5 Star France Tour Reviews — 241 to 270 of 583

Burgundy is a wonderful place for a bike tour. Dijon and Beaune have nice tourist sites, and we ate well and had excellent wine throughout. We especially liked the restaurant at Hotel Le Dracy.
The routes were nice, highlighted by the bike path along the canal between Beaune and Dracy. The hybrid bicycles were good, if a little heavy for those of us used to road bikes. We had no mechanical issues.

This trip was fabulous. Outstanding service, incredible food, luxurious accommodations and an attentive crew. The best trip we've ever taken. Steve, Karina and their crew were so friendly. The countryside we cycled and cruised through was so scenic. Our excursion guide, Edita, took us to do many wonderful places. Tips for others? Be prepared to be pampered!

It was so amazingly organized. The tour guides were exemplary, the rest of the staff absolutely wonderful and so personable, the food was totally extraordinary, the bikes were really well maintained and wonderful.

And three of my colleagues on the trip - who had been, between them, on no less than13 other bike and barge trips - all said whole-heartedly that this particular July 23rd, 2022 was the best by far that they had ever experienced. Was I ever lucky as it was my first!!

This trip is and will be for a long time the most memorable trip I ever had. Our hotel was fantastic. Great rooms, great food. The bikes were top notch, couldn't have had a better bike. The owner of the hotel was very knowledgeable about the roads we took each day, and the road in the Tarn Valley are so smooth and well kept.

This tour takes you through spectacular landscapes and beautiful villages.

The captain and staff were all very personable and worked well together. Steffi is amazing!

The countryside was beautiful and excursions interesting. Luckily, we had magnificent weather, which made everything feel perfect!

The wine tastings could have included a brief tour, like the cider tasting excursion did.

Biking through the small villages was very picturesque. Only regret was not having a GoPro to video as we were riding through.

This was a fantastic bike trip! The weather forecast for our trip was not favorable but we had only 1 rainy day and we were prepared with rain gear. The route was beautiful and very safe. French drivers are very aware and respectful of cyclists. So many beautiful places to see! We highly recommend on the 5th day to visit the gardens and Benac castle. There is a choice to visit 2 other castles that day but the gardens include lots of walking as does exploring the castle. The optional ride in Sarlat is well worth it but don’t miss the canoe on the Dordogne. We did both. We stayed an extra day in Sarlat in June because high season is July so it was not mobbed. A lovely experience! If you do not speak French just try a few words and you will be well received. If you expect a non English speaking French person if they speak English they will say no and not attempt to help you.

The daily bike rides were more than I expected through beautiful countrysides and charming villages. The staff were outstanding in their efforts to make us comfortable- loved the swim off the barge after a long days ride! . The cuisine was superb and reasonably portioned - loved daily fresh baguettes.

From start to finish we had a great time and definitely lived up to all expectations
will definitely do another trip next year and for longer
communication with staff on arrival (Paul Garcia) and luggage forwarding was very good
accommodation was excellent in Dijon at Hotel des Ducs and Chateauneuf was charming
I would definitely suggest air con as essential at that time of year, we had two hotels without and suffered as a result
Directions around Nolay were very confusing and we lost an hour & a half trying to work it our but I can think of worse places to be stuck!

I love Provence. This is a fabulous tour to see both the countryside and villages. The L’Estelle is a very comfortable barge, the staff are amazing. I’ve been on several bike and barge tours and the food was the best. We had a full spread every day when we were back from biking. Our tour guide was great. There are several extra tours of castles , villages , olive farm included. The only thing to note is that the tour in Arles does not take you into the collegium, theatre or Roman baths. She stands outside and talks about them. If you enjoy history then this is for you but if you want to actually see the sites then skip the tour as there’s plenty of time to see them on your own. I also liked this tour as we didn’t just follow the river but did loops and came back which made it interesting.

Just completed this tour and thoroughly enjoyed it. The food was amazing!! The boat was clean and well maintained. We did find the rooms very tight and agree on the steep staircase. Our guide was excellent and knowledgeable about the history of the area. She looked after all guests needs. The Captain and his wife were part of the team and we enjoyed their interaction with guests. Bert had some great jokes!!

We actually combined two Loire Valley segments - Tours to Angers, and Angers to St. Brevin les Pins, adding an extra day in the middle, in Angers. The Loire Valley is a wonderful cycling experience - spectacular scenery, countless fascinating historical sites, charming inns, excellent food and wine. The cycling was definitely on the easy side - mostly flat, reasonable distances each day, the trails well-marked, the paths mostly paved and separated from the roads. The bikes (Scott Sport 20) were steady and comfortable. The weather during our trip (mid-June) was near-perfect, except for a bit of unusual heat the last few days. Highly recommended for every aspect of the cycling experience.

The route was well planned and paced, the hotels perfectly fine and the sights were tremendous. What beautiful scenery! A few tricky spots, but some must be expected on a bike tour. Highly suggest using the app, suppled by Tripsite, for each day's itinerary; would not have wanted to follow the route using paper maps. A word to the wise on e-bikes: the last three days were very hilly, so care must be taken to conserve the battery when possible. Even being cautious, I ran out of juice on two days. It was not fun peddling these heavy bikes the last 4-5 miles. On the whole, highly recommend this particular tour, the third one we've taken with Tripsite.

Great Trip,
All the places were very nice.
The service was very good
It will better if yousay who little town is worth to go inside (if you have time) and which is better for lunch, etc

In the hotels.
The Hotels Mais d Agret in Les Baux is really very COMPLETE and GOOD
The Hotel du poete is good but need Manteinance, pinting, etc
The Hotel Ibis in Avignon os maybe the less..

