France Tour Reviews — 901 to 930 of 932

We would rank our bicycle trip to Alsace/Lorraine based at the Hotel a la Ferme in Osthouse, France with 4 stars out of 5 stars.

The accommodations and staff rate a 5 star ranking. The rooms were immaculate, spacious, and well-appointed with every modern convenience. Meals are elegantly prepared, rich with sauces, and skillfully served. Dinners were wonderful but one choice, whatever was being served that night. No low calorie alternatives were offered.

Osthouse is a delightful beautifully restored rustic village, complete with working farms, an ancient chateau, and a beautiful 16th century church with a bell tower. The villagers were friendly. There were no stores or other restaurants in the village. We felt safe waking the streets at any hour.

Only local French language TV, sporadic Internet and cell phone connections, no local entertainment. The only place to go in town are the hotel and their very elegant/fine restaurant 2 blocks away. If you are looking for a place to relax, get away from it all, and disconnect, this is the place. You will do it in style.

You will need to bring your own metric bicycle tools, and a slim-valve (Presta) hand tire pump. There were eight 10-speed bicycles available to choose from. Ample saddle bags and adequate lunches were provided. Be patient with the English translation Route Instructions as they can be confusing at times. The actual bicycle routes had us sharing roads with cars as well as beautiful bicycle paths along many of the rivers and canals.

For your own peace of mind, if you are relying on the hotel transportation back to the train station in Erstein, be sure to allow at least 20 minutes beyond the agreed upon pick-up time.

Susan and Allen

Hennie recommeded this Tour to us in 2011 and we have gone in both 2011 & 2012. Unfortunately, we are unable to go in 2013. We went back the 2nd year because of the Hotel. The Family that owns and runs the Hotel is excellent and the service and dining is outstanding. We will definitely go back.

Al & Sue

We absolutely loved Alsace, Osthouse, Hotel la Ferme and the bike rides. The villages, canals, tree-lined tow paths and the people..plus the wonderful stay at Hotel la Ferme. We did not want it to end.

Absolutely loved the trip on board the Merlijn. Wonderful staff and amenities on board, met a great like minded group of travelling companions. As a coeliac, the crew were very attentive and ensured all my dietary needs were met. Nothing was too much trouble.

As for the cycling and the scenery....what can I say? It was magic cycling along quiet bikeways through the vineyards and small villages, at all times in sight of the wonderful Moselle River.

Last but not least...the wine selection and quality on board the Merlijn was the best (and very well priced).

Already thinking about our next bike and barge tour...with the great help from Tripsite (of course).

We took this tour in October, 2012. It was fantastic. The history, the scenery, the chateaus of the Loire Valley are truly amazing. The little country inn was delightful, with steaming pots of hot chocolate with breakfast and elegant, world- class, dinners. The provided route maps were a challenge to follow, taking us deep into forests, etc. that were great to experience. But on Day 3, we switched to the official French bike route maps because they were so easy to use. I finally got to study the scenery as we pedaled along! Thanks, Pack and Pedal, for a perfect vacation. We'll be back!

I recently enjoyed the Paris to Bruges bike & barge tour and I loved it. The crew were fantastic, the service was excellent and the daily ride with a wonderful guide was great fun. It was one of the best travel experiences. Thanks to everyone on the Elodie for the ideal holiday. (I was on the 30th Sept 2012 trip)

Did Castle of the Loire 3rd week of sept 2012. The weather was nice though we did get rain on our first afternoon. No complaints at all. We picked the 2 star option and were more than happy. All hotels clean and comfortable and the staff helpful and friendly. Food was fantastic. Bikes were also fabulous and the intinery/directions easy to follow (even when we got ourselves a little lost, easy to get back on track). We are 50 and of average fitness, the bike riding was not too hard. We will definately look at another tour soon. Thanks for the memories!

We loved the trip. The food was better than advertised, and the barge was more comfortable than expected. Our suggestion for improvement would be a second guide OR better overall maps for a breakaway group.

This was the best way to enjoy Europe combining bicycling through painting-like landscapes on a well balanced tour of culture, history and fun with a fantastic caring crew and fabulous food! The addition of a dozen Australians made it even better; and barging into Paris on a sunny afternoon with a glass of wine was divine. We're booking again in 2013!

If you picked a tour aboard the Merlijn for your next vacation, you made the perfect choice. It is not just a barge, it is a luxury barge. The ride through the Mosel Valley is stunning with the vineyards and quaint towns. But, beyond that it is the specialness of your hosts, Jantien and Henk that make this an outstanding experience. Jantien's warmth, humor and attention to detail is amazing along with the delicious meals she prepares. When you come away from the trip, you are left with wonderful memories and you feel like you were entertained in the home of a close friend.

This trip is all and more. There is a good balance of seeing nature at it's most beautiful as you follow the Mosel River and you go through many villages and see historic sites, and taste wine. You take many stops and the miles are spread out through the day so it isn't a hard, tiring bike ride either. This is a trip of a lifetime and great staff and people. The food on the boat is out of this world and the dinner table is set so beautifully! The barge is the way to go!

