Slovakia Tour Reviews — 481 to 510 of 754

The beautiful bike paths along the Danube and the great food on the MS Arkona. Found the unguided bike tour confusing. Comfortable beds but loud vibrating boat motor at night made it impossible to sleep. Yay sleeping pills.

This was a wonderful tour with many interesting & historic stops along the way. The portion in the Czech Republic included challenging terrain while the ride from Vienna to Budapest was fairly flat. The hotels were all unique and very different, from botels to spas to penzione. Locations were great, had delicious breakfasts and were clean with the exception of the last one, which I'll discuss later. This trip would have been perfect if a few simple things had occurred: we received detailed information for the trip the day we left for Prague. Since there were some modifications, I lost half a day in Prague getting those worked out. That easily could've been taken care of before we left if we had the detailed info sooner. When we arrived in Prague, the cycling company sent Maps.me files to load. Because of the types of phones we have, it again took some vacation time to figure out how to download. We discovered that these were imperative to smooth navigating along the routes so I recommend that those files be sent in advance. The only other disappointment was that the hotel in Budapest was very dirty with mold all over the shower floor and walls. We had been told we'd be in a much nicer hotel, but i'm assuming they were unable to book it. Fortunately, we had booked our extra nights elsewhere. Bottom line, I would recommend this trip with the modifications above.

My wife and I just finished this trip with another couple. First of all, remember that you get what you pay for. This cruise is much cheaper than Viking or Avalon or some of the others so you can't expect as much opulence or fine cuisine. That said, everything was fine. The food was good but not great. The walls to the cabins are thin so if the person in the room next to you is a loud talker, you will hear every word. Also, try to avoid the lowest level of rooms - the windows don't open and are noisier as you are close to the engine. The trip it self was great. The cycling was easy and scenic. We had Axel as our guide, and seriously, he ruins you for any other guide. If we went on another cruise, it would have to be with Axel - any other guide would suffer in comparison I suspect. He is Austrian with a very keen sense of humour (He would have to be as he is an Arsenal fan). He went above and beyond.

We had a mixed experience on this trip, having completed two other bike and barge trips on smaller boats (and smaller waterways). This is a wonderful region for riding - much of the route follows bike paths that parallel the river and provide gorgeous views of river towns. Unlike our other trips, participants ride on their own without a guide, and this worked well for us. Because the boat travels from Passau to Budapest and back again, there is quite a bit of travel time on the boat. At times, we enjoyed watching the scenery, but this also meant that our time on land was quite limited. Food was decent and several options were available at each meal. The dining room was noisy and it does take quite a bit of time to serve everyone, with the staff clearly working hard! During our tour, there were engine problems which resulted in a change in itinerary. The company struggled to manage this and identify reasonable options. In the end, they have promised us a partial refund, which seems quite fair. We would have preferred that this offer had come sooner in the process, without the numerous conversations that were needed to help the company understand the concerns of passengers.

Best part? The cycling along the Wachau valley

I adored the trip from start to finish. The scenery, the towns and cities and of course seeing everything by bike. I met wonderful people who share a love of travel and adventure. The only problem with the trip was the tour leader. He was condescending and rude to several guests. The rest of the staff was phenomenal. I would do this trip again tomorrow.

Bike Boat 4 countries Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Hungary - most memorable part of the trip was experiencing the Danube River up close; boat was comfortable and so smooth sometimes I had to look out the window to see if we were moving

Most Memorable Part? The beauty & grandeur of the Danube...and the ability to enjoy this while riding a bike!

Best part of the trip was bicycling through the scenic Wachau wine region. The views of the Danube River and vineyards were magical. Views like you see in PBS commercials for Viking cruises. Bratislava was the most pleasant surprise. A beautiful city with an active cafe culture that is not as big and intimidating as Vienna.

If you are unsure of your bicycling skills consider the hop-on hop-off tour option for Vienna instead of the bicycle tour. The crowds and heavy traffic make the bicycle tour slightly treacherous.

The hardest bicycling day ironically was the first day with steep hills up to the Mauthausen concentration camp and the Clam Castle both of which were worth seeing. If you question whether you are in good enough physical condition for this trip rent the electric bikes, they make a huge difference.

I would highly recommend this trip. The food was fantastic. The rooms were of a good size and clean. The staff were friendly and helpful. The cycle route were scenic and enjoyable. I would definitely do another.

