Netherlands Tour Reviews — 121 to 150 of 1923

We loved our time on the Magnifiique Ii. Guides Han’s and Peter were excellent. Beautiful countryside but very busy cities. Great trip!

My wife and I did this ride for our 50th anniversary. We enjoyed everything about it although, I must admit, it took a day or two to get use to the bicycles which are not ideal. The routes are unbelievable. Never having been in a bicycle centered country it was a revelation. The hotels were good to very good and the GUIBO was easy to use. We had only one day of significant headwinds but others have suggested to do the trip in reverse if winds are a problem for you. In short, a great trip that I would do again. I will certainly look to do another trip with Tripsite.

The 2 guides on our Bike and Barge, Peter and Hans were absolutely fantastic and they were the difference in making this a wonderful memorable journey.

Staff and food and organization and accommodations! and of course itinerary

Pros: The historic villages we passed through on the route were exceptionally beautiful and easy to navigate. The variety of terrain and the routes were well-designed and except for the first day there were a good number of options for refreshments and bathrooms.

The boat cabins were comfortable and very clean, and the sitting areas were adequate in the dining area.

The staff were exceptionally attentive and responsive to our requests - with one exception (see details in "cons" section below). The tour manager (Mehmet) was amazing and provided all the help we needed.

The e-bikes were excellent and the equipment (panniers and locks) were easy to use and very high quality.

Cons: Our group of 7 who traveled together was separated onto different tables that were too far apart to talk to one another. We asked to have one table moved closer and were denied. There were other tables close to one another with groups that had no relationship to each other. I wonder why we were not given two of those tables. That was a huge disappointment.

The routes were longer than we anticipated each day so we didn't have as much time as we would have liked walking around the villages and learning about them.

The food was plentiful but not great.

The GPS worked pretty well, but would have been better had the route numbers been part of the GPS map. We got confused at least once each day trying to navigate the different tools - paper map, paper route numbers, and GPS - which were not always clear or aligned on which direction to go.

Lastly, we would have appreciated a welcome activity that helped us learn who was in the room, where they were from, and encouraged building relationships with one another. We did a lot of that on our own and it would have been nice to get introduced to each other first thing.

Great bike tour of a beautiful, natural area of the Netherlands; Terschelling, in particular, was a spectacular ride. Our tour guides, Anja and Hans, did a great job providing background information on all the ports and sights as well as adjusting the rides based on rain and wind, and the needs of the captain. On our tour, they had extra e-bikes, which they were able to offer to pedal-bike users (for a daily fee) on the two windiest days. The boat was comfortable and the sailing easy, which made for a unique experience compared with more common barge or hotel-to-hotel tours.

We elected to do self guided rides every day, this allowed us to stop and take photos, or explore as much as we wanted at each stop. The Ride GPS app worked great! We could confidently strike out on our own. Guides (Corry and Anna) answered any questions we had, to clarify stops, what to do, etc. before we set out. The evening tours were a bonus we enjoyed each day. The barge was way more luxurious than we expected. Every staff member was super nice, and took care of any request we had. The food (snacks, meals and drinks) were also beyond our expectations. We were glad we packed rain gear, as we needed it 3 days. E-bikes made the miles very manageable (we elected long route every day), and the provided dry bag panniers were greatly appreciated. My first trip to Europe, and I believe biking 180 miles allowed me to experience The Netherlands and Belgium way better than someone visiting only the big cities. I HIGHLY recommend this trip for anyone who likes to bike.

What I am left with is the memory of the wonderful people I met on the trip. People from all over coexisted, braved some very wet weather, adapted to continuous itinerary changes due to weather conditions and still had a lovely experience. Food and accommodations were excellent. Kudos to the guide Peter who spent hours on his computer sleuthing out alternate routes for cycling as our itinerary continually changed. We missed some cities and had little time in others but you can't control Mother Nature or "traffic control" on the canals. All in all we had a great time and I will definitely book another B & B trip.

Cycling through the small towns and fields. So picturesque and very calm riding.

Staff were great and worked very hard for all of us during the week. Unfortunately strong winds kept us docked for a day so we lost a day riding north as planned and caused other changes in the itinerary which apparently is not common but can happen. Food was very good and enjoyable to meet others from other countries during social hours.

Bikes are the most important. The biking was amazing, the bikes we very disappointing, when you pay to rent a bike it needs to have better maintenance. We should not have to struggle with these bikes. The tour guide was of no help or no interaction I have been on many bike trip's never have we had such poor bikes.

This definitely is a trip for fairly independent travelers as the guidance and recommendations from the trip leaders was limited. On board food was mediocre so finding a good lunch spot off boat while cycling provided a fun challenge and interesting diversion mid ride. The boat crew did a great job managing the bikes and staterooms were simple but adequate. Despite some really challenging weather (we were not allowed to ride two days due to heavy winds), the beautiful Dutch scenery and some terrific people we met onboard made the trip a positive, fun experience.

We had a wonderful time on this bike and barge. Staff was fun and helpful. We had the best dinners I have ever eaten ~phenomenal chef on board.

The itinerary was fantastic! We loved every ride and every city/town/village along the way. All of the crew on DeHolland were excellent and our on board guide, Edith, was exceptional. Areas for improvement are the food (breakfast and lunch offerings were very repetitive with only one piece of fresh fruit offered per guest daily; most dinners were just acceptable but with mixed frozen vegetables served). No “local” traditional dinners were part of the meal offering like pancakes in The Netherlands or waffles or Flemish stew in Belgium. Also, for our cruise, the air conditioning system broke on day 2 on the main floor and could not be fixed - leading to no AC or heat for our floor the rest of the week. This was pretty disappointing. Overall, I would be hesitant to recommend the De Holland to friends (and also pause before recommending bike boat tour company). Please note the boat and meals get the 3 star rating. The crew and guide get 5 stars.

The boat and personal were 5 star and more. Our trip was very memorable and the sight seeing was spectacular. The cabin was clean and efficiently laid out. The food was underwhelming. Breakfast was very similar everyday unlike our experience with Rad & Reisen. Boiled eggs were served or runny scrambled eggs. Fresh fruit limited no strawberries (in Season or watermelon)No omelettes or pancake choices. Wine and beer selection was very limited and pricey 7.50Euros for a 1/2 glass of wine. Dinner included frozen vegetables on a few nights. Coleslaw with mayo on 3 nights for a salade selection. The food was efficiently presented and edible just not what I had expected or anticipated.

Riding along the beautiful country paths, leaning about the history of the area and walking through the lovely old towns.

The most memorable part of the trip was the biking guides, fabulous!

The bike riding was the most enjoyable part for me. The ride to Amsterdam was great. As was the stop by the beach on the way to Veere. Our Guide, Mike was so kind to provide us with evening tours in the beautiful small dutch towns. our chef Paolo was great with delicious dinners each evening. And the captain Paul was excellent and added a touch of humor to the trip.

scenery
great paths
food
The staff was very friendly and helpful

The ship and crew were top notch!! Wonderful experience. Our chef, Steven, came out at breakfast asking us for our meal choice that evening. He was an excellent cook. Gourmet food. Beautiful presentation and delicious. So nice being on smaller ship with only 35 passengers. The owner was our captain the last 5 days of the cruise. Very hospitable. Would highly recommend.

Really loved the countryside the food on the barge
And the care the staff took in a difficult situation that wasn't of their doing.
The tour guide was knowledgeable and helpful.

Cycling through villages in Belgium and Netherlands.
Enjoying beautifully prepared food from a wonderful Chef. Meeting and travelling with people from all over the world who enjoy an active and social holiday.

Great boat. The food was exceptional, the guide was very knowledgeable and helpful. The whole staff was accommodating and dedicated.

On the first night, the captain introduced himself and followed up with the most important person on the ship.. the chef! The boat crew, guides and especially the chef did an excellent job.

Beautiful boat, great guides, responsive wonderful staff and very clearly a well run tour. I would highly recommend this tour. The bikes were well-adjusted right from the start and tour guides gave us a chance to trial a short ride the day of embarking...nice to have a choice as to longer or shorter rides each day, and lovely to have excursions to see special sites along the way.

The mix of beautiful countryside and vibrant cities and towns.

The guides were very informative and kept a good pace.
The food was very good.
I would emphasize to guests that they bring rain gear.
I found the non- e bikes were not well maintained and should be upgraded. They did detract from the experience. The e-bikes worked quite well.

Everything was top notch; the dinners were all superb; the service and guides were great; the accommodations were good. Travelling on a smaller barge is a more intimate experience. I used an eBike, which isn’t always necessary but when the wind dials up it certainly makes life easier.

The boat, food, and staff were all fantastic. The bikes were great- easy to use and very sturdy.

Great trip, well planned and well organized. Make sure you have a good cell plan and battery power. I was thinking the bikes had maps on bike computers, but we needed the app on our cell phone to navigate. So you also want a good case to hold your phone on the bike so you can see the screen. The bike route is easy to follow and beautiful. Some of the hotels are a little far from the city centre, but very convenient for the bike paths and for the beach sections of the trip. Luggage transfer hotel to hotel was flawless. Having off street parking for the bikes also added to the quality of the trip.