Mantova to Venice or Venice to Mantova Tour Reviews — 301 to 330 of 379

Everything was memorable from the wonderful cabin to the great gourmet food to the wonderful leader Hein and fabulous staff. The route is scenic and we made stops at interesting places like the Rides Museum, Grano Padana, and the non-bird sanctuary! Loved it and have highly recommended it to friends.

The guide, Hein, was very knowledgeable, entertaining and helpful. A real asset to the trip.
Food on the Ava Maria was the best! Loved the three days from Bolzano through the mountains.

We took the 11 day cycle in Italy and loved it all.
A few things I think need mentioning.
We got lost. Just as one of your reviewers mentioned on the way to Lake Garda. We were doing great and very early to get the boat but at one of the deviations,we turned towards Verona and didn't realize it until half way to Verona. We had to keep looking at the map and book description and when we thought we knew and didn't look at what we were doing, we got lost. So took a train to Verona, lugged the very heavy bikes up the train station stairs, no elevator or escalators there!! Then had to hang the bikes up on hooks on the train. Then the train back up to where we would have been finishing our trip in the boat down Lake Garda. PUCCINCI hotel in Peschiera.I was very disappointed to have missed the ride on lake Garda. So the day that was supposed to be our short day, and we had done 45k before noon, and should have been there, we did over 80K.
I felt that in order to do each days trip on the extra three days, we had to miss lots of towns and sights I wanted to visit. The hotel in Bolzano was very lovely and staff was great.
The hotel in Trento, The Grand, was very very Grand. We just loved it.
The gentleman that was at the front desk in............Peschiera was very helpful and was trying to give us many many things to do until he realized we didn't have the time in one evening, when getting up early to ride, to do too much.
The hotel at the bottom of Lake Guarda, Hotel Peschiera we had a large bedroom.
The breakfast room was in the basement and was quite crowded.
We went for a swim and I asked at the desk about towels for the pool and the woman said to just take the room towels. When I asked for dry towels later for our room she told me they were $5.00 each!!! Never have heard of that ever before.
Our barge was wonderful and as the times we have biked and barged before with other companies, we were very delighted with the delicious meals, friendly crew and outstanding tour guide Lecia. She was so much fun, very professional, had amazing skills in many languages and we all fell in love with her. The rides were so beautiful, just as we expected and the others on board with us were friendly and keen like us.

The staff on the Ave Maria was fantastic. They made sure we got everything we needed. I liked the way even the captain of the boat helped serve and clean up. They really worked as a team and worked very hard! The food was awesome and I really enjoyed the stops we made and the tours we had.
Great trip!

Bike guides (Michaela & Ronnie) and boat staff ( Erica, Juliano, Enrico and Luciano) were all exceptional. Their care, expertise and concern throughout the trip was what made it exceptional.

The Tour Leader Hein was amazing and showed us a wonderful experience. The cycling was spectacular and the food so exciting and very innovative. The bikes were heavier than I am used to but they were appropriate for the terrain. Everyone was helpful -- fabulous staff. I've already recommended it to my friends. I would do it again, but only if Hein were the Leader.

Everything was great. I really enjoyed our guides, Tammy and Ronnie. The staff on the boat were great. Our bikes were top notch. The tour and countryside were scenic. I loved biking on the sea wall. I thought the other bikers were friendly and easy to get along with.

The most awesome trip and staff! The barge was clean and well equipped. The staff was stellar, the meals great, the guided bike rides the best. No room for improvement and I hope to do another Bike and Barge on the Merlin. I especially enjoyed the bike routes, touring small villages along the way, and the guide Lia who was well informed about the area and Germany in general.

The boat, staff and food were all exceptional. A quality operation for sure. Having the owner Pierpaulo stop in for a visit and having dinner together was a nice touch.
We booked this trip for a group of riders with a wide range of abilities and it worked very well for all.

It was all enjoyable. Food was amazing. Staff were very accommodating. Rooms were spacious and clean.
Only negative was it said it was a 7-day bike trip and only rode bikes 5 of the 7 days. Falsely advertised.

The whole experience was very memorable. The changing scenery, the background info provided etc. was great. The quality of the barge added to the overall enjoyment. One of the highlights was watching how well the crew worked together and genuinely seemed to be having fun. It was a very unique experience that surpassed my expectations. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this trip to anyone.

