Family Friendly  Bike Tour Reviews (page 11)

  • (5/5) LINDA LYNCH May 27, 2024

    Stunning Lake, country and villages

    · Lake Constance Bicycle Path

    Our first bike tour introduced many picturesque villages, as well as kind hotel staff. The hotels were nicely spaced along Lake Constanze with great breakfasts each morning. First moment, I recognized the absolute quiet of our peaceful settings. The villages and country were not just charming, they were calming and quiet. Day 4 we switched to Ebikes, as they allowed us to visit more of the Historic and UNESCO sites along the route and facilitating the hills. Suggest better cell phone research, as our "just change to new sim card" did not go to plan. It is 3 different countries, so 3 sim cards by the number of phones... Alte Post in Constanze front desk manager was amazing in her ability to answer our many questions, as well as Nadia at the bike company.

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    1
    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?
    Austria, Germany, Switzerland
    • Meersburg, wish more time here! (photo by LINDA LYNCH)
    • View from Birnau Abby Church (photo by LINDA LYNCH)
    • View from Cable car (photo by LINDA LYNCH)
    • Stein am Rhein, ferry ride to Rhein Falls (photo by LINDA LYNCH)
    • Lake Constanze Day 1 (photo by LINDA LYNCH)
    • Alte Post morning (photo by LINDA LYNCH)
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 5/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • (5/5) Howard Gilbert May 26, 2024

    Fun and Educational

    · Bilbao Central E-Bike Tour

    Perfect way to see Bilboa. We really enjoyed it! The guide was great and gave us tips where to go and eat afterwards. Even a little Basque lesson for certain words! Explaines a lot of the culture and history. It was very interesting!

    • Stadium (photo by Howard Gilbert)
    • Guggenheim (photo by Howard Gilbert)
  • (5/5) Howard Gilbert May 23, 2024

    Great way to see the city!

    · Bilbao Central E-Bike Tour

    Our guide was great and it was very informative. The bikes were brand new and of course worked perfectly!

  • (5/5) LINDA LYNCH May 22, 2024

    Surpassed all expectations

    · Lake Constance Bicycle Path

    Though we "trained" for this trip, (this trip is rolling hills and a relatively level course), there are several long ride days. And in truth, we are more tourists than competitive bikers, so wanted to sightsee the villages, which are rich in history and architecture. So, we connected with Caroline and Natasha at the BikeTours bike partner and were very fortunate to switch to ebikes midway. Truly suggest this option to begin with, as it made the journey more pleasant and our time well spent learning about UNESCO sites, ancient Churches and the area surrounding Lake Constanze. Simply, all the hotels were superior, they provided peaceful settings, clean accommodations and tremendous breakfasts, though Alte Post front desk and breakfast staff and St. Leonard Park Hotel were true overachievers. The Hotel front desk staff in all were great and answered our many questions. At present, we are reading about and studying countries for our next trip with Bike Tours!

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    1
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    Countries included in this tour?
    Austria, Germany, Switzerland
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 5/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • Amsterdam to Bruges: South Holland and Zeeland
    (5/5) Wendy Geiger May 22, 2024

    Lovely Tour of South Holland and Bruges

    · Amsterdam to Bruges: Cycling through South Holland and Zeeland

    This was my first supported bike travel vacation and it was lovely. Although the GPS stopped working on day 4, we were able to use the previously downloaded Maps on Ride with GPS. Luckily I brought my phone holder so it was convenient. There were some routes that were a bit more complex than necessary with the route going off on a tangent and then coming back to the original roadway- most likely to provide more scenic byways or to add mileage. We were often able to stop along the way at a cafe to have a drink or dessert or even lunch. I recommend using the ebikes for Holland due to the wind. We had great weather in early/mid- May but missed the blooming tulips. Next time we'll go in April to see the tulips (although the weather might offer more rain). We had beautiful weather with sun and 70 degree days (one into the 80s) with only 1-1/2 days with rain. Loved that someone took our bags on to the hotels for us and the charming B&Bs were luxury. Loved, loved, loved the last B&B (De Zomere) in Bruges. It was quite unique and my sister and her hubby were jealous of the accommodations as they were placed in the non-descript Martin's hotel along with half of Bruges' tourists! I would recommend for future bike tours that you list bringing along some anti-chafing "butter" for your derriere. The upright position of the bikes is a different sensation for those of us used to Road bikes and it made for a few uncomfortable days in the saddle. Overall, a wonderful way to spend part of a vacation.

