4 Star Bike Tour Reviews — 361 to 390 of 1207

The inland parts: more hilly and definitely a more rocky tandscape.We were disappointed with the Trpsite information we did not receive prior to arriving: no water bottles provided; use of an app on our phone that we barely managed to get to function before heading out. Again Solentobihpkes was fine. They just didn't know what Tripsite had not told us. For navigation we had no reason to not expect a freestanding Garment like device like friends on other trips had. "And, by the way, did you bring a battery pack since the phone will quickly run out of power?" Luckily the tour company had an extra pack for us. Others seemed to have been told about the navigation system and the need for battery pack. They probably books with a different agency.

Most memorable was the excellent guiding from Wilma who gave us so much information about the routes.

It was wonderful visiting the cities and small towns each day in addition to the countryside.

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!

The most memorable part was sailing through the small islands and riding our bikes with the beautiful sea as a back drop.
I think I would not make a s many stops. I had trouble with my bike, so I would suggest newer bikes.
The guides were great.

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.

The biking was perfect - equipment worked well and was as promised

The people on board. And the food. Stella was great, too. I liked the open windows in the upstairs rooms. Also, coffee or cappuccino, espresso 24/7.

scenery along the Mosel, friendliness of local people, small group on board, lousy food amost every night..

Cycling through french villages was simply out of this world! Take the time to get to know how to use the Sat Nav before you start, as it took us the first day to get it right, but after that it made the trip much easier. The electric bikes (although were heavier than I'm use too) were great as there are quite a few tough inclines.

Our chef was outstanding! Our stop at a winery along the way was outstanding. Wish there were more fun stops along the way.

Bike pathways through Austria were in fantastic condition, well marked and easy to follow making for a relaxing ride. Some of the paths in Hungary were not suitable for a road bike (no pavement and loose rocky terrain). Some warning about this before selecting a bike or alternative route would have been helpful. Our bags were always at the hotel when we arrived which was very nice after a long ride.
The hotels were nice. Most offered a nice relaxing outdoor space. The breakfast options were all comparable to each other and provided a good start to the day.
The bike “fitting” was a bit disappointing, the bikes were dropped off and only after a lot of hunting around was the staff able to provide a tool to adjust the seat height. There was no tool kit provided and when we asked the kit was not suitable for the bike we had. I would have preferred a stop in Linz rather than the small city before it. There would be more things to do in Linz in the evening.
Overall I was pleased with the trip and I would recommend it, especially the Germany to Vienna section.

The trip was amazing and we loved seeing all the towns and the countryside. I would rate it as easy-moderate as there were some pretty challenging hills. Also, the directions could be confusing at times.

I loved cycling through the small towns the first 2 days. The buildings were so cute and the flowers were gorgeous! Highly recommend a gel seat pad. We used the wee-hoos for our 2 girls and they were great, however if you are short there are some challenges getting them attached to the bike. The bike shop was great working with us to make it happen, but it took some creative adjustments.

We enjoyed biking off the route to visit some small towns. Google maps worked great to get us back on track to meet the boat. Really appreciated the knowledgeable guides on the Vienna and Budapest bus tours.

The biking routes with Allie’s history lessons and the jumping into the ocean after our day on the bikes!!

This was the first bike tour my wife and I had done together. We intentionally chose the Puglia tour because of the moderate daily distances and relatively flat terrain. We went out of our way to choose the guided tour option departing Sep 16 but due to a monumental mistake on my part, we ended up booking our flights at a later date and switched to the Sep 23 self-guided option.

The tour was very enjoyable. We were fortunate in that the weather was clear and the temperatures mostly moderate, with only a short interlude of rain on one of the days. Some of the riding was by the coast, but much of it was slightly inland, amongst olive tree groves and small, quaint Apulian towns. The hotels were satisfactory, the reserved dinners were generally very good, and the reserved breakfasts were acceptable. The self-guided option worked out very well, the maps were easy to follow, and it would likely become our default approach in future. We did meet a number of others along the way, running into each other at recommended stops on the route, at the hotels or at reserved restaurants.

The bikes (my wife on an e-bike, me on a regular hybrid) were in very good condition and the local tour company and their staff were very helpful and service-oriented. The Tripsite staff was also very helpful in providing information and getting us booked, and despite all of their fair warnings that we would lose our payment if we cancelled our trip after a certain date, were happy to accommodate our request to change from the Sep 16 guided option, for which we had paid a high season supplement, to the Sep 23 self-guided option, for an additional fee. Bearing in mind that this was due to a mistake on my part, we appreciate that they made the change, though we would have saved a significant amount of money if we had gotten things right in the first place!

Overall, happy to recommend the region, the tour, and both the local provider and Tripsite.

(Side note for those who follow a vegan / WFPB diet: I was able to get by with fava bean purée with chicory, grilled vegetable side dishes, pizza, pasta, and lots of bread with olive oil!)

The quality of the boat's amenities, the cuisine and the areas travelled through were exceptional.
My last bike and barge was more than a decade ago. Since then the growth of e-bikes has accelerated. On this tour, 24 of 34 riders were using e-bikes. I'm not convinced that mixing e-bikes and regular bikes is viable.

I loved the self guided part as we were able to ride as far as we wanted to and stop when we wanted. The scenery from Bolzano to Peschiera was breathtaking. The towns looked like movie sets. The 5 hour ferry ride was also an adventure and exposed the most beautiful scenery imaginable.

The barge crew was great, especially Stephi and Stephani, our fearless guides. Francesco was also a huge help. My room was tiny, but I made it work. The only complaint, and it is minor, is that I have had better food on bike barge excursions. The food on this trip was okay. Not great. Also - need more salads!!

Loved jumping off the bost at the end of the day after riding in the heat. Pack thermal water bottles if going when its hot.

The whole experience was memorable.

My suggestion to others would be that they do not rent a Touring bike for the 10 day - sportiv - version of the trip.

This tour was incredible from start to finish. The staff was a 10/10, the guide was a 10/10, Food was a 10/10, the outside of the boat was a 7/10, the inside of the boat was a 0/10. Awful. The rooms smelled of gas and mold, quite toxic. The wall was peeling off in the bathroom, no hot water most of the time, shower didn't drain. No mattress covers, no nice bedding - old and gross. Our room was near the generator so the smell of exhaust was terrible, unbearable and toxic the first 2 nights. You guys have to change this. It's not right you make people endure such terrible accommodation, it really takes away from the experience. We would love to recommend this, because everything else was so amazing - but in doing so it comes with a huge warning the rooms are gross and to prepare for the worst.

We had a great time on this trip. It is easy cycling so good for newbies. The cassoulet at the Castelnaudary lodging was excellent. As was the place itself.

We used the GPS files so no problem navigating. Others mentioned the written directions could use work. Bikes were very good and we had no problems.

Would recommend taking the alternate routes some days. They go off the canal for better views.

For a picnic lunch go to Le Relais de Sully in Villesèquelande. Very well provisioned store.

If having lunch on the last day go to Marseillan Port, not Plage. Very limited options. Or power through and stop at La Parenthèse (accès N°23) almost at Sète. For which you will pay more but beautiful beach and food.

Our guides Isabell and Raphael were fantastic. They made every ride, every meal, every port come alive and exciting. They were very knowledgeable and able to share the history of all the areas we rode through. Route was awesome .
We also had a wonderful cohesive fun group of international riders.
New friendships and memories made
The boat needs some updating and maintenance to its electrical , air conditioning and plumbing. Great crew!!

Touring the beautiful countryside and visiting the pleasant towns otherwise not likely going to see was memorable.

Great trip the tour could use a rundown on the operation of the e-bikes. Bikes were great but a rundown on removal and locking the bike needed to be done. Seat adjustment needs to be covered as well. Crew was great just more time for the operation of e-bikes is needed

The views along the Moselle River were spectacular. I especially loved riding bikes to the quaint little towns and through the vineyards. Every meal on the barge was delicious.

Carcassonne was a highlight of this trip. It is an exceptional city. I plan a return visit. The weather cooperated, only one day of showers. This is my 4th bike trip using Tripsite. I highly recommend them. They are extremely responsive and helpful in planning your dream vacation.

Provence’s history is very interesting & our guide, Alex showed us some less touristy archaeological sites. Loved cycling down shaded country lanes especially as the 90-95 degree heat in Sep was a struggle at times. Be prepared for potholes and gravel on many of those scenic backroads. Add a visor to your bike helmet to ward of some of the heat & keep your energy up. The L’ Estello had a lovely upper deck lounge & eating area. The cabins are small & do not all have the same amenities (hooks, storage). The bathrooms are quite small & for anyone over 5’7” hard to move around in. There is no separate shower stall therefore everything in the bathroom gets wet; you must remember to remove anything that you don’t want to get wet which is a daily task when cycling. Instead of a train from Paris to Provence, consider a flight to Montpellier; it is a 30 min taxi ride to Aigues Mortes. Good connections from/to your North American flight make it possible for you to avoid a layover in Paris or a 4 hr train (with transfers) ride.

Trip was good, food was good, routes were good, the condition on the roads / trails chosen were not the best but that is really out of the control of Tripsite. A bit disappointed that there were no cycling jersey's on the boat for sale as well as we did not receive a Tripsite pre trip gift as we had in the past for being a repeat customer.

We were amazed at all the vineyards! We knew the area was famous for Riesling but we had no idea how immense the area was. We also loved the small villages. So much history there.