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One of the things we’re most proud of here at Boat Bike Tours is the number of repeat guests we have. Jim, 76, has enjoyed six of them! “You never know what’s around that next turn,” he says, as he describes his latest experience on the Historic Hanseatic Cities tour – Hansa tour, for short. “We’re biking through woody areas, hilly areas, parts of the Netherlands none of us knew existed. It was a real surprise!” Kit Parks, of Active Travel Adventures, interviewed Jim for her podcast and wrote about…

And where to find them! France is known for its food, and no trip to France would be complete without trying the best food that the country has to offer. Fortunately, it’s easy to eat the best French food without spending a fortune; it’s a matter of knowing where to find it! Before the advent of supermarkets and hypermarchés, the French – French women, to be specific – did the shopping every day for that day’s meals, buying only enough for one day. Each town had shops that sold the…

Why do we see so many people come back to our trips? There’s something about our cycling and boating vacations that keeps calling them back. Janneke Wallin – a Dutch woman who has lived in Sweden since 2010 – is one of these return visitors. Along with her Swedish husband she has taken two trips with Boat Bike Tours: the Northern Tour of Holland route and the Discover Friesland route. “I can’t think of any reason why you wouldn’t go on a trip with Boat Bike Tours!”   Getting to…

Have you ever sailed on the Wadden Sea? If it was up to Captain Joris de Wit, everyone should be able to experience this. During the Sail & Bike Wadden Sea you’ll sail across the IJsselmeer and the Wadden Sea, you’ll visit the islands of Texel and Terschelling and harbor towns such as Harlingen, Makkum and Hindeloopen. “The Wadden Sea is a fantastically beautiful nature reserve. When do you ever get to sail on a three-masted ship? It’s super cool.”   Atmospheric three-masted ships If you think of sailing ships, you…

When it comes to immersing yourself in the wonder of Dutch tulip fields, we all know of the spectacular destination of Keukenhof. With seven million bulbs on display each spring, it’s one of the world’s largest flower gardens. But there are many other magical hidden hotspots that are often overlooked. In this blog we take a peek at four corners of the Netherlands where floral magic happens.   1. The living bulb archive Hortus Bulborum is a foundation that manages a unique collection of tulips, narcissus and hyacinths. Based in…

Are you familiar yet with our boutique ships? On these special ships, you’re part of the family as soon as you step on board. You’ll be greeted personally by the captain and it won’t be long before you know the other passengers by name. You’ll travel in a small group of maximum 24 guests. This creates real contacts and sometimes even real friendships.   The skippers give each of our boutique ships their very own, personal character: the heart and soul on board. Together with their handpicked crew, they ensure…

You know the feeling: you feel like you’ve only just checked in, but then suddenly the holiday is already over. When you’re enjoying yourself and having fun, time just flies by. This can also happen to you on our trips by bike and boat. Most of our tours last eight days and they’re over so quickly! Would you like the fun to last longer? Then read the tips here and find out how you can stretch your vacation by bike and boat; we’ll introduce you to our longer trips and…

So you’ve taken a Boat Bike Tour and you’re thinking of taking another, but you’re not sure? Meet Ene, who has just taken her seventh Boat Bike Tour! Born and raised in Estonia, but a Swedish resident, Ene took her first Boat Bike tour in 2014. She chose this company because she didn’t want a group tour, yet didn’t want to travel entirely alone. It turned out that these tours allow her to make friends over dinner, for example, but to cycle mostly alone during the day, even on the…

When you think of a cycling/boating holiday through South Holland, you might think of Johannes Vermeer’s Delft, the cheese market in Gouda or the famous windmills of Kinderdijk. And you’d be right: we see all of that. But that’s not all. Tour leader Mariëlle Nagelkerke is happy to open up about some hidden gems our guests see during this astonishing journey. “During the route through South Holland you see a lot of the Netherlands. At the same time as being physically active, we get to see a lot of lesser-known…

Cities straight out of a picture book, exciting bike paths through forests and heathland, and boat trips through idyllic river landscapes along the historic Hanseatic route on the IJssel River: if you ask our tour leaders about the Hanseatic tour, they won’t stop raving. The multi-faceted journey through the lesser-known east of the Netherlands is their secret favorite. Why? Read on, and we’ll tell you! It doesn’t always have to be the North Sea Sure, the Dutch coast has its own special charms – but there is also life beyond…