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 11-16, 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    5
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    Countries included in this tour?
    Belgium, Holland
    • 4/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • Danube Bike Path
    (5/5) R.M May 20, 2024

    Beautiful Bike Trip Along the Danube

    · Danube Bike Path 7 Nights (Classic)

    Lovely landscapes, with nice smooth mostly separate pathways. Plenty of signage for guidance.

    Many small bakeries to pick up snacks.

    Plenty of riverside places to have lunch and a beverage.

    Good hotels nearby to restaurants.

    Many small ferries or dam crossings to get across the Danue.

    We also used Google maps to help us navigate within the various towns.

    The bikes were almost brand new, and comfortable to ride.

    We added an extra day in Krems to break up the trip. The Hotel & Spa was a treat.

    We had a wonderful trip!

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    4
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    Countries included in this tour?
    Austria, Germany
    • 4/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 4/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 3/5 Ease of navigation
    • 4/5 Tour documents
    • 3/5 Route selection
  • Lake Constance Bike Path
    (5/5) Sarah D May 19, 2024

    Such a gorgeous and fun trip!

    · Lake Constance Bicycle Path

    I just completed a bike tour around Lake Constance in May 2024. I took my mom for her 70th birthday. We rode e-bikes which made for an easy and fun trip. We lucked out with weather and we so impressed with the beauty that you ride through. The people that book this do an amazing job of setting you up for success. I will say that you need to pay attention to the signs because it can get confusing at certain locations and we once went a few miles out of the way, which fortunately was no big deal since we were on e-bikes. You cannot rely on gps, you have to read the bike signs and use the map provided and don’t be afraid to ask for directions/help. The hotels they booked were great, except one, avoid the Hotel Mozart in Rorschach if you can. Overall, I’m super happy with this trip and will likely book more trips with BikeTours.com in the future.

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    5
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat easier
    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?
    Austria, Germany, Switzerland
    • E-bikes & Lake Constance (photo by Sarah D)
    • Example of the book with maps & directions they provide (photo by Sarah D)
    • Part of the bike path (photo by Sarah D)
    • Bike trail signs to follow (photo by Sarah D)
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 5/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • (5/5) Ian Bailie May 18, 2024

    A great ride along the Danube

    · Danube Bike Path 8 Nights (Upscale Lodging)

    The bike tour was very well organised. The bike collection was easy and the information provided was comprehensive and easily followed. The app directing us on the route made for easy riding. The upscale hotels were mostly great. It was a great experience to ride the Danube to Vienna. Thoroughly recommended.

    What was the date of your tour?
    April 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    2
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    Countries included in this tour?
    Austria, Germany
    • 4/5 Value
    • 4/5 Included meals
    • 4/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 5/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • Loire a Velo
    (5/5) Adrian Gnyra May 18, 2024

    Fabulous experience

    · Loire a Velo: Orleans to the Atlantic

    The trip allowed us to connect with the French culture … all the hotels and meals exceeded our expectations

    Countries included in this tour?
    France
  • (5/5) Thomas Mitchell May 18, 2024

    Well planned. No problems at all.

    · Danube Bike Path 8 Nights (Upscale Lodging)

    The e-bikes are a game changer for older people. Ours were perfectly maintained. They might have been new. The upscale hotels were excellent; a couple of them were beyond excellent. The towns we visited were charming and friendly. We would have spent an extra day in most of them if we had the trip do over. We had perfect weather but we understand that is highly unusual in early May. Our bags were moved reliably.
    I recommend a phone holder if you want to use the excellent app for directions. When it's in the provided waterproof handlebar pack, glare makes it very difficult to see, and accessing it is a hassle.
    The directions don't guide you all the way to your hotel. We used Google Maps for the final directions.
    Overall it was a great trip for us.

    Countries included in this tour?
    Austria, Germany
  • Prague to Dresden
    (3/5) Joseph Tevaarwerk May 13, 2024

    Nice trip, but some issues.

    · Prague to Dresden Along the Vltava & Elbe Rivers

    The trip overall was good. The hotels were from very nice to adequate, and the weather was good for biking. Luggage handling was perfect.

    The issue we had was with the bikes. In our case the bikes we rented were delivered to our hotel. I had emailed specific instructions about my wife's bike set-up regarding saddle height and handle bar height. When the bikes arrived we noticed that the saddle could not be adjusted low enough for her comfort. We had to call the AVE rep and he had to bring a different saddle stem to fix that problem.
    Another problem was with my bike. The frame size was too small for me, and the handle bars were too low for comfort. Since we had already lost time to get my wife's bike corrected, I decided that I could manage with the bike that was delivered. That was my mistake!
    Half way into the trip the front telescopic forks collapsed and I had to ride nose down, which was very uncomfortable and outright dangerous. We managed to get it pumped up at a bike shop, but they lost pressure again while biking.

