Danube River Bike Tour Reviews (page 3)
- Albania
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Bulgaria
- Cambodia
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- England
- Estonia
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Holland
- Hungary
- Ireland
- Italy
- Japan
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Montenegro
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Scotland
- Serbia
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- South Africa
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Turkey
- United States
- Vietnam
- Wales
-
★★★★★ billiehenny August 10, 2019Romania & Bulgaria
· Danube River and Black Sea
Very well organised and efficient. Bikes were excellent and well maintained. Nothing seemed to be a problem even when I manage to leave my power adapter somewhere our guide went out of his way to find a replacement.
-
★★★★★ Francisco Perches August 5, 2022
Land and Water
· Danube River and Black Sea
A magic journey with an intimate touch with the wonders of the geography, ancient and actual cultures, nature, tastes and spirit of its people is what for me mean this Bulgaria-Romania exciting highly recommended and safe bike tour.
Francisco ( Mexico ) -
★★★★★ Leena Dallasheh September 6, 2022
Dedicated guides that will make your trip
· Danube River and Black Sea
The best thing about this trip were the guides. They were so nice, and they tried to accommodate all our needs. They listened and adapted when needed. And they did it all with a great demeanor. They really made sure we enjoyed!
The trip had a lot of activities. In addition to cycling 20-70 km a day, with a lot of hills, the guides took us on hikes to show us beautiful sites, and we kayaked down the Danube.
Bulgaria is apparently an unusual choice for cycling. But it clearly has a slowly growing cycling niche. It is challenging, with a lot of hills, and having to off-road at times, so don't be ashamed to opt for an e-bike (I didn't, but there were times I wished I did). But as I struggled, the guides were amazing, they supported, they slowed down to my pace, made sure I always had someone with me, and they pulled when the wind was hard! Absolutely wonderful!
The trip went off the beaten path, but the company chose nice locations, the hotels and B&Bs were always clean, and they checked with us to make sure things were ok. -
★★★★★ Jacqueline Day September 11, 2022
Rugged/Adventurous/wonderful sites
· Danube River and Black Sea
This trip was full of everything, fine wine tastings to, rustic countryside sites, ancient ruins, sunflower fields, kayaking down the Danube to biking along the Black Sea. Our guides were great, caring and made it special for us.
-
★★★★★ Jennifer K. May 24, 2024
Awesome trip
· Danube River and Black Sea
This was an awesome trip. Was my first biking adventure. The owner/guide was very attentive and very well educated on the history of Bulgaria and sights. Definitely recommend an e-bike unless you have bike experience uphill. Everything was planned out from the daily route to hotels and meals. I felt we had a great balance between the time biking and sight seeing. The hotels were very nice accommodations. Weather was perfect for our May 2024 trip. Highly recommend this company.
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 2024
- How many tours have you completed?
- 1st bike tour
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Bulgaria, Romania
-
★★★★★ Michael Hallowell 11 months ago
Layers of history
· Danube River and Black Sea
We have done dozens of bicycle tours around the world so we have a good idea of what a good tour looks like. This one met our expectations. Lots of local history and culture, reasonable biking distances, good hotels and knowledgable guides. We also stopped and foraged along the way, eating everything from walnuts to peaches for fun. The bicycles were well maintained and appropriate for the surfaces we traveled (perhaps a third of the trip was on dirt farm roads, cyclists with gravel or mountain bike experience-like us-will have no trouble, that said, the two people on our trip without such experience did just fine.)
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2024
- How many tours have you completed?
- 46
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Bulgaria, Romania
-
★★★★★ Karen Wickett 11 months ago
A wonderful adventure - just what I needed
· Danube River and Black Sea
Thank you to the BikeTours.com team for introducing me to Deyan and his team. They were superb hosts and guides sharing stories and beautiful places in their stunning Bulgaria. Deyan changed the lunch stop so I could swim in the Black Sea. The bikes were good, food superb, places we stayed were exceptional. This is a must do trip for those who want an adventure.
Also a shout out to Mariam at Biketours. They always answered my emails quickly and reassured me. I was anxious booking an American tour from England, but thankfully I had nothing to worry about. Planning and paying was easy with Mariam's guidance. Thank you.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2024
- How many tours have you completed?
- My first tour
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Bulgaria, Romania
-
★★★★★ Jaume 11 months ago
Bulgaria desconocida
· Danube River and Black Sea
Magnífico recorrido por bellas i apacibles zonas rurales, entre la majestuosidad del Danubio i los epectaculares acantilados de la costa del Mar Negro, interesantes yacimientos de antiguas civilizaciones, pueblos pintorescos y las atractivas ciudades de Varna i Constantza con su arte y su historia. Una mención especial para el organizador, Deyan, cuya profesiohalidad, dedicación y trato amable son la garantía de éxito de este viaje.
-
★★★★★ Heather Van Nes 3 months ago
Wonderful choice to explore Bulgaria & Romania!
