Cycling the highlights of Holland - Windmills, Canals, and Tulips

Every year, large swathes of countryside in the Netherlands are covered in a colorful blanket of flowers. Seeing the beautiful spectacle for yourself is one of those once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Discover many of Holland’s fantastic highlights, including a true celebration of the beautiful tulip. In addition to tulips, you'll witness crocuses, daffodils, hyacinths and more (7 million bulbs of various flowers, to be exact) at the magnificent Keukenhof flower garden.

To underline the celebratory nature of this tour, it includes sumptuous and stylish accommodations and every aspect of this tour is private and personal, exclusively for you. You’ll be riding on the country’s extensive network of safe and scenic cycle paths and will be staying in luxury hotels right at the heart of historic towns.

This tour is the perfect addition to your stay in Amsterdam or as an extension to your already planned bike tour through Holland!

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Highlights

• Keukenhof flower gardens

• Tulip and bulb fields in bloom

• Boskoop horticultural area heritage site

• Woerden historic town and castle

• Historic town houses and canals

• Coastal path across rolling sand dunes

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Learn more about self-guided tours.

Daily program

Please note: this tour begins on a cycling day. We recommend arriving a few days earlier and booking at least one pre-tour night in Amsterdam and/or in elegant Haarlem, where the tour starts. Haarlem is 15 minutes from the centre of Amsterdam by train and gives you the best start to your tour. Additionally, this tour is a perfect add-on to other tours in Holland.

Day 1: Haarlem – Leiden (26 miles/43 km)
Your tour starts this morning with your personal welcome meeting and introduction in Haarlem.

Cycle across Haarlem’s historic square, past the St. Bavo Church and Frans Hals Museum, and see the ‘hofjes’ with their ancient alms houses. Through an enchanting forest you get to the coastal village of Zandvoort where you turn onto the scenic cycle path across the rolling sand dunes.

Soon, you’ll see the tulip fields. Witness the astounding explosion in all colours of the rainbow from crocuses, daffodils, hyacinths and tulips, all with their own flowering seasons. You can easily spend hours gazing at this colourful patchwork but make sure to save enough time for your visit to the Keukenhof gardens with its beautifully presented displays.

Finish your day in a fantastic, ancient town: Leiden – home to the oldest Dutch university, founded in 1575. Even though it’s a lively city nowadays, it treasures its history including the medieval fortifications dating back to the 9th century (‘Burcht van Leiden’), the Botanical gardens and the impressive city canal ‘Rapenburg’.
Overnight in Leiden.

Day 2: Leiden – Woerden (25 miles/40 km)
Cycling out of Leiden, you will pass the enormous Heineken brewery in Zoeterwoude and then enter the ‘Green Heart’ of Holland with it’s lowland ‘polders’, windmills and canals.

It’s worth stopping off in Boskoop. Since Count William I donated his Buckiscope estate to the Abbey of Rijnsburg in 1222, Boskoop developed into the largest connected horticultural area in the world. The Nursery Museum’s cottage and garden show the life of a nursery family at the end of the 19th century, or visit the highly-rated Esveld park & nursery.

Finish your ride today in picturesque Woerden. Though not as famous as Gouda, Edam or Alkmaar, it has long had a cheese market and you can still visit the traditional Reypenaer cheese warehouse. The town’s main highlights, all situated in the old centre, are the imposing windmill De Windhond (‘The Greyhound’) and the 600-year old castle.
Overnight in Woerden.

Day 3: Woerden – Abcoude (25 miles/40 km)
Continue your ride through the ‘Green Heart’ and enjoy the majestic landscape divided by lines of tall trees, traditional farm houses, fields with grazing cows, and rivers and canals with water fowl and other birds. A great place to stop for a break will be De Haar, the largest castle in the Netherlands, situated in 135 acres of parkland with impressive trees, old gardens and ponds.

Next, you will get to the river Vecht which is lined with (more) castles and the country houses built by wealthy 17th century merchants from Amsterdam, often with elegant gardens. The historic village centers of Loenen and Breukelen are worth a visit and the perfect spot for an afternoon break. You’ll end your tour in Abcoude, a historic town with a charming centre, not far from Amsterdam.

A local representative will be on hand for your personal end-of-tour meeting. There is an easy connection back to Amsterdam (20 minutes). Or why not add a night in Abcoude?

Note: Although the route to Keukenhof is included in your route documents, entry is not included. Please be sure to book a time slot and purchase your tickets prior to your tour.

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Dates & Prices

Questions about pricing or options? Call +1-215-613-0874 to talk to a Tour Advisor now.

Included services

• 2 nights superior hotel accommodations
• Breakfast/breakfast buffet
• Personal tour briefing and equipment delivery in Haarlem; End of tour meeting and bike pick up in Abcoude
• Luggage transfer from hotel to hotel
• Breakdown assistance
• Hotline for assistance during tour
• Top-class aluminum standard multi-speed bicycle with handlebar bag
• GPS with itinerary (per group) or Navigational app

Tour Company

Map

Maps are for information purposes only and reflect typical routes between overnight locations. They may not reflect your actual route.

Surface and terrain

Almost all the cycling will be flat and along paved routes and cycle paths. The cycling is sometimes interrupted by ferry rides across canals or rivers.

How to get there

Tour start
Nearest airport: Amsterdam, Holland
Nearest train station: Haarlem, Holland

Tour end
Nearest airport: Amsterdam, Holland
Nearest train station: Abcoude, Holland

Tips on getting to and from your tour