    Last year we had none of these problems. The big difference was that last year we had to collect our bikes at the rental shop the day before. This gave us the opportunity to have both bikes adjusted to the right settings, and to make sure that they were of the correct frame size.

    I don't need to stress how important a reliable and well fitting bike is for these bike tours. I suggest that you make it essential that the bikes are collected at the rental site the day before the trips start. This will give the participants the opportunity to make essential corrections.
    Myself, for our next trip I will insist that we will collect the bikes at the rental shop the day before the trip starts, and that they are reliable and well fitted bikes.
    I think it is wise if you make this part of your overall policy as well.

    Joseph.

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    2
    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?
    Czech Republic, Germany
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 2/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 5/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 2/5 Local tour company services
  • Danube Bike Path
    (5/5) Ian Bailie May 6, 2024

    Danube biking adventure

    · Danube Bike Path 8 Nights (Upscale Lodging)

    Riding along the Danube river through Austria to Vienna was a wonderful experience. Everything was very well organised, from bike collection, through route guidance, accommodation and support. The riding is easy, though on our ride we did encounter some strong head winds. There is spectacular scenery and interesting villages to keep interest up. We thoroughly recommend the bike tour.

    Countries included in this tour?
    Austria, Germany
    •  (photo by Ian Bailie)
    •  (photo by Ian Bailie)
    •  (photo by Ian Bailie)
    •  (photo by Ian Bailie)
    •  (photo by Ian Bailie)
  • (4/5) AMY COOK May 3, 2024

    A lovely tour

    · Emerald Tour of Slovenia’s Gems

    This tour was lovely, so much beautiful countryside and fascinating historical sites.
    It was quite a bit more mountainous than the promotion description lead me to believe and on of the hotels was considerably less nice than the rest. But overall it was a great trip.

    What was the date of your tour?
    April 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    3
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat harder
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    Solo travelers, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    Countries included in this tour?
    Slovenia
    • 5/5 Value
    • 4/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • Danube Bike Path
    (5/5) Max Peterson May 3, 2024

    Great, Balanced Bike Trip in the Spring Season

    · Danube Bike Path 7 Nights (Classic)

    My wife and I had a great time on this bike trip, our first of this kind. The first 2 days took some adjusting - we ran into some unexpected detours the first day due to some unreliable info (seemed to be incorrect info from the trail authority/agency, not the tour company at fault), but it was easy enough to sort out on the fly. The 2nd day was full of rain and difficult biking conditions, but we knew the chance we were taking when we chose mid-April for our trip. Almost everything's else on our trip was great after that! The sites, towns, and views along the way were enjoyable and often beautiful. Some of our stops were suggested in our itinerary, and others we found on our own. The suggestions overall were good, but alternative options were always easy to find as well. The hotels were all nice and seemed well-placed along our route, for the most part. The Steigenberger Hotel & Spa in Krems was the one outlier for us on that front - to get there, we had to go up a road with fairly high traffic on a very steep hill that didn't have a bike lane, which we did not find mentioned in our documents. It was a small issue that probably would not matter much with an e-bike, but for an itinerary rated as 1-Easy, we feel it should have at least been noted in our documents. This hotel also seemed the least-oriented toward bicycle traffic/guests, but again these are small things we hope might help people taking this tour in the future, not major problems or complaints. All of the hotels had good bike storage, breakfasts, and friendly, helpful service. The rooms varied in size and quality of view from place to place, but all were clean, well maintained, and never lacked anything you'd expect in a hotel room. We didn't have dinner at every hotel (and not all had their own restaurant), but we did at Faustschlössl Hotel in Aschach and Hotel Rose in Maria Taferl, both of which were excellent. The bikes, bags, and other equipment all worked well, and pickup/dropoff was fairly easy at the first and last hotels. Overall, this was a great experience and everything from the tour company met our expectations. We would definitely recommend this trip to others, and look forward to doing more like it in the future!

    What was the date of your tour?
    April 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    1
    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?
    Austria, Germany
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 4/5 Tour documents
    • 4/5 Local tour company services
    • 4/5 Route selection
  • (5/5) Bruce April 29, 2024

    Very cold & windy, a bit of hail and even snow; still a great trip

    · Mosel Bike Path: Dreamy Mosel Valley from Trier to Koblenz

    We've enjoyed many self-guided bike trips in Europe and this is a great one with normal weather.

