First Timers Bike Tour Reviews (page 2)
-
★★★★★ Michael Pettit 7 months agoDanube Waltz
· · Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
The bike and barge (SS Swiss Crown) provided the perfect way to experience the beautiful cities along the Danube. The Swiss Crown was very comfortable and the meals provided were delightful. The bar was managed expertly. Phyo behind the bar was always willing to provide valuable tips for our travel as well as keeping the cocktails flowing.
-
★★★★★ Richard Rogers 7 months agoNot as I had expected
· · Provence by Bike and Boat
Not expecting to ride as a group. The riding involved more road riding and realize that a leader was necessary. The riding in Southern France is not as developed as Central Europe.
- Countries included in this tour?
- France
-
★★★★★ Corina Santoro 7 months ago
AMAZING! Better than I even imagined it would be.
· · Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
This was our first ever bike trip and we loved every minute of it. The boat was wonderful and the staff was truly outstanding. Each day was well organized with enough structure so we knew what to do but enough freedom to make the trip our own. The rides each day were unique from each other and each one beautiful. The rest days in Budpest and Vienna were magical. The food, service and attention to detail left nothing to be desired. What an amazing trip.
-
★★★★★ James Potter 7 months ago
Danube bike and boat
· · Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
It was a great trip! We biked through the most scenic countryside, passing vineyards, old castles, and small villages. Of course all of that with the beautiful Danube by our side.
The crew on the Swiss Crown was extremely friendly and very accommodating.
We enjoyed lots of great views from the boat. We especially enjoyed sitting on the upper deck of boat or on our cabin balcony in the evening.
The meals were great. Starting the morning with the breakfast buffet or a freshly made omelette. For dinner, you had your choice of entrees including regional dishes.
-
★★★★★ Robert and Kathy England 7 months agoGreat trip for a group of five people with mixed biking abilities
· Danube Bike Path 8 Nights (Upscale Lodging)
The sights on this trip were perfect and so enjoyable. Everyone felt that generally speaking the cycling was the right level and the scenery was everything we hoped for. There was a section of the bike path going into Linz that was on a narrow sidewalk next to a busy road that was not suitable for the less experienced members of our group. Also generally speaking our daily mileages as recorded by our GPS watches were several miles longer than the distances noted in the tour description on the website. On the whole, the hotels were charming and the service to move luggage was very effective. Luggage was often early and never past the promised time of 6 PM, although the last day cut it close! Trail directions were excellent, among the best we've had on several bike tours we have taken. Directions to specific hotels were mostly good, except for the directions to Landgasthof Winter in Ardagger Stift. Those directions were really terrible and caused us to get seriously lost. In addition, that hotel was very very charming, but not in a great location as it was a ways off the trail and up a steep hill. In the time before the trip BikeTours.com was slow in responding to questions and requests. Regardless of some of these points, on the whole we all absolutely loved this trip, would recommend it to others, and would look for one like it to do again.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 8, 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 7+ like this, 10+ do our own route, carry our own luggage in panniers
- 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
-
BikeTours.com staff reply from jan October 2, 2023
Thanks for your business, the wonderful review, and updates to this tour! Also, apologies for the tardy reply pre-trip. September is by far the busiest month for everyone in our business so the entire team was buried with requests. Hope to see you again.
-
★★★★★ Gudrun Agisdottir 7 months agoGreat trip 👌
· Wine & Bike in Hungary’s Balaton Uplands
Beatyful landscape very good food and wines 🍷 hotels was charming.
Nice whether rain for one day maby better to come week earlier. All the information that we got in the beginning was perfect thanks Gàbor Zàvodi for all your help.- Countries included in this tour?
- Hungary
-
★★★★★ Stacey Davey 7 months agoBeautiful countryside and charming hotels
· Tauern Bike Path (Salzburg-Salzburg)
I thoroughly enjoyed the villages and sights along our six day Tauren/Salzburg self-guided trip. The countryside was breathtaking, our hotels were charming and our hotel bookings and luggage transfers were seamless. The route also took great advantage of the amazing bike routes and on our 300 kM journey, I think only 10 or 15 kM was on a major highway. The trip was considered “moderate” and involved some climbs on the first few days of our trip—particularly if you wanted to visit some of the suggested sights along the way. The one detracting factor to our experience was the quality of the bikes. They were extremely heavy and cumbersome and did not help with navigating some of the hillier terrain. The bells and the odometers (essential for way finding) did not work properly on the two women’s bikes. The vast majority of the people we came across were on e-bikes and while the route was doable on what I would consider steel townies, it limited some of the sights we visited as after we climbed the almost 4 kM hill to visit the salt mine, we started considering elevation gains before deciding which sights to take in. However, I will say that the seats were comfortable! All in all, I enjoyed the trip and would definitely recommend it to others.
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
-
★★★★★ Debra Miller 7 months agoA Bit Disappointing
· Danube Bike Path 7 Nights (Classic)
Cycling along a paved path along the Danube was relaxing for our group of four. Day three was truly beautiful with cobblestone roads and colorful houses in the villages. Wish we had gone earlier in the year as many restaurants and shops were closed for the season.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 4
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany
-
★★★★★ Lisa Schmitz 7 months agoWonderful trip!
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
This is not a terribly challenging ride, especially on e-bikes. The scenery is beautiful and all of the hotels were great. The breakfasts were enormous and plentiful, and luggage transfer was seamless. We did request to stay in Stein am Rhein instead of Gailingen, and we’re glad we did. The hotel in Arbon (Hotel Römerhof) was very nice, but if it’s possible to stay closer to the water, I’d recommend that. The e-bikes were excellent. One important note: bike pick up is open until 7pm, even though the shop is listed as closed after 5:00. They don’t answer the phone or return a message, but you can expect them to be ready for you up until 7pm. Enjoy his ride!
