Reviews

The food was absolutely fantastic, both flavorful and generous! The boat was adequate, showers hot and bunks comfortable. Some problems with sewer smell in lower cabins. All staff were very amenable. The bikes provided were substandard for barge & bike tours, but represented the average Holland bikes. There should have been more double hand braked bikes available. The country covered was filled with variety and interest. If only the weather could have cooperated a bit more…most of the days were filled with rain, at least part of day, and wind, too. Holland does have wonderful bike trails!

This was our first experience of biking in this way and despite rain every day but one, it was wonderful. Our guide, Fred, was great, full of knowledge and good humor. Each day our route was varied, through deep forests, through small beautiful medieval towns, across fields where sheep and cows grazed, on dikes and along canals. The Netherlands has amazing system of bike trails which are varied and easy to follow. The Gandalf, with its captain, Hans, and wonderful crew, was a cozy place. The bikes were great and I especially enjoyed my electric bike on one day. We are Americans and the other 18 passengers were all German whose English skills were limited. We did not know this prior to arriving on the barge. Most Americans do not speak other languages. Fortunately we both speak enough German to get to know others and follow much of what was said. For some, this lack of other English speakers would have been a disaster. Fred was so so helpful.

This was an excellent route with an excellent guide for each day’s biking, and a very sensible modus operandi for finding the boat again at the end of the day–or alternatively not biking if you decide to take a day off. Each day was special, most of the towns we visited were memorable, and the landscape–although all a variation on dikes, polders, woodlots and the enicrcling sea–was often stunning. A few things to keep in mind–sometimes you will be cycling into the wind and/or rain. The many bikestores along the route sell a three euro disposable punch that will get you through a downpour. If the weather forecast for your chosen week looks adverse, think about renting an e-bike rather than a regular bike. An e-bike enables you to speed anywhere you want, regardless of the weather, but also unfortunately means less exercise. My only complaint is that the free wifi on board was so limited that my laptop exhausted it in 10 minutes or less each night. I don’t think it was working the way it was supposed to, but the crew had no solutions. Basically, they want you to pay for adequate wifi. If I was the company budgeting for next year, I would subtract a bit from the dinners–the quantity of food served was often overwhelming–and put the savings into free unlimited internet.

Pascale and her crew on the MS Bordeaux made the Frontenac one week biking excursion memorable. The daily bike trips suggested by Scott were intriguing as these chateau’s are fascinating to see.Roadways were easy to manage. Food on board ship rivalled top restaurants in Paris. Do not hesitate to book- well worth the money.

“We had no expectations when we arrived at the ship. Had we had expectations they would have been met beyond what we could have imagined. Wonderful experience. The ship, the crew, the food, the traveling companions could not have been more pleasurable. Accomodations are not “”cruise ship”” accomodations, this is a sailboat and if you have spent a few nights on a sailboat, as we have, the quarters were comfortable. If you have not, be prepared for a small cabin. The biking is easy and flat and you have plenty of time to travel 30K in a day. Map reading skill is a must. Bring rain gear for biking because you may, as we did, bike in the rain for a day…no big deal. Do it, there is no “”someday””. Hope you get Captain (sp)Faurook, great sailor and entertaining…a gentle soul. Ron, the cook, is king of the galley and a unique individual beyond his culinary skills. 2nd Mate Elizabeth was gracious and engageable.”

“Tour leader Fred was rude ,arrogant, patronising and sarcastic on a daily basis, The riding pace was way too fast on the first day for many guests and we were reprimanded for stopping to take photos .The bikes were not adjusted correctly for many riders .There was only one person to lead 36 riders and one of the guests took on the responsibility of being the sweep. This was not appropriate . Fred could not cope with groups of fast and slow riders and eventually he decided to stay with the slow riders and let the fast ones go ahead. This decision was made after the group expressed their unhappiness about the first days ride . Three riders fell off in Ghent within half an hour of each other and Fred expressed his concern by saying “” How could you fall off ? I have been doing this for years and I have never fallen off! The food was very average, with vegetarians not being well catered for.(main meal salad and 3 onion rings) The chef Leroy came out and said we should not each so much as once we ran out there would be no more!! Fred’s verbal communication skills were poor with a white board with lots of confusing scribble on it used as a backup I have travelled extensively over the last 40 years and I have never met such a rude and disrespectful tour leader. Towards the end of the week his behaviour did improve but it was way too little, way too late We were very disappointed, as it could have been a great trip. We do a lot of cycling but would be reluctant to use this company again”

We had a great time with great scenery on our vacation with the boat and bike in Northern Netherlands. The staff were very friendly and accommodating. Our tour guide was great and very informative, including some evening city tours. There was lots of good food. (The coffee containers could have been in a different location maybe by the juice as our table was constantly inindated with people getting coffee) Room were very compact but had everything you needed. The rooms were a little on the warm side, fans would have helped. Thanks for making our vacation a great one!

The guide and crew were really friendly and helpful. The bikes were good and the riding route was varied and interesting. The route number and map system was pretty good, although we did have the odd bit of confusion, but to be honest that added to the fun. The dining and lounge areas were very spacious, much more than I expected. The meals were very good, with a great range and plenty to eat. Rooms were compact, but had everything we needed, including ensuite. Overall loved the concept. By riding we got to see so much of the country, and by staying on a boat we didn’t have to move hotels. Would definitely do it again in another country and would go with Boat Bike Tours.