· Danube River and Black Sea
We had an excellent time cycling and enjoying all the beautiful scenery from the countryside to the Black Sea coast! Our guide, Deyan, was helpful, courteous, and knowledgeable. He went above and beyond to meet our every need. I highly recommend doing this tour!
-
★★★★★ Marie DL 4 weeks ago
Wonderful experience
· Danube River and Black Sea
This tour was a great way to experience NE Bulgaria and a slice of Romania. The guides were awesome and we were well cared for. It was extremely hot and they ensured we had sufficient water and breaks at all times. Deyan shared a wealth of information about the cultural and historical aspects of each area. We appreciated having e-bikes (which were in excellent condition) as it was very hilly at times. That said, the other people in our group were very fit and managed fine with standard bicycles. There was more dirt road riding than expected, however that was necessary in this part of Bulgaria/Romania. Hotels were generally decent and the best available considering the rural locations. Scenery was beautiful and there was a wealth of cultural and historical/archeological sites. The Bulgarian and Romanian people we encountered with very friendly and hospitable. Overall we were very pleased with this tour and enjoyed learning more about this part of Eastern Europe.
-
★★★★★ Easy cycler July 15, 2016Beautiful Bavarian countryside
· Cycling the Altmühl Valley - Round trip from Regensburg
Each day was a unique experience. Starting with the Danube path, then the lush fields and rocky backdrop of the Altmuhl valley, and the ferry rides along the Danube gorge and the canal. The villages along the way were so picturesque.
The maps and descriptions provided us with a wonderful guide to the sights along the way. The hotels were comfortable, centrally located, and very helpful about what to see and good restaurants for dinner. Our overnights were in towns with rich history and traditions, and there were always interesting spots to stop along the way.
We finished the tour knowing that we would like to go back.- What was the date of your tour?
- June 27, 2016
- How many tours have you completed?
- 1
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Germany
-
★★★★★ THB123 July 13, 2017
Great first-time bike tour
· Cycling the Altmühl Valley - Round trip from Regensburg
We went on this tour with our 9- and 12-year-old boys. It was an adventure at times, but everyone loved it.
We averaged about 36 miles per day, with the longest ride 43 miles. With a couple exceptions (detour on second day; climb to scenic vista on beginning of third day), the route was generally flat and easy to ride. Outside of towns, the route follows dedicated bike paths and quiet roads. There were a couple spots, both at Danube river crossings that we found a bit intimidating with the kids, but they were ultimately no problem. With our stops and side trips, we typically had long days (arriving at hotel between 4:30 and 6 or 7), but the rides were not overly taxing physically.
The scenery was interesting and the towns were charming. Not too many other tourists on the route or in the towns during the week, but on Friday and Saturday there more tourists, mainly Germans cyclists, kayakers, hikers. A couple of the hotels were outstanding, a couple others were merely acceptable. We had quad rooms everywhere, except one hotel provided adjoining double. Included continental breakfasts were good, more or less as expected. Luggage was picked up from and delivered to the next hotel each day without problem.
Bikes were about as expected, but could have been better. A bit heavy, and could have used tune ups. We did have a flat tire, and the included tools were sufficient to get the tire changed (which we had never done before).
Signs were typically excellent, but there were a couple missing signs. It is helpful to know when you are following a long-distance or primary bike route (shown on area maps provided) because there's additional signs. For the most part, following bike route signs to the next town was sufficient. We missed turns a few times, but we got better at reading the maps and following the routes after the first day or so.
- What was the date of your tour?
- 6/26 to 7/2/2017
- How many tours have you completed?
- First
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Families with young kids, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Germany
-
★★★★★ jhnyc September 22, 2018
Fantastic!
· Cycling the Altmühl Valley - Round trip from Regensburg
My 10 year old nephew and I had a wonderful ride through the Altmuehl Valley. The riding was safe (almost entirely on bike paths) and very doable for a 10 year old. Beautiful scenery every day and plenty of fun things to explore along the way. The hotels were quaint and lovely - all offered great breakfasts to get us started each day. The bikes were nice and maps generally very helpful. I would definitely book another trip.
- What was the date of your tour?
- July 2018
- How many tours have you completed?
- This was the first
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with young kids, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Germany
-
★★★★★ Kathy May 10, 2024Nice trip! We had a really good time.
· · Danube Discovery: Pedaling from Germany to Austria
We've done numerous bike trips around Europe but wanted to try a bike and boat this time. It's not a deluxe trip, but exceeded our expectations. The Prinzessin Katharina is older, but very well maintained, with traditional style decor. We had stayed in Passau the night prior and the taxi ride to the harbor was quick and easy. We had an upper level cabin, which was compact but had space to move around and decent storage. I peaked into the main deck cabins as well, which were laid out a little differently but seemed about the same size, with maybe a little less closet space. Don't excpect many outlets for charging your devices, as there are only a couple in the cabin. There is also a restaurant and a lounge with a bar on the upper deck. The sun deck is spacious, with lots of loungers, tables and chairs, and some covered space for shade.
