Germany Tour Reviews — 331 to 360 of 1671

The scenery, the history, the superior quality of the staff, the appealing pace of the active elements & the great food!

Sept 23 - 29, 2023 Nürnberg to Würzburg on the Merlijn : This was our 6th Bike & Barge trip with Tripsite (it would have been our 8th, but you know that story!), and we wouldn't dream of booking with anyone else! We'd taken a trip on the Merlijn in 2017, but since then, the interior has been renovated. Very nice! Food and accommodations were excellent, staff was friendly and helpful. Our bike guide, Thomas, prepped us each day, reviewing the routes and stops, always prioritizing our safety. The bikes were new and well maintained. The staff took the time to adjust each to personalize the fit and comfort. The hybrid bikes are Dutch and light weight, which my husband rode. This was the second trip I've taken using an e-bike and I'm hooked! The biking routes were generally level and we mostly rode on dedicated bike paths. When riding through a town, Thomas did a great job of keeping us together, advising us on how to approach intersections. Another fabulous B & B trip and we're already planning our 7th!

It is hard to decide on just one memorable part of the trip. Sailing along the Rhine with a drink, seeing castle after castle along the beautiful hills, drinking “fresh wine” at the lunch stop during one of our rides along the Mosel, riding through charming town after charming town, each was highly memorable. This was my dream vacation.

The only thing I would change is that I should have ridden an e-bike. Had I not been recovering from a recent illness, it would not have been necessary, but as one can never predict one’s future health at time of booking, I would consider an e-bike an insurance policy in case one is not 100%. It would have made some days more enjoyable.

My Second B&B trip on Merlijn. After my wife & I had such a great experience in Belgium & The Netherlands on the Merlijn, I pledged That I would try to reserve the entire barge and recruit 22 of our friends to join us on another trip. We did just that. We just finished our second trip - This time Mainz to Merzig in Germany.
Safe to say we all had a great experience that we will long remember.

The guided tour of Trier was great, as the guide explained things which you may not read about.

Bike guides fantastic, boat crew amazing. So many wonderful memories to pick out just one. Beautiful bike paths, scenery

The bike tours were wonderful and the guides were very knowledgeable! The boat staff was great, they made you feel like family!

The crew was outstanding❣️and the guides were very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. The food was superb

We had a wonder experience on our biking trip from Cochem to Metz. The Quo Vadis crew was superb. We wish RJ and family all the best on his retirement. The biking was beautiful all the way, but we especially loved the day we rode down the mountain back to Bernkastel-Kues. We loved the villages and vineyards. We would highly recommend this trip!

This trip was so well planned. All services, hotels, transportation were excellent.
Bike trails were great. Attractions were great. A good time was had by all.

This tour exceeded all of our expectations. From the elegant and comfortable boat with a friendly, accommodating crew to the fantastic guide who took us on all of the rides and offered great stories and info.
We can’t wait to book our next trip (maybe Greek Islands) and would recommend trip site.com without reservations.

The boat was extremely comfortable....the bed in my cabin made it difficult to get up in the morning. The crew went out of their way to be helpful.
Food was fine.....breakfast provided plenty of choices, we packed out lunches for our rides from the buffet. Breads were delicious. We had cool and or rainy nights so we didn't take advantage of the deck on top. The entertainment, consisting of a DJ was a bit boring after a day or two but we still enjoyed ourselves, dancing, playing cards, etc. This trip was very reasonable monetarily.

What a wonderful tour that absolutely exceeded expectations. The barge was very comfortable, the bikes were great, as were the food, accommodations, staff, etc. Biking along the Moselle was incredible, I found myself repeating about the scenery, food, villages, people, "I could never tire of this!"

Loved having our “hotel” come along for the ride. That’s all.

