Netherlands: Southern Tour of Holland

Hi there, 2 Canadian travelers and it was our second bicycle tour in the Netherlands, our first with Boat Bike Tours. The actual bicycle tour was wonderful, no complaints. We do have some things we didn’t like about the boat, the cabin was perfect, the food was probably 6/10, we didn’t like the fact that you couldn’t get food or drinks at all times starting in the afternoon. We were divided into groups according to our language spoken, we were a small group of English speakers and we once were offered snacks at the briefing around dinner, none of the other 6 days did we received snacks, I think they all went to the German speakers. Mainly, I was very disappointed in the quality of the bicycles we were given to ride. Here we are coming all the way from Canada to The Netherlands (most famous for bicycles) and we didn’t even have a brand name bicycle. They should have been Gazelles, Batavus, Sparta, something of decent quality. Also, my bicycle was way too small for me. Our Canadian friends that had the first cabin on the way down the hallway complained all day long to us that they heard everything going on in the cabin next to them. All in all it was a good experience, however there is lots of room for improvement.

This was our first biking trip and we LOVED it! The accommodations were comfy, the food very tasty and the staff wonderful, friendly and went out of their way to accommodate everyone. The daily biking was well organized and the routes, with both the daily map and GPS directions, were easy to follow. We were very happy with the towns we visited and feel we saw the “real” Holland that most people wouldn’t experience by driving the country. We will definitely be planning another trip.

I paid an extra $150 for guided tour as I was cycling by myself, and received nothing for it. I got the exact tour information as everyone else. Nothing “guided” about it. I only saw the guide once in passing on the entire tour. Staff were okay but not as friendly as on other boat/bike tours I have done. Only were nice the last day (tip day). The room was nice. My non-ebike worked fine. The guys helping with the bikes were the friendliest of the crew. Dinner was really late for us personally. Dinner “started” at 6pm but you didn’t start getting food until 6:30 and dinner was usually around 7:30. The drink tickets were very deceptive as they did not specify times. Per the information cocktails with NL alcohol was included but we were charged none the less. We would not have purchased had we known how they really worked. The nightly tour information was not very helpful. Really did not discuss detours and how best to cope with them—we were on our own for this. The app was the most helpful item. My husband and I really enjoyed previous boat/bike tours we were on because of the locations we were at port. This trip was dismal from that perspective. We stayed in one commercial port after another, I believe only 2 ports were pleasant.

Many small things left unresolved by management end up making a negative impression of the company and how little they care about their clients. We had a great time, luckily, because of the people we met and biked with. The room, an upper suite, was perfect with lots of storage and space. But, too many things went unresolved until recently being contacted by Romy from Boat and Bike. (*…see below) 1. We showed documentation, a pdf file and room pamphlet, that stated tea and coffee was to be served after we arrived from biking. It was instead, set to a specific hour and then everything was removed. When told, hotel manager and tour guides said they told management but were powerless to match what was written. To this day, no one has responded to us. 2. Dinner was often overcooked and the fish was a disaster often without flavour. We had 3 very good partial meals. The rest was terrible. Potato casserole overcooked. Soup was bland. Breakfasts were good, except for the very salty eggs, but remained the same day after day with little changes. Lunch was breakfast packaged in a sandwich. Advertised drinks were not given out. It was the same thing over and over. 3. Water was removed during dinnertime and management told staff not to serve us water under any circumstances! Bottled water was available for sale. I have never been anywhere where water was removed from the facility. In the end, the company actually lost money by doing this as many of us stopped ordering beer and wine if we had to pay for water! 4. The staff on the ship were doing their best considering all the restrictions put into place by management. 5. The boat was delayed for hours one day, yet our tour guide did not tell us about this until just before it docked. We missed hours of tour time waiting for a boat to arrive. If we arrived late at the ship, we would be left behind. No explanation was given, nor something complimentary to show their appreciation for us waiting for them. 6. Our bike tour guides could do a better job planning the routes through construction areas. It was obvious they did not scope out the route in Rotterdam. Sights to see could be highlighted on the sheet and on GPS. Beyond this, other routes were very beautiful and selected to showcase the region. Adding in more short tours of a city or more professional tours like the one given in Rotterdam would make this a more rounded experience. The tours make the trip much more memorable. Some days left little time to bike and tour the various towns. There is no time as the boat leaves by a certain time. Why not stay longer at the ports? 7. One guide did his best to hide from guests and bike solo on his own while the other gave tours and assisted us when needed. One was so friendly, where the other did not even make eye contact or say hello. Even when we waved him down with bike troubles, he kept riding until someone caught up with him. Then, he does not carry a simple tool to correct the problem! Useless! 8. After surveys, still no one from the organization contacted us about the inclusions that were not given and poor meals we had. Boat and Bike also does not trust their senior employees to solve customer issues on their own. They forbid them to do anything to make up for a problem. What kind of organization does this? 9. The sad part is that I realized later that I read about the exact same issues several years ago! I just did not see these reviews this time during booking. 10. Train your staff to greet people and say hello! 11. Ships crew and hotel staff were very helpful. It is the BOAT and Bike organization that is cutting every corner possible to save a few Euros. 12. It is obvious Boat and Bike is taking the cheap docks. We were docked too far away in Amsterdam to really enjoy the city, when other companies docked closer. This was the case at another location also. Choose piers closer to city center. 13. Why is the ship leaving at 3 or 5 pm? We could travel by night to the next city as it is only a few hours away. Instead, we miss a good portion of the day touring because we have to get back to the ship! Again, there seems to be a cost involved. ** After being contacted by Romy, we decided to change this review to satisfactory. She kindly listened and agreed these small issues could have been resolved by the staff on board and the overall experience would have changed. There seems to be a focus on ensuring upcoming trips have changes in place for the food quality, lack of water, updating some of the bike routes, etc. Also, she was kind enough to offer compensation on future trips or this past trip. Sometimes acknowledging and correcting the small issues can leave a positive impression.