There is assigned seating in the dining room for the whole trip. Most of the passengers were German speaking, but they made a good effort to put English speaking guests at the same table. Breakfast was a pretty standard buffet, with breads, pastries, fruits and juices, as well as a few warm dishes with eggs, sausage, bacon. They also let you pack a lunch from the buffet choices. The dinner menu had 3 or 4 entree choices each night, along with a couple of starters and a couple of desserts. The food, while not gourmet, was very good. No beverages were included, so you had to pay even to have water with your dinner. There is a good selection of wine and cocktails available from the bar. Coffee and tea were provided at breakfast.
The daily meetings to provide info on the next day's route were useful, with separate meetings provided for German and English. As expected, the bike routes kept mostly to dedicated bike paths or segregated bike lanes along roads. You rarely have to deal with much traffic, and the route is generally very easy to follow. The rental bikes provided were quite good, and comfortable.
We only did one of their optional tours, going up to Schloss Greinburg in Grein. On a day when the schloss is normally closed, the tour company was able to arrange this tour, and we enjoyed it.
What really made the trip so good was the crew and all of their efforts. The dining room and bar servers, housekeeping, the front desk staff, and the deck crew responsible for loading and unloading all the bikes were all outstanding, friendly and helpful. Our cruise director Monica did a great job keeping eveything running smoothly.
We enjoyed our trip despite some unseasonably cold, rainy and windy weather part of the time. We're looking forward to planning another bike and boat trip.- What was the date of your tour?
- April 2024
- How many tours have you completed?
- 8
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany
-
★★★★★ Maria 2 months ago
Great bike tour along the Danube
· · Danube Discovery: Pedaling from Germany to Austria
The barge was very comfortable and the food excellent. The staff was very helpful and ready to help. The bikes were ready for us every morning on the dock. The program was well thought out and we appreciated the excursions that were available.
-
★★★★★ Barbara Lightizer 2 months ago
Well organized, very enjoyable trip
· · Danube Discovery: Pedaling from Germany to Austria
The bike routes were very well marked. Additionally, we were provided with excellent maps and an excellent gps route guidance tool. We were initially given e-bikes which we had not requested but they were immediately switched out to regular bikes. The crew were all very helpful and nice. The ship was quite comfortable. Food was very good.
All around a very nice experience. -
★★★★★ GORD MAXWELL June 8, 2024Adult Family Trip of the Decade
· Danube Bike Path 7 Nights (Classic)
Did this trip with spouse and 3 adult children (+ significant other). Hotels were fantastic (call out on breakfasts), scenery awesome and great family bonding
Especially highly recommend Gästehaus Schloss Aschach (an old converted palace) and Hotel Schachner (worth the hill).
We had a few minor challanges but they were quickly sorted out by Biketours.com
- What was the date of your tour?
- May/June 2024
- How many tours have you completed?
- 1
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat easier
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Families with teens, Families with young kids
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany
-
-
★★★★★ Margaret May 15, 2017
A view of Europe that we couldn't get any other way
· Danube Bike Path 7 Nights (Classic)
My husband and I chose the self-guided option, and we're happy with that choice -- more flexibility with pace and timing.
Our tour dates were in early May, and this was probably both good and bad. We had some drizzle and a couple days were a bit chilly. On the other hand, the bike path was probably less busy than it will be later. I'm not a fast rider and I'm not comfortable with a lot of other riders whizzing by me. And I suspect that we got upper-end lodging, even though I'd selected middle-grade, because the hotels were eager to have bookings.
I hadn't been able to do all the training I should have, so I opted for an e-bike and it was a very good decision. I still got a workout but I wasn't pushed so hard that I couldn't enjoy the ride.
Couple of tips:
- If you're coming over from the US, give yourself a couple of days to recover before you start the ride. And give yourself a day at the end of the ride before there's anything you have to do.
- Make sure that everybody in your group has all the necessary information about destination, contacts, etc. It's possible to get separated from the others, even when you're trying not to.
- Make sure that you're comfortable with a bit of traffic -- oncoming riders, you passing people, people passing you. The other bikers on the path trust you to do the right thing and stay in your lane, so be sure that you can. When I wasn't confident about this, I got off and walked my bike.- What was the date of your tour?
- May 4-11, 2017
- How many tours have you completed?
- This was my first
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany
-
★★★★★ Alex655321 June 5, 2017
Excellent mix of challenge, history and culture
· Danube Bike Path 7 Nights (Classic)
Great way to experience the Danube area of Germany and Austria. Scenery was diverse and there were plenty of extra hills for those that wanted a challenge. Accommodations were clean, local and relevant to the area. Bikes were better than I expected. Looking forward to my next ride.
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 22-29, 2017
- How many tours have you completed?
- 1
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany
