2 Star Bike Tour Reviews — 31 to 60 of 60

 


Robert W M.
5 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Theodor Körner Along the Danube-Iron Gates
Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia

The crew & food were great & acceptable respectively. There were very few vegetables served. The ship was terrible, moldy, poor lighting nonexistent waste baskets except in private rooms. The ship had a strong sewer odor which our cabin boy could not remedy. This problem involved several rooms. We would not return to the The(odor) Körner.

Jayne Allerton
5 years ago

Verified Reviewer

Loire Valley Bike and Boat - 2019
France

Avoid trips on this barge!
Trip Name: Loire Valley rerouted to St. Mammés/Sens
We have new two lessons learned from this experience:
1. Never book on a boat that is not crewed by the owner; and
2. Never book accommodations that do not show you the state and size of the washroom.
After reading the mostly average reviews of the barge before booking, we decided to take a chance on booking the Loire Valley boat and bike itinerary on the Anna Maria IV. However, due to low water conditions on the Loire, the itinerary was changed to the Seine and the Yonne rivers. While disappointed in the change, the new route was more than fine with challenging rides and beautiful scenery.
John, the tour guide did a great job leading us through new territory.
The new bikes were excellent, and John was able to fix the odd flat tire along the way.
Unfortunately, no evening city walks were provided due to the itinerary change.
The boat captain was Read More

MARIA JOSE R.
5 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Romantica National Parks of Dalmatia
Croatia

Trip with some room for improvement.
As positive:
1. Bike guides were kind and always trying to fulfill all of our requests.
2. Waiter was really helpful, efficient and nice with all of us
3. Meals on board were tasteful
As 'not so positive':
1. All the the bike routes run 100% by car roads
2. We just were able to take a swim from the boat 2 or 3 times during the full week
3. Captain had to change the itinerary, that initially it did not sound as a problem until we finally spent 24 hours with the ship docked beside the garbage containers in a city with absolutely nothing to visit or to do... while enduring flies and really unpleasant smell...
4. Captain and part of the crew far from 'nice behavior' during the full trip until the last moment that they started to open the tip envelopes and count the money in the dining room with all of us still on board

As a summary, this National Park 'bike & Boat' trip was far from expectations.

Mark H.
5 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Zwaantje Champagne Tour
France

The general biking was above average , with some awesome sites visited.
As far as the accommodation was concerned this was below average.
Although the space was confined more emphasis could have been done to the quality and hospitality of stay.

Lia P.
5 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Florentina The Elbe River and Prague
Czech Republic

Visiting Prague. What a magical city. The bikes on our trip were very nice. I rented an ebike and my husband had a regular bike. We love biking in Europe but I would not recommend this trip. Lots of the paths were dirt paths that were rough to ride on. The trails were not marked very making it easy to miss a road sign because you had to look where you were riding due to the rough terrain. The towns were small and poor. Not many places to stop for a lunch or beer. The villages were very boring to our group of 12. The MS Florentine was very nice and the food was good. The restaurant manager provided excellent service. Our tour guide Frank was very disappointing. His English skills were marginal (he is German) and he wasn’t very friendly. We hated to ask him questions, he always acted put out by us bothering him. The map and written description of the daily route needs improving making it easy to get lost. I was grateful we were traveling with 10 friends since most of the guests were German and we never connected with others on the ship. I will do another bike and barge trip but I will pick a more interesting itinerary.

Jeanne W.
5 years ago

Verified Reviewer

Silver Coast of Portugal
Portugal

Porto was extraordinary as was Aveiro. The bike routes were primitive or sand covered. Local company was extremely nice and accommodating. Portuguese people couldn’t have been friendlier.

Elizabeth C.
5 years ago

Verified Reviewer

Krakow to Warsaw (old)
Poland

This was tour #6 for me and it was completely different than my former experiences. My previous tours were full of tourist sights and charming villages with little shops, coffee/tea/bakery cafes, and restaurants (with restrooms) to stop at along the way during the day and actual bicycle paths. Krakow to Warsaw (Warka) Poland tour was very unique. Positives: Krakow is absolutely charming and has some interesting day trips available to the salt mines and concentration camps. Once on tour the bicycles, hotels and food were excellent. The forests and farmlands were lovely. The birds were singing, roosters crowing, and the spring blooms were abundant. We saw wild boar in the woods the first day and wolf tracks another. The route maps were detailed and easy to read. The tour company was quick to work out any issues such as transporting us on day 2 of cycling due to severe weather and flood warnings. This being said, I must point out this was not a bicycle path but a bicycle route utilizing Read More

Kathryn K.
5 years ago

Verified Reviewer

Northern Normandy
France

We had a great time touring the area. The hills were a challenge! The hotel food was varied and tasty.

Beth M.
5 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Bordeaux Bordeaux - Châteaux, Rivers & Wine
France

I am commenting on the Bordeaux tour which I decided to go on last minute. If I had done my research on the boat & room size I wouldn’t have gone. My husband is 6’6” and the cabin was too small & very uncomfortable. I don’t know how it gets the Comfort Plus rating, all of the cabins on the lower level with the exception of one were all very small, & from other fellow pax comments, the upper level was not much better. This was our third trip with TripSite, we thoroughly enjoyed the 2 prior trips. We are sorry to say that the Bordeaux trip was underwhelming as far as scenery & bike routes.

Susan G.
5 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Harmonia Highlights of Dalmatia E-Bike & Boat
Croatia

Two of the islands with national parks were removed due to weather concerns. High wind and rough seas evident with the first one, the second the weather did not happen and some of the guests thought we were taken to our final port of Zadar a day early (two nights there instead of one) perhaps for the convenience of the crew. Release the captain a day early, save on fuel? Food on the boat was institutional. Bikes were very comfortable and handled well, but should have rear-view mirrors. Guides Ivana and Kristofer have a lot of personality and were very engaging. Some of the scenery was spectacular. Guided walks provided for us at some of the ports were excellent. Tripsite should send trip info farther in advance of the trip. When it finally did arrive, it included info about flying to Dubrovnik, etc. By then, we and likely most other clients had made plans.

David F.
6 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Primadonna Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Breakfast good. Bagged lunches okay but not great and they only had sparkling water which I don't like and can't drink. No option to get still water without paying extra. Dinners good but not great. Only one meal very good. Most upset about not being able to drink the water from the room sink (which was announced over the PA system just before dinner after we had been onboard for a few hours)and then having to pay for still safe water for the cabin, breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Bike barge nightly talk about the following day was always the second talk of the evening (made for later evenings or no room in the bar). Would have liked to share the first time slot for half of the evenings.
Concierge staff outstanding and serving staff in the dinning room good.

Mok L.
6 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Normandie Along the Danube - Passau to Vienna
Austria, Germany

The Danube / bike path was wonderful , My bike was a red girls bike that clunked “hate it”, my wife’s ebike was great, the food was good except the hair in couple of dishes, the tour dir and the hotel mgr were friggen rude (not just us to about 14 others ) would Never take a SE tour again. The people we met on board were great, Austria was very nice. Omg Austria wine was fantastic. thx Mik

Ps
Still like Tripsite’s

Patti P.
6 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Anna Maria IV Loire Valley Bike and Boat - 2019
France

The best part was traveling with friends. I would have enjoyed more information about the area and towns we were traveling through.

Tim Devine
6 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Theodor Körner Along the Danube - Passau, Bratislava, and Vienna (old version)
Austria, Germany, Slovakia

The biking itself was fabulous. The staff looked after the bikes well, and the routes were lovely. My problems are with the boat itself, and there are several significant issues. First, our room was next to some machinery near the bridge that woke us up frequently during the night. The bathroom smelled bad, and other guests on a lower floor had major issues with smells too. The boat broke down on one occasion, and we had the feeling that it was on its last legs. The food was okay, sometimes good, sometimes not so good. The staff were very good, although the music was mostly orientated to non-English speakers. I know that this is not a Viking riverboat, but I have a reasonable expectation of having a comfortable and fairly quiet room. Never again on this boat.

Faith S.
6 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Carissima Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

I was disappointed in this tour, the scenery was mostly uninteresting and much more difficult than expected due to high winds on 2 days. I am short and was given a crappy bike to ride, having been told I could not fit on the e-bike I wanted. However, after 2 days of suffering my tour guide was able to find me a bike that fit (even after the company itself said it could not accommodate). The ship itself was wonderful, with big bright cabins and excellent food. I was on the guided comfort relax package, and the tour guide was way too laid back for my taste. I thought we did not have much time in the big cities to explore.

Ann B.
6 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Fleur Montargis to Paris
France

The time on the boat was fun and enjoyable. Your description of the bike ride being easy to moderate was way off. It should have been described as hard to difficult!! It was very misleading.

Audrey F.
6 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Romantica National Parks of Dalmatia
Croatia

The quality of hybrid bike was a piece of junk compared with the bike I used in Amsterdam with a group was much better quality two years ago. I would have enjoyed cycling if the bike was in a better quality. The food was too heavy. Other than that, the scenery was beautiful.

Tama L.
6 years ago

Verified Reviewer

Around Lake Constance
Austria, Germany, Switzerland

My dissatisfactions, two nights in the suburbs of Constance, out of the way, should not be used. Konono staff excellent, but cost us for taxi to get there and back to the train. Route book imprecise. What is the route sign we were supposed to follow? What good is a dotted line on a map when there are multiple routes? Which are more scenic? Less hilly? Passing by cafes? Unpaved in a forest? Exactly how do you get to the Rhein Falls ferry? Book never mentioned the three elevators that take you up and down. We had frustrations every day.
Is it a beautiful trip? Absolutely. The Mozart and Park Villa are beautiful hotels, although not air conditioned.

Mary Beth R.
6 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Carissima Along the Danube - Four Country Tour
Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary

Scenery was gorgeous, food was superb. Accommodations good.
If you took Albert out of the equation I would give much higher ratings. He was inadequate with trail details. His info was hard to follow on the maps. Someone described him as a Peacock. Very apt. The rest of the staff was very good although you need another person in the dining room. Way to many people for the amount of people serving.
Don’t advertise that you have WiFi....you really don’t .....

Lisa S.
6 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Bordeaux Bordeaux - Châteaux, Rivers & Wine
France

We traveled on the ship Bordeaux in France. The bike routes were beautiful, but the instructions provided by not so great. No worries, we had maps and a GPS, we made each day into an adventure!!!

Andrea R.
7 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Tijdgeest Bruges to Amsterdam
Belgium, Netherlands

Most Memorable Part: Riding through area of windmills.
We were frustrated by the slow pace of our group.

Veronica H.
7 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Bordeaux Bordeaux - Châteaux, Rivers & Wine
France

Bordeaux the best city on trip for us. Trip is not easy because of traffic and hills---scary!!!

Laurie F.
7 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Odisej Along the Dalmatian Coast
Croatia

The scenery along the Dalmatian Coast was spectacular. A young Croatian guide (Ben) was hired to replace the usual Dutch guide (Bernard) who had broken his hip seven weeks before in a bike accident. Ben was kind, knowledgeable and fun. Bernard and his girlfriend were along on the tour as we only had six members in our group and a cabin was available. Apparently Bernard has some "financial interest" in the boat as well as being the usual tour guide. Bernard seemed to have something to prove from the first day. He had a problem letting go of control and letting Ben do the job he was hired for. When Bernard was along on the days' excursions he was overbearing and sometimes suggested unsafe maneuvers on the bike. I overheard him say American women were wimps. His girlfriend suggested that it was not just American women but men as well who might not be comfortable with a particularly dangerous turn off a road and onto a bath along the sea. By the end of the week he Read More

Maureen B.
7 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Ave Maria Mantova to Venice or Venice to Mantova
Italy

This was my third bike and barge with Tripsite, but it was not my favorite. The boat, crew and food were terrific. The route however was flat as advertised, but the night stops were not fun or interesting. Zelo had only a cemetery and an Irish pub. If I was asked by a friend which bike and barge to take for possibly a once in a lifetime trip, I would recommend Bruges to Amsterdam and the Mosul River trip first. We had a wonderful time and everyone on the boat and the guests were first rate. I would take another trip on The Ave Maria, but would want a more interesting route.

Jeff B.
7 years ago

Verified Reviewer

Four Countries of Lake Constance
Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein, Switzerland

Konstance was very bike friendly, and interesting.

Cindy M.
7 years ago

Verified Reviewer

Bruges to Amsterdam
Belgium, Netherlands

Directions were terrible for Amsterdam and the last two days there were not the number routes we needed on the intersections so was confusing. All hotels were good but one was a dive and not nice. Hotel Piccard.

D. Miller
8 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Zwaantje Champagne Tour
France

The ship, captain and crew were wonderful. Our guide was totally unacceptable!

My only complaint regarding the boat was due to the small cabins. The French locks are narrow, so the boat is narrow, making the rooms a bit to small for my comfort.

Our main concern was the unprepared tour group leader. She was constantly undecided on how to proceed. I think it was more trying to please the group than not knowing what to do. There should have been a route guide for each person (all we received was a large map with no route shown on it). She needed to be a leader rather than a friend!

Fiorindo Sinibaldi
8 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Tijdgeest Tulip Tour - 4 Day
Netherlands

Holland is beautiful. The bike route goes through too many urban areas and not enough countryside. The groups are too large. Our group had 28 people and only 1 guide. It was impossible for him to keep an eye on all the people. As an example, it would take 3 or 4 light changes for the group to all cross a main road. Sometimes the group would be spread out as much as 1 kilometer. My wife fell off her bike and broke her hand because the group was always speeding up and slowing down. One day we even lost a rider for a while. The tour guide seemed very informative, but did not explain much, and seemed cold most of the time. That is my honest opinion. Thank you.

Marilyn McDowell
8 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Deriya Deniz Amalfi Coast - Tyrrhenian Sea
Italy

The Amalfi coast section of biking was along the main roads driven by large local buses and the other tourist traffic was very heavy - although the drivers were not mean or aggressive, it was very unnerving to be biking on such busy roads. The guide seemed to be surprised that the traffic was still so heavy the 2nd week of September.

The boat anchored in Amalfi on the 3rd night, in an unprotected harbor - the boat rocked and banged all night long, no one including the crew was able to sleep, and apparently this was not an uncommon experience when in the Amalfi harbor.

On day 4, after an extremely hot day of biking we reached the boat in Cetara. For some reason, the boat was anchored along side the sister boat, not next to the pier. The crew made us wait in the hot sun until the bikes were hoisted on to the sister boat, then situated the bikes on our boat before allowing us to get on our boat to shower or get something to drink. AND since we were not next to the Read More

Claudia Abdinoor
9 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Vita Pugna Mantova to Venice or Venice to Mantova
Italy

Our group had the misfortune of 25mph+ headwinds for 4 consecutive days through barren landscape. My hesitation to recommend this trip is not however based on the weather but rather the lack of interesting terrain. I liken this biking to a trip thru Nebraska. Our stops in the villages were poorly timed, shops were closed and our short stop precluded investigating any historical attraction. The charming aspects of European villages, exploring the local cuisine were non existent. Every day we were advised to bring a sandwich. In complete contrast, the bike/barge trip in France visited medieval villages and provided enough time to enjoy a meal in a bistro. Understandably this trip along the Po might be selected by those not willing to bike the hills but biking for hours on an elevated levee and looking at clods of freshly tilled earth is hardly a huge endorsement for this option.