    Bike Tours highly professional staff slightly modified the standard tour to meet our request, which was promptly and accurately accomplished. The Radreisefreunde representative, a very pleasant person, met us at the first hotel and supplied the bikes. We rode them around the hotel area before confirming they were the right size and in proper working order. We selected one "uniframe" (sloped top tube) bike and one with a horizontal (AKA men's) top tube. Both were 21 speeds and very suitable for the flat bike trip. The standard "Mosel bikeline" booklet for Metz to Koblenz was supplemented with a custom booklet for us, Trier to Koblenz, the portion, we biked. The supplemental booklet provided more details and is very much a worthwhile addition. Thank you!

    All hotels were very clean, well located in the core of each city and allowed easy access to sites, restaurants, etc. Staff were universally welcoming. Special mention as to the Gästehaus Weingut Seminarshof restaurant in Trittenheim...it is located in the same hotel where we stayed. Two related pictures are attached. Mmmmm!

    Breakfast were included and were pretty much same, same. Most of the food was good, especially fresh breads/rolls. The coffee....well, if you're accustomed to the good stuff, downgrade your expectations offered at most hotels.

    The trip is on dedicated bike paths, shared bike/pedestrian paths and a little along shoulders of roads or on very quiet roads. The route is generally well signed and it's pretty obvious how to proceed. However, per usual, we got lost a handful of times and realized such quickly and course corrected.

    We supplemented the booklets using our cell phone and an e-sim from Airalo, with O2 the actual German cell coverage firm. When switching on the service, it instantly connected and provided fast worthwhile assistance to the route and hotels. We used it sporadically each day and 1GB of data ($5.00USD) was more than enough, can be tipped up easily or buy a larger package up front. All hotels supplied free WiFi. Note: the Airalo e-sim we used is data only, no local phone number is included.

    Had the weather been much better, we would have lingered at more cafes along the route, as we enjoy delicious treats mid-day and good coffee.

    What was the date of your tour?
    April 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    10
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat easier
    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?
    Germany
    • Spargel  (white asparagus) with hollandaise sauce and schnitzel. (photo by Bruce)
    • Spargel soup. (photo by Bruce)
    • Typical signage. (photo by Bruce)
    • The view along the Mosel River. (photo by Bruce)
    • 4/5 Value
    • 4/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 4/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 4/5 Route selection
  • Lake Constance Bike Path
    (5/5) Amanda M April 24, 2024

    Biking with a View!

    · Lake Constance Bicycle Path

    We had a range of weather--from sun to hail to rain to snow--and still every day was great on this trip! The path around the lake was well marked and easy enough to navigate. The hotels were lovely with a great breakfast spread every morning. Our luggage was always waiting for us when we arrived at the next location. Overall, we really enjoyed our little adventure!

    What was the date of your tour?
    April 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    2
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    Countries included in this tour?
    Austria, Germany, Switzerland
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 4/5 Tour documents
  • Cycle from the stunning city to the sublime Shore of Leith
    (5/5) José van Erk April 20, 2024

    Fietstour Edinburgh 16/4/2024

    · Edinburgh to Shore of Leith Bike Tour

    Super leuke fietstocht door Edinburgh. Onze begeleider Stuart gaf ons veel informatie over de stad. Wist tot 2x toe snel mijn lekke band te maken. Mooie ochtend met mooi weer. Echt een aanrader!! Bedankt Stuart voor de fijne ochtend! Groetjes die 2 uit Nederland ?

  • Discover the beautiful beaches of Southern California
    (5/5) Darren G. March 16, 2024

    this is not Kansas anymore!

    · Santa Monica & Venice Beach Bike Tour

    This is a bicycle tour perfect for families, friends or solo travelers. The coast is stunning. The ride is pretty flat so unless you want to splurge don't get an ebike.

  • Discover the true icons of Tallinn
    (5/5) Julien De Falkensteen January 6, 2024

    Very fun and efficient.

    · Welcome to Tallinn Bike Tour

    Amazing tour. Very efficient. The reach bike is given on a short trip is just unbeatable. The tour covered all of the monuments we expected to see and more. Enough time to observe, read and talk about the history of each monument. Joe our guide was amazing !! I recommended him highly.

  • (5/5) Thomas Schulte December 14, 2023

    A Family Aventure

    · Lake Constance Bicycle Path

    This is our 9th European Ride and was truly a pleasure. Accommodations were 1st class in great hotels. Tour operator couldn't have been nicer or hospitable
    in setting us up with our bikes and getting us on our way. They were an easy walk from our first night accommodation.

    What was the date of your tour?
    September 2023
    How many tours have you completed?
    9
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    Countries included in this tour?
    Austria, Germany, Switzerland
    •  (photo by Thomas Schulte)
    •  (photo by Thomas Schulte)
    •  (photo by Thomas Schulte)
    •  (photo by Thomas Schulte)
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection