....that was the only negative.

Nearly everything excellent. The only downside was the cycling was promised to have the option of two different rides each day i.e. a long or a short ride with two different guides. There was only one guide so both options were compromised into one medium length ride each day. Many on the tour would have preferred a longer ride most days.

I fully enjoyed the Lorraine/Moselle bike trip (May 14-20, 2016) with the staff of La Belle Fleur. This was my first bike and barge trip and it certainly was a stress free and relaxing way to see the region. The owner/operators of the boat (Sander and Els) were not only very professional, but charming, enthusiastic, and helpful. Els was also a superb cook so our meals were always delicious. Pieter was the perfect guide (and quite the character!), fun to bike with, patient, knowledgeable of the route and the potential sights, and willing to change the agenda to meet the interests of his clients. The pace was leisurely and we had ample time to view both the valley scenery and the grand old cities along the route. The bikes were in good repair and suitable for the mostly level countryside we were traversing. Another delightful aspect of the trip was that the route was mostly off the busy roads and on dedicated bicycle paths (except, of course, in the cities). The weather, though often cloudy and brisk with occasional light sprinkles of rain, was never a problem. The passengers got along well together and we had fun evenings relaxing aboard ship along with the crew. One week of biking seemed just the right amount of time. I came home with many wonderful memories of people, places, and experiences. I can highly recommend this trip and this boat company. The folks at the Tripsite office in the U.S. were also very responsive and easy to work with so they get my "thumbs up" award too!

It was well above our expectations in every way, cabins, staff, cleanliness and the gourmet meals all the time. Fantastic experience.

Everything did not go perfectly all the time but we had a great time and the guys from Girolibero were always doing their best to help out when needed.

Everything exceeded expectations. I would definitely recommend the Fleur and trip

Our trip was well organized logistically and the biking routes were beautiful. I highly recommend Tripsite and will be booking future trips with them. Thanks for a fantastic week of biking.

This bike tour had it all: great scenery, wonderful food, delicious wine and the perfect itinerary. The rental bike was fantastic, the accommodations were comfortable, the luggage shuttle was reliable & the guidebook was helpful/informative.

I was surprised at how much there was to do and see along the way. Each town was interesting & historically fascinating. Touring this region by bicycle is the only way to go. It allows you to stop in each village/town along the way to sample the food & explore the sites. The guidebook that is provided with your tour is quite helpful; but I encourage you to stop in as many towns as possible, even if they aren't listed in the book. You'll be surprised at the hidden charms you will discover on some of the side roads.

The bicycle route (mostly bike paths) can be found on either side of the Mosel River. And, in most cases, you can't go wrong. Once again, the guidebook provides suggestions for which side to choose. But either side is fascinating. And since the vast majority of the route is car-free, you feel safe and free to watch the scenery rather than the traffic. I hope to go back sometime and explore the places I missed on my first tour.

I was greatly appreciated to allow us to drink and enjoy the wine we purchased without any extra charge.

Initial bikes provided were in very poor state. They were replaced when we contacted local agent at the end of the first day.

Barge/cycling trips are a fantastic way to explore the countryside and towns - you see so much more when you are cycling. One vivid memory of a cycling trip through northern France was stopping to look at poppies growing along the side of the road. I love the fact that you do not have to pack up each day - it is a very relaxing experience. The diversity of people who do these trips also adds to the experience. The trips that I have done in the last three years had fantastic staff who were very friendly and knowledgeable. I have done two barge/bike trips and look forward to doing more in the future.

Some hotels definitely better than others. Also some of the road directions were not translated well. Overall, however, generally satisfied with the trip but the service could use some improvements.

The crew and barge were just terrific. The food was excellent and plentiful. The French towns and scenery were a delight.

The staff was very friendly and they made our trip outstanding!

Issues related to the boat: bad smell, cabin room was cozier than we would choose in the future. Laundry facilities were inadequate. We really enjoyed the trip, the guide and the experience!

I would recommend the trip only if the biking instructions we changed. Alsace is a wonderful area and the people, food, and accommodations were great! But the instructions for the bike routes were too confusing and unclear and not in English. They were in Dutch - not even French or German!

This is the second barge and bike trip we took with Tripsite and I would have to say we liked the scenery more on the Taste of Burgundy than we did with Provence. Riding the in the Camargue got a little boring. Other than that we enjoyed the overall trip.

My main concern about this particular trip is that we did not know ahead of time that staying on the barge and not biking was not an option unless one was sick. The winds were pretty bad (25-50 miles per hour) so that some of us did not feel up to the rides. On the particularly difficult day, it would have been nice to just remain with the boat.

The Soleo was a disappointment in all respects.

It was a great trip. There were only 3 of us on the tour so they gave us each our own private cabin which was very much appreciated. Marco, the captain was one of the best boat captains. He shared a lot of information with us and really made the trip fun and interesting. Our guide was great too, and tailored each day to our needs because our group was so small. The food was good too, and a good variety. I only rated the food as "satisfied" because I toured the year before on the Zwaan, the Mosel and Saar tour, and the chef was soooooo good, that he spoiled me for future tours! If you have any questions on my experience on any tours, please let me know. And I hope to book one of your tours again ~~

More time in certain areas would have been nice. There were instances where it felt like we were being pushed along, and I appreciate that we had 22 people of varying age, skill experience and physical ability, and that we have to get back to the boat. Our guide was very good, but you needed to try and understand his manner, which could be short at times. He was knowledgeable, insightful and caring, but his manner did not necessarily reflect that. Meals were good but thought it would reflect more French cuisine of the Provence area, not a complaint, just an observation.
Staff was excellent and I continue to recommend this bike trip and company to friends."

The IBIS HOTEL we stayed at in AVIGNON did not meet our expectations. The maps were well laid out except there were too many descriptions that told us where NOT to go, poor directions in SAZE, got lost.. Eliminate that.
The bikes were great for the trip. We will use you again.

Everything about the company and the trip was first class. I would not hesitate to use Tripsite again.

I became very ill on my last day and could not complete the trip. It was dehydration. Our leader (Alex?) had to drive me into London. At no point along the way were we reminded to drink lots of water. In fact Alex did not recognize that I might have been dehydrated. Please make sure and remind people to drink, drink, drink (H2O).
thank you.

We have enjoyed every trip we have taken and look forward to more in the future!

The trip exceeded my expectations. My wife and I especially enjoyed the company of the other travelers, and we all got along very well.