Thanks for everything,

The coverage of the company is excellent. They fulfilled everything they offered. The bikes are new and of very good quality. Le Baux de Provence is a beautiful place

Wonderful trip. Great crew with Sarah and Joseph as cooks, Willy as captain, and Michaela (?sp) as our guide. I have some dietary restrictions which they handled very well. Cabins are a little small but not inadequate given the small boat size. The stairway is somewhat awkward but manageable.
Michaela was a good informant about historical facts about the area. She is also a very good bike mechanic, having worked in a bike shop recently during the pandemic.
Good tour mates from multiple countries. Everyone got along well. Would definitely recommend this trip.

Great crew
Great food
great guide
awesome captain
wonderful eclectic group on board ... only 16
did i SAY unbelievable food ..... themed to the regional herbs .....which transformed food into a cultural lesson on the region
and Michaella the guide what a great trip she road us through or we road her through!
the camaque ride is a ride through the french wetlands - through the history of the crusaders and Knights Templer - the salt trade - then you get in the other side of Provence with its chic chic villages - fields of flowers and lavender and poppies .... a few hills that were daunting - but on the whole we had great bike paths minimal traffic and just a whole lot of wonderful vistas and aromas as we rolled through this beautiful part of the world ....(in this covid world being able to smell the flowers and fields was also a good daily litmus test ...) its a great trip a great experience with a great crew - i would happily do this ride again....

Wonderful trip start to finish. The Fleur was cozy and comfortable. Terrific crew. Delicious food. We biked roughly 30 miles per day through forests, small towns, the countryside. Be sure to pack bike shorts. The bikes were in great shape. We were a group of 19, at least 6 people used Ebikes. We were fortunate to have 2 terrific guides which made a group of that size much easier to navigate. If you plan to do this trip you want to be able to comfortably bike 30 miles with some hills. Not unmanageable for people who cycle. This is a great trip for those who enjoy cycling through the countryside, stopping at cafes and historical points of interest . One day I decided to stay on the barge. I cozied up with a good book and watched the world go by. So enjoyable. Sailing into Paris and seeing the Eiffel Tower for the first time was pretty special too. This was our first bike and barge and we are already thinking of our next.

Intimate barge and delightful crew that quickly became friends. We loved the two week itinerary and everyone looked forward to another day on the bikes exploring. Many highlights but the riding onto the terrace above Paris and viewing the Eiffel Tower and skyline was enchanting. The entire group became one as we enjoyed each other’s company.
The Tripsite staff were a great resource; extremely knowledgeable and friendly. I recommend beginning the vacation with them. Their guidance in choosing the right vacation was superb.

All of it was wonderful. Guide Michela was fun and a great leader. There was a nice mix of stops for tours and riding. Scenery was beautiful. Also Liked the boat cruises from the deck. Hills and wind made it a little more of a challenging of a ride. Crew and cooks took good care of us. Would recommend.

Riding through the French countryside and small towns.

Riding through the fields of fruit trees, medieval villages, sipping beverages in the little outdoor cafes, tasting olive oil in the factory, learning to use the bike to it's potential, and enjoying the ambiance back on the boat with spectacular meals.

This was a phenomenal tour! Our tour guide, Andre was the best! He is Great organizer, very skilled crew and rider leader and an especially a very knowledgeable and inspiring historian! Unfortunately, he was also unusually busy as a bike repairman. We really hope to book another tour with Andre! (last name?)

Our tour guid was amazing (Melanie) She made sure everyone was safe and I believe everyone enjoyed themselves it was just a lot of fun what a great time with good friends and Melanie

I loved the integration of sight seeing and bike riding. The visit to the olive oil producer was very interesting. Also loved the opportunity to see the Cezanne Immersive theater. Melanie was a wonderful tour guide and made the trip very fun.

Cycling along the river, the journey

Looking forward to another one next year.

The setting, the sites, the views, the experiences... it's all memorable. But what was most memorable for me was being able to have a packaged vacation and not have to worry about my food or lodging. I have a food allergy, which makes travelling a challenge - especially in group tours. I usually have to bring my own food, make sure we stay where there is a kitchen, visit a grocery store, etc. The cook and other crew on the Quo vadis made sure that i was well-fed with healthy, appetizing food. On some other types of tours i have been accommodated, but the food was just basic (or awful). This was the first trip i have ever been on where all of my dietary needs were met - i did not have to worry at all about getting sick (which can ruin a vacation). So while it was all absolutely wonderful, for me the "icing on the (gluten free) cake was that i was able to eat so well!
Also great: the information sent ahead of time was extremely useful. It was hard to go through it all at once, a suggestion i might have is to send topic specific emails. Maybe not weekly, but maybe monthly. Especially appreciated the extra work that was done to make sure we were prepared for the covid requirements, and especially that you took the care to make the decision to change the route to ensure there were no issues.
The crew and guide were all great. Some of the time I wished there could have been a little more education about the area and the things we were seeing.

Our original trip was cancelled due to Covid and we took the Camargue trip in its place. It turned out to be a lovely replacement. I had felt this covered ground I previously knew but seen from the perspective of biking round places previously seen the trip added such a new and fresh layer, as well as previously unknown places, that it was like seeing things for the first time.
The boat was comfortable and the food really excellent thanks to the innovative hands of chef Sara.
Highly recommended.