What an unforgettable trip! We were able to take our 75 year old dad and he cycled the whole thing easily. The touring days in the cities were full, overwhelming, and inspiring for someone who's never seen the rich history of Europe. Cruising down the river while eating a 4 course dinner was a perfect finish to cycling though forests and orchards all day. It was a perfect combination of cycling, cruising, relaxing and sight seeing. I would recommend it to anyone!

This trip provides a chance to explore the rural areas along the Danube by bike and to visit the great cities of Budapest and Vienna. There is a lot packed into this trip.

This was a perfect way to spend a holiday. The food was AMAZING! The staff was personable, kind, and so very efficient with all they do. I was pleasantly surprised with all the paved bike paths and the number of cyclists out traveling on vacation. It was inspirational to interact with them along the way. Thank you, [Normandie](https://www.tripsite.com/bike-boat/boats/comfort/ms-normandie/) and staff. We had a fantastic time!

Cycling past the remnants of the Iron Curtain. WOW!
There were so many highlights, but having Axel as our guide certainly added a great deal to our daily rides. Thanks Axel!

Biking along the Danube and in the evening sitting watching the sunset on the top deck. I would like more time on the bike, but happy we got to see so much!

The entire trip was wonderful! The food was great, accommodations were perfect and the scenery is spectacular.

Biking along river was the greatest. Budapest and Bratislava wonderful. Time in Vienna too rushed. Strongly advise participants to take an extra day or two in Passau before the trip—a lovely small town.

Great bike routes. Vast majority on nice bike paths.

The staff on the boat were wonderful. Very helpful, friendly and hard working. The food on the boat was excellent. They consistently turned out perfectly prepared delicious meals. The bicycles were in excellent condition and performed perfectly. I thoroughly enjoyed this trip.

The cruise through the iron gate was a highlight of this trip. Cruise director did a great job throughout the cruise. Weather was much warmer than average and many days of biking were at 90 degrees F on roads and trails with little cover or shade so were somewhat more difficult than anticipated. It was a great experience but people need to be aware that most of the riding in the Eastern European countries are on the side of roads sometimes without a bike lane and there was some traffic.

Each day of the tour had its own special treat. A castle one day, a palace the next. The opera experience in Vienna was amazing. A day cycling through the vineyards with a relaxing place to sample wines. Crossing the river through the lock. The guide always explains in advance the best places to visit on the ride.

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 .....

Wonderful time with friends. The maps and route descriptions need to be more exact.

The scenery, along our bike route was like a dream! So spectacular! I felt I could bike forever! We did a video of all of us peddling through the lush trees! It could be a commercial for happinesses!

Most Memorable Part: The scenery and history while cycling though the Danube river valley.

The daily biking was wonderful. Every day was a new adventure with many different points of interest each day. A good variety of biking and places to see. Our guide was excellent. He was personable, extremely informative and shared all his knowledge of the area where we travelled each day. Juergen (sp?), our guide, was always patient, personable, enthusiastic and a lot of fun. Meals, staff and entertainment on the ship was excellent.....our beds were made up every evening and linens and towels changed daily as well....excellent job!!....my friend and myself booked a bike and barge through Tripsite last year and recommended to 16 other friends who booked with us for this trip this year. I will definitely recommend to others again for next year..... not sure where yet....but will be checking into that in the fall. Fabulous trip!!

Biking through Budapest was most memorable! We were amazed at the fabulous bike paths through the city. The car traffic was courteous to bikers and honored the cross walks. Biking through Vienna was great, too. Not quite as well defined, but it was so different to have the freedom to explore the cities, visit sites and landmarks via bike, and much more efficient than walking.

The trip was beyond our expectations. We have taken other bike and boat tours and this was superior to the others. The food on board the boat was wonderful. The cities visited were beautiful and interesting. We took the guided bike tour and the guide, Jurgen Gehrke, was wonderful. I would encourage anyone interested in a bike and boat trip to seriously look into this trip.

Having a guide who provided all the extra touches for touring for our perfect sized group of 10. Dinners on the boat were very dragged out with no opportunity to change tables and meet other guests. Food was beautifully presented, but the petite portions left me starving after a day of biking. I made sure to stock up on a big breakfast. Director made a big deal of tipping whereas this could have been explained ahead of time, so more time could have been spent on what to see in the quaint, darling villages. More info on what to see along the way would have enhanced the adventure. We did a lot of homework ahead of time on what to look for in each village and that helped us to appreciate the history and stories. Highly recommend a guide, but keep groups small for safety and management purposes.

Our private guide, Axel, was excellent. I strongly recommend a guide because it took away all of the worry about maps, directions and getting lost. He was also very knowledgeable about the history and geography of the areas we visited. I would definitely do another bike tour with Axel.