Would highly recommend the Bordeaux boatbike tour. The staff on the boat were very helpful and accomodating. The daily bike trips were excellent through varied French wine country with rolling hills and historic villages and chateaus. Our only complaint was that the large scale map was difficult to follow and we were frequently lost. However the back roads were charming and we were never lost for long. The rooms and bathrooms are quite small but we never wished to be on the much more expensive roomier Viking river boats as we felt like we were having way more fun with our daily bike trips.

Felt staff from tour guide to evening musician plus staff in general seemed to really want you to enjoy your trip. Very pleased would recommend to all

My husband and I just got back from the Amsterdam to Bruges bike tour, having joined my cousin and her husband for the trip. This was our 2nd Netherlands bike trip and 4th European bike trip. It was a fun week. Using the boat as base is a great way to go. You don’t have to pack up everyday, and when you’re on the boat it tends to be peaceful and a different way to see the countryside. The biking was very easy, mostly flat bike lanes and quiet roads. The Fluvius had wonderful staff, friendly and helpful. Jorritt, the young man working on the Fluvius, always got the bikes off and on the boat (with a grin, always), and even took all of our dripping wet shoes and dried them out in the engine room overnight (thank you again, Jorritt!). Food was plentiful and good. The young women staff members were quick, friendly and hardworking. The captain kept us afloat all week and made it through the locks on time. Our guide, Guus, was informative, friendly and very good at finding new tires in small towns! The cabins are small; it is a barge, after all. However, there was a real shower, unlike on our other bike-barge trip. We slept well, ate and drank well, and made new friends. It was a multi-national group with many lively conversations, including about politics. Love those varied perspectives! How could you improve the trip? 1. More bike maintenance. Some of the bikes needed it. 2. More vegetarian options on the menu. 3. Perhaps split the biking group in two. It was a big group and it would have been more fun to ride in smaller groups. I highly recommend this trip, especially to those looking to discover the joy of biking in another country or for those looking for an easier trip. It was actually a relaxing week on a bike with wonderful companions.

“This was our second time using Boat Bike Tours for our trip. The first trip was Bruge to Amsterdam, this latest trip was Paris to Epernay. First off, a boat bike tour is really a great way to travel if you enjoy biking. You get to see a lot of the country and small towns without ever having to pack up and move hotels every day, you never have to figure out what restaurant to eat at, what part of town to stay in or deal with driving a car in a new country. You get to see so much all from the view of your bike saddle while being in the outdoors. The crew and staff on the Zwaantje were fantastic, pleasant, the boat was clean, well equipped and the meals were top notch. Martijn is an experienced and funny captain, he and his wife made everyone feel comfortable. Our chef and housekeeper were a lovely couple, friendly, great food, always ready to help with any request and just really nice people. Gert our guide was very knowledgeable about things and a very good cyclist but I felt sorry because he was constantly having to make trip adjustments and concessions so much of his time was trying to figure alternate routes. Our problem was with a large portion of our tour group itself. The tour states that the riding is somewhat challenging with hills and long rides however 16 out of the 22 people on our tour were members of a bicycle tour group in America who were not up to the challenges of the tour. Since they could not handle the hills and cycling routes our tour guide was forced to make changes to accomodate them constantly due to time constraints or because they simply would not ride. We were constantly waiting at the top of climbs for stragglers and once they arrived they demanded rest. Within 30 minutes the group would be so stretched that we would have to continually stop and wait for slow and struggling riders to catch up. There were complaints about how difficult the riding was but yet everyone demanded to ride every day. We missed out on some attractions and towns and had several day rides cut short and diverted because we were running late or the group was simply not up to the challenge. And since they were the majority their complaints over ruled the rest of the group and we were forced to go along with their reduced itinerary. Prior to the trip, my wife and I read the description very closely and were even worried about our cycling skills on the trip, we were fine, it is a bit challenging but not over difficult but I do not think anyone in the cycling group took heed in the literature and just decided since they had cycling shorts and gear that they could cycle up and down the river valleys. Also one other complaint not related to Boat Bike or it’s staff was that it was clearly stated that breakfast was at 8-9 am and early coffee at 7:30 if you wanted… We listened and adhered to this request but the cycling group was up early around 6:30 am with no respect to those that may be sleeping or having a quiet morning. They would be yelling “”Good morning”” to each other across the boat and in the below decks, using hair dryers before the requested time of 7:30 and generally just being loud with out any concern for others. When we arrived for breakfast at 8 (the assigned time) the breakfast choices were picked over and scraps remained and people were reaching around us and pushing in to make their lunches while we were just trying to cobble a breakfast together. Since they were all familiar with each other they saw nothing wrong with it. The captain repeatedly told them when breakfast was but that went in one ear and out the other. Their complaining and lack of cycling skill had our tour guide scrambling to find alternate routes and try to make it easy for them. We did have fun, we went on our own the last day and had a long lovely ride and lunch in a town we happened upon… the scenery was beautiful and the attractions we did get to see were appreciated although sometimes rushed since we had to begin our slow bike ride in order to make it back to the boat in time. Altogether a great staff, ride, experience… my suggestion is possibly find out if there is a large group booked on your dates because they can take over a tour with their sheer numbers and make it into their tour instead of the planned tour.”