This was our first bike/boat trip. Being able to contemplate wonderful Germany, from Merzig to Koblenz was an amazing experience. The pedaling across small towns and vineyards with friends and family was unique. The incredible staff was always available to make our stay even more pleasant. The food was outstanding with a variety that surprised us every day.
Bike tour, with all the historical sites was fascinating and the guide made it even more fun. Memorable trip!
Looking forward to to the next one wich is already booked! Thank you tripsite and Flora crew :)

This was our first bike/boat trip. Being able to contemplate wonderful Germany, from Merzig to Koblenz was an amazing experience. The pedaling across small towns and vineyards with friends and family was unique. The incredible staff was always available to make our stay even more pleasant. The food was outstanding with a variety that surprised us every day.
Bike tour, with all the historical sites was fascinating and the guide made it even more fun. Memorable trip!
Looking forward to to the next one wich is already booked! Thank you tripsite and Flora crew :)

Loved the tour of the Reichsburg castle. To think that it is still standing intact after 100's of years is amazing!

Don't miss this unique and intimate opportunity. Traveling the Flora is not for the high maintenance, needy and demanding. This is like very fancy camping on a magnificent boat that also serves as someone’s home. You are in someone’s home, being welcomed to their dining room, their living room and their hearts.

The ship is efficiently run! The captain is friendly and kind but gives the air (as any good captain should) that this is his boat and his rules. If you are familiar with small boat life you get it. It is a busy life with many parts and pieces. The chef! Junna, what can I say except you can taste her commitment and passion for cooking. My husband and I love variety and flavors and the Flora delivers! Quaint, rustic and nutrient packed dishes were a lovely surprise every day. I was fortunate to spend time with her and wish I had more time. She could easily become a great friend.
Berthus, Junna and Christiana were wonderfully kind, generous and great hosts.
Hetty, our guide, is the picture of loveliness. She is genuine in her interest of your holiday and eager to help you settle in to your desire for your own holiday expectation. She was helpful and hard working, kind and efficient. I would love to travel with her again.

The Flora is cozy and unique. Cabins are clean and well cared for. If you expect all the comforts of a massive cruise this is not your boat, but if you truly want a family home experiencing small boat life in a intimate setting, then Flora and it’s crew are it! We will definitely travel with them again in the future.

This morning on our departure as our taxi pulled away, Berthus, Junna, Hetty and Christiana were there behind us waiving good bye. I did not have a tissue for my tears.

My only complaint. If the crew makes you fall in love with the country you are visiting, the boat you are traveling on and them, they should make sure you have a tissue for your tears when you depart.

Love you all Flora! Thank you so much.

The scenery was spectacular, especially between Passau and Linz and later through the wine region. Flat bike path almost all the way from Passau to Vienna. The booklet with directions that was given to us at orientation was extremely well organized, very clear, and useful. We enjoyed very much the freedom of the self-guided tour, stopping in villages for a cappuccino and pastries. Our luggage was always there when we arrived at our hotel. The hotels were nice, except for the one in Linz, (Shwarzer Bar) which was right above a noisy bar, and with poor service. I would recommend a different hotel. A major highlight of the trip was Hotel Kirchenwirt in the lovely village of Weissenkichen, in the one region. In fact, I would recommend staying two nights there to enjoy the spectacular biking through the vineyards and resting bit in the middle of the trip. The two 70+km days were a bit long but very doable. Overall a memorable vacation, very well organized by Tripsite.

This itinerary was a perfect combination of good bike rides on excellent pathways, interesting towns and villages and stunning scenery at every bend in the Mosel river.
The daily plan allowed for ample time to visit and explore towns along the route and the overnight stops. The fact that harvest was in full swing added an interesting insight into the central industry of the Mosel.

Climbing the very steep road through the vineyards to the view point.

The Mosel valley is a wonderful cycling locale. There are few hills, endless "cute" (ie scenic) storybook towns and villages, and of course vineyards climbing every hill in a patchwork quilt. There are hills on both sides of the valley, so it is protected from strong winds and the climate is very mild - after all, that's why the Romans lived there for hundreds of years and even moved their capital from Rome to Trier. As a North American I had never heard of the starting and ending towns, but they turned out to be easily accessible by rail from major cities. Being there the first week of September coincided with the wine festivals in pretty much every town. This was my second time cycling along the Mosel; there was little overlap between the two cycling holidays as the itinerary was quite different. And the boats were very different too. Even when we visited the same towns we saw different things. And we cycled one day from a volcano caldera down a rail-to-bike-path trail that descended 1000' in 55km, including almost-one-kilometre long stone tunnels through mountains. It is such a relaxing trip I would consider doing it again.

Overall, this is a lovely trip, with beautiful sites and numerous delightful stops along the way. We chose category A hotels, modified the 7 day trip by adding a 2nd night in Lindau, and spent the last 2 nights in Arbon, where we ended the trip, without returning to Konstanz (this is our 9th trip, about 50% bike and barge). It appears the daily destinations change depending on the length of trip and availability(or best rate for booking company??).
Pros: Lots to do in Konstanz, including swimming in the lake. Enjoyed Hotel Halm very much - central location, nice rooms and good breakfasts. We adored Hotel Rheingold - rooms were new, with patio or deck, and restaurant was delicious, with a gorgeous hilltop view. Lindau was the perfect 2 night stop with lots to see and quaint restaurants. The upgraded Bayerischer in Lindau was super with much appreciated sauna and two wonderful pools, delicious breakfast - highly recommend the A+ upgrade. Parkhotel in Uberlingen also had lovely amenities. We had super Sept/October weather and towns were very charming all along the way. Stein am Rhein is worth a short stop, if that’s on your route.
Cons: The tour operator requires you to get your bikes from their location - every other trip we’ve done, the bikes were waiting for us at the hotel - not a big deal, but just FYI. Although we loved Hotel Rheingold in Gailingen, we question why bike to Gailingen - there are so many other towns that are actually around Lake Constance we would have preferred to spend time in. The route was mostly farmland all along the way and not great - then bike back the same way, about 60k, to Parkhotel in Uberlingen which is straight up a difficult hill, with no restaurant options other than the pricey hotel restaurant. Because of the long day, we missed sites in/around Uberlingen. We found Arbon sweet (be sure to see the MOMO cider museum), but the Frohsinn hotel rooms, although clean and efficient, seemed just above hostel grade.
Overall, we can recommend this trip, but if you’re looking for a truly scenic, seamless route without large climbs, we’d suggest a trip along the Mosel…spectacular!

Excellent itinerary with great paths and trails. Love the Merlijn and all that it has to offer. Coen and Christina along with the crew are 5star! Thomas was a terrific guide and fun to travel with.

Every day held something new along our way. Landscapes changed, cities and towns were vastly different, crops varied, castles and palaces were different. Enjoy it all.

At the time we were on the trip the boat assigned a dining table and you had to sit with the same people every meal every day. We were a single couple and were put at a table with one other couple who were thankfully a lovely couple. It would have been nice however to be able to sit with others at least for breakfast and lunch.

Bicycle riding along the Moselle was terrific. Beautiful scenery.
Guides were knowledgeable, but could have been a little more aware of riders in traffic situations.

EXCELLENT staff on the barge, Magnifique lll. Only tip for others: ENJOY the beautiful scenery and the lovely staff

The crew and owners Coen and Christina are just so friendly and they make you feel like family. The ship is so clean and very luxurious. I did 4 weeks straight on the Merlijn and had 2 different guides. llse and Thomas were just a joy to be with. They are both exceptionally good at guiding! There are not enough words to say about this fantastic journey.

The Danube River and scenery around it was spectacular. Seeing it from the bike paths, or on board the ship was very special. My husband didn’t cycle, but was well taken care of by the wonderful staff aboard the Swiss Crown, and enjoyed the trip as much as we did on the bikes.
Food, accommodations and service was first class.

Food prepared for dinners and beautiful scenery on the rides