This is my first bike and barge experience and will definitely not be my last. Although others in reviews said the Vita Pugna was "tired". I saw it as wonderfull vintage barge, with a crew that loved it and showed their care for it in their care for us. The food was outstanding and any hopes I had of losing weight on the trip were quickly dashed with each evenings meal.
We joined a large group of Kiwis onboard, with 2 Brits and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
One thing that would have made the trip even better would be a different pillow; the one I had was too high and too hard for my taste and left me with a stiff neck in the morning.

I loved the small villages. The international mixture of the group made for excellent discussion among the group. Food on the barge was excellent!

We did the 3-day self-guided tour from Bolzano to Lake Garda to Mantua first and that was a great adventure for us. The food and people we met on the boat was also a wonderful experience.

This was a fabulous trip all around! The group was friendly, and guides were helpful and knowledgeable! Dinners were delicious and varied, stronger than expected for this type of trip. We really enjoyed being able to purchase wine on board the ship, also. The riding was varied, and we really appreciated that our guides made sure to schedule a mid-morning break for coffee/water/toilet. What a great way to get a sense of this part of Italy - from small villages and farm fields to Venice - just spectacular!
One suggestion for improvement: for riding in really hot weather, it would be great if there could be a little more flexibility. We rode during a heat spell (40 degrees Centigrade one day). It was difficult to shift schedules or shorten our rides due to logistics, and this created some health issues.

A fabulous experience. We will seriously consider further barge/bike holidays with you.

It was a wonderful trip! I liked that we got to be on the barge when it moved (one time at the end of the day and another in the morning). The food was outstanding and I liked that the chefs described dinner and suggested wine pairings. The barge was very comfortable - even with 3 in a cabin.

Our son (22 years old) was outnumbered by the over 50 crowd but Hein made him feel welcome. Only suggestion - mirrors on the bikes (although I realize that makes them difficult to store and move) and a brief intro on riding in groups.

This trip gets a +10!! The staff (Tamy, Ilena, Luciano, Enrico, Guilio & Alberto) were amazing - fun, personable, knowledgable, friendly and engaging. They were truly a team and clearly enjoyed each other which ripples out to the experience of the guests. I loved that they gave a 'brief' the night before to let us know what to expect the next day. The food was creative, fresh and lovingly prepared. The accommodations on the AveMarie were great -- the cabins were well thought out with lots of storage so that the room felt spacious. The dining room was lovely with plenty of space to relax. The price of wine/beer was very reasonable and loved that we could keep a tab and pay it at the end, so easy.

Oh yea the bikes --- a good ride and comfy enough for the distances ridden. The routes were well planned, even the few times we had to ride in traffic. The trip leaders were excellent at managing the group and making it fun, no matter what we were doing.

For the whole week I felt well cared for :)
I am already dreaming of my next trip.
Kindly -- Victoria

P.S. The bad and the ugly -- honestly I don't have anything to contribute for improvement.

The crew were AMAZing! Every single one of them. Tami is an amazing guide - super friendly and helpful. All of the crew helpful and a delight. I would definitely go on this type of trip again because of my experience on this trip.

This was my first bike & barge. The bar has been set very high!

The entire bike-barge trip on the Ave Maria far exceeded our expectations. I would highly recommend this trip.

This Bike and Barge tour was amazing, best holiday ever!

The biking was not as scenic as other trips I have been on. However the food, staff and guide were excellent.

Crew and guides were friendly and extremely helpful. Meals and snacks were great! Good sense of comradery due to the small number of passengers. Good bikes, rides were interesting and manageable.

Understanding the trip was planned for little difficulty, expected that the terrain would be flat, but was hoping for more scenery and countryside to take in while biking. Perhaps if there was an option of having a sag vehicle for those who couldn't/didn't want more difficult terrain so the option was available for those who could do more ... and see more. Overall great experience, friendly crew and excellent food!

The crew aboard the Ave Maria was cheerful and helpful, especially Michaela, who went above and beyond in helping with departure plans. The food was wonderful.
A group of 30 is a lot of work for the cycling guides, but I would have liked a few more rest breaks along the way, especially on the day to Ferrara.

We have decided that this is the only way we now want to see other countries, up close and personal! What a wonderful experience!
Loved getting exercise every day while viewing the beautiful countryside. Even better was ending our ride with wine, a delicious dinner and new friends!

Our Guide, Rosita was excellent, friendly, pleasant and very knowledgeable. Would recommend her anytime.

Recommended for novice cyclists only. Not challenging enough for experienced cyclists.

Sometimes it would have been nice to stop for pictures of the scenery, but did not want to go to the back of the pack or be left behind. Helmut was an excellent guide and made sure everybody was safe. Food on board was the best I had in Italy. Staff very friendly and went the extra mile for our friends birthday.