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- 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
-
★★★★★ Ingrid 7 months agoCompetence paired with joy
· Bilbao Central Bike Tour
The bike tour was sensationally put together, no sightseeing of the usual tourist points, but insider information. Our local guide was not only funny and competent, but also imparted his knowledge with acting talent. Wonderful. Thank you very much for three great hours.
-
★★★★★ Elizabeth Levine 7 months agoSeeing the Netherlands on 2 wheels
· Best of Holland South: Canals, Windmills & Historic Towns
The Netherlands are a cyclist’s dream- bike lanes and biking infrastructure everywhere- in villages as well as cities. This was amazing to experience- and to hop on 2 wheels and join in! The bicycles provided by Tulip cycling were top notch Dutch bicycles with automatic lights that turn on while pedaling. It was great to have our luggage shuttled to each hotel every day, so our bags were waiting for us when we arrived at each hotel ready for a hot shower and a change of clothes. Most of the hotels were 4- star and all had great breakfasts and all were walkable to the historic city centers with the market square, restaurants, cafes etc.
Unfortunately the weather was poor during our cycling trip- very high winds and frequent heavy rain almost every day of our mid- September journey- this made the cycling much more difficult than we anticipated with the need to frequently stop to pull on rain gear- and the GPS device did not work well during storms so the navigation was also more difficult than expected. Several of the locals told us that frequent high winds and rain are typical in autumn and that the best months for cycling are May, June and July.
Despite the bad weather we enjoyed the countryside, the lovely hotels, the friendly locals , the delicious food and the pace of life on the bicycle tour.- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 3
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Holland
-
★★★★★ William Meyer 7 months ago
Absolutely beautiful country views, very nice accommodations
· Danube Bike Path 8 Nights (Upscale Lodging)
To improve; 1-briefer should set bikes to correct language and distance setting. 2-briefer should suggest to use Google maps to and from hotels from daily track beginning and end. 3-recommend that customers bring phone holder that fits bike.
E-bikes were excellent. We will be back.
-
★★★★★ Rusty Page 7 months ago
Wonderful Bike Trip
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
This was our 4th trip with Bike Tours, and arguably the best. The e-bikes were great! The lake and the small towns surrounding it were gorgeous. 3 countries. One day we ate breakfast in Germany, lunch in Austria, and dinner in Switzerland. We’ll worth the money. Hotels were all beautiful and quaint in their own right. Do it! You’ll love it.
- What was the date of your tour?
- Sept 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 7
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Much 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
-
★★★★★ Linda Croft 7 months agoA Scenic Paradise
· Bicycle Paths of the Dolomites (based in one hotel)
What an outstanding cycling paradise! The Dolomites are breathtaking. The bike tour operator in Italy was fabulous. I rented an e-bike and it was brand new! The information package was well organized and the trail maps were great. I had no problems with the shuttle on the day I took it. The cycling paths were very well marked with no question as to which way to my destination. The hotel was beyond expectations! I stayed in Dobbiaco at Hotel Laurin’s. The staff were fabulous. The breakfasts were delicious and the 5 course dinner was outstanding every night! The garden, spa and pool area were so relaxing. The value for a solo traveller like myself was unbelievable. I highly recommend this trip!
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
-
★★★★★ Linden Bentley 7 months agoGreat organization, fantastic biking.
· · Amsterdam – Bruges by Bike and Boat – Fluvius (and reverse)
The biking staff we very helpful and knowledgeable. King and welcoming, understanding of all levels and the territory. The daily rides by digital “ride with gps” was pretty much flawless, and the app staff very fast and helpful when a problem arose.
The boat staff very warm and helpful. The cleaning staff timely and great for cabin cleaning. The chef; warm, funny and talented. Food delicious. -
★★★★★ Frank Boyle 7 months agoBeautiful & flat ride across the Netherlands
· Amsterdam to Bruges: Cycling through South Holland and Zeeland
The scenery was spectacular, as was immersion into the historic towns and restaurants. The local tour company was particularly wonderful, reimbursing us no questions asked for the cost of repairing a worn out tire. I HIGHLY recommend downloading the optional GPX file to your phone and making sure you can use it before you arrive, we found it much easier to see the tricky navigation turns on the phone than on the small (and often hard to see) screen of the small Garmin GPS device provided.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 4
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens, Families with young kids
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Belgium, Holland
-
★★★★★ Blain M Archer 7 months ago
Wonderful adventure around Lake Constance
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
we were three on this tour with one being a novice who had difficulty riding an ebike due to inexperience. He got better after the first 2 days.
we got lost a bit nearly every day but never felt real lost as we knew where the lake had to be most of the time and we were always going in the right direction. The reason for this was the signage was not always understandable.
we always found help from many nice people who were eager to assist.- What was the date of your tour?
- sept 10 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 11
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
-
★★★★★ Charles Bergmann 7 months ago
Fantastic trip
· Danube Bike Path 8 Nights (Upscale Lodging)
Trip really was great! Great places to stay each night. Great bike paths and scenery.
-
★★★★★ Tom Hawkins 7 months ago
Trip postponed
· · Amsterdam – Bruges by Bike and Boat – Fluvius (and reverse)
We were unable to do this fantastic trip due to an injury. We are how every very excited about doing it next year. It sounds like a fantastic experience!