This was our second trip with Tripsite. We did this trip to Provence in early September and it really was magnificent. The local tour organizer had a well prepared and thought out package with easy to follow directions for the most part. The cycling with the accompanying scenery was beautiful. The accommodations and food were well selected. We can't recommend a trip more highly than this (except possibly the trip to the Netherlands we did last year) or this group.

We had a fantastic time this past June (2012). The routes were level and beautiful. The hotel and restaurant were outstanding. We hope to do this trip again. Many thanks to Hennie and her terrific staff for making our 4th vacation with Pack and Pedal another incredible event.

We thoroughly enjoyed our trip. The accommodations and the dinners provided in the package were excellent. I can speak for all 9 of us that we would certainly use your company again and would recommend it to anyone in search of such a vacation. 

Thanks for you excellent and prompt service. 

Our group of 12 took this tour in 2010. We combined it to go from Orleans to Angers.

The routes are pleasant and the hisoric sites are aewsome. As usual, Pack and Pedal took care of us in a very first class way.

Stan Pearson

Excellent trip. Great weather, great guide, nice boat. Great group of people, both other bikers and staff. Took some great pictures.

Great trip...We did the 7 day but wish we would have done the five days however. We are planning on booking for the third time this year just looking for a 5 day and it seems most are much longer.

Thanks

Overall a very enjoyable tour staying at good hotels and the bikes while a little heavy did the job well. The one area that needs improvement was the directions. For the first couple of days we were given detailed instructions in English but subsequently we were instructed to follow the route in the map book which was in German! As a consequence we had to work out our own route which we did using a large scale map and google maps. Also the suggestion was that we could have taken two possible routes on the first ride day but we only given instructions for one. Still a most enjoyable ride, fantastic scenary the weather was perfect.

Did Castles of the Loire with another couple. No complaints. Bikes were great. Meals were great. Accommodations were great. Weather was great (didn't rain at all !). Only glitch was the lack of an in-house meal on the monday (Oct 17) at Auberge Du Centre in Chitenay.

I cannot say enough about how much we enjoyed this tour. My husband and I and 2 friends sailed on the Soleo in September 2011. The weather was perfect. Although nothing fancy the boat had everything we needed. Our room had a private bath and never ran out of hot water for showers! Our tour guide was great, fun and really brought the group of Americans, Brits, Aussies, and Germans together. The country side, vineyards, beaches, small towns were like traveling in a postcard at every turn. Some of the biking was more challenging (more hilly) than I had expected, but the ebike was wonderful. This trip has my highest recommendation!

We took this tour in July of 2010. We have used tripsite before and have loved the experience. But I have to say, that for the biking, we liked the Netherlands tour better. There weren't many sites open to tour. Cafes and restaurants were often closed when we got there. Having said that, the scenery was beautiful. The food was wonderful too. And it was a treat to barge our way into and around Paris. Thank you.

Fantastic-had a great time, food was great and bike tours were very good. Comraderie on the Fleur helped make the trip and the guides were fun with all the grief they received from us. Many sites were visited you would never see on a "packaged" tour

We had a wonderful time. Martine and Margery were the best. Loved the trip

Wonderful trip and well organized. However, would not recommend the hotel or restaurant in Stes.Maries

Everything else was great and would recommend and perhaps book another bike trip in the future.

We did this tour in 2008 and had a wonderful time.

This was a fantastic tour. The guide, captain, and cook were all wonderful. Great way to see the country, on small roads and bike trails. We saw an amazing amount of varied things in 14 days.

I really enjoyed my experience in the Loire Valley thanks to the great service Carla, Hennie, and Mary provided. The tour went smoothly, the bicycle was comfortable, the maps were detailed and the whole experience was exactly as it was described here in the website. I chose the 2-3* option and the hotels were clean and nice (for the most part), and the restaurants (all but one) were absolutely delicious!! I would highly recommend tripsite to anyone considering cycling through Loire, and I intend to use them again on my next trip in Europe--BON VOYAGE!

Great trip. Beautiful countryside, the route keeps you on small back roads and paths so you see very little traffic for most of the trip, just lots of grape harvesting (if you go in the fall). Hotels and food were good, and everything worked perfectly. I tailored the trip to suit my needs and tripsite was very accomodating. Highly recommended.

This was a beautiful trip, with lots of nice surprises (changing sceneries, nice food, etc.) The local tour organizer was a sweet lady who treated us like old friends. We really had fun and suggest this tour to whoever is looking for simple adventure in pretty France.

I did this trip in early July 2011 with six friends and had a fantastic time. The routes were very, very good - just the right length, and through some wonderful, very scenic countryside. The journey included miles and miles of vineyards, several forests, and some long stretches along the Rhine. The towns we stayed in were easy and fun to explore, and the hotels were all excellent. All in all the trip went far beyond my expectations and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to others.

Cheers,

Lorne