First Timers Bike Tour Reviews (page 3)
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★★★★★ john kremerss 3 months ago
senic river tour
· · Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
easy enjoyable bike ride without a lot of cars along the Danube
the food was average on the boat
we enjoyed having the ability to make a sack lunch
we would have liked a few longer rides -
★★★★★ David and Cherie 3 months ago
Highlight of our European trip
· · Mosel & Saar by Bike & Boat
What a fantastic experience. Exceeded all our expectations. Cycling on an e-bike was almost effortless (although after a couple of days we were glad we brought our padded gel seats). The cycling was mostly flat and mostly on dedicated cycle paths. Very rarely wrre you on the road with the cars.
The food was a class above what we were expecting. Breakfast was plentiful and dinner was delicious and well presented.
We received a discount for our room (#227) as it was at the rear of the boat and was affected by engine noise. To be honest the noise when moored was no worse than most aircon units. Our room was also 1 sq metre larger than most others which meant we had a double bed (as opposed to two singles) and had plenty of room for our clothing and luggage in the twin wardrobes and drawers.
Julia, the cruise director, was fantastic at explaining the ins and outs of each up,-coming day and organising the additional shore excursions.
Being the first week of May there were many shops, cafes and restaurants along the way that weren't open but we always found somewhere to stop and rest. It also meant the roads and cycleways were not so busy, as the would be in the holiday season.
Overall a great blend of history, scenery and relaxation. Looking forward to our next trip.- What was the date of your tour?
- May 2025
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat easier
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Germany
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★★★★★ Gladys M 3 months ago
Beyond high expectations !
· · Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
We've taken several boat and bike trips as we LUV floating hotels and active vacations, usually on smaller boats than the Vivienne, my concerns for number of guests were not necessary. The flexibility of schedule, ability to do self guided bike routes, and fellow guests were quite fun. The cabin, typical of boats, small with very good storage for clothes and accessories and stashing away luggage. Wifi was good throughout the trip. The meals were great and plentiful. We signed up for every 'optional' excursion and had the best guided experiences learning more about each capital visited. The Danube and Central Europe are not to be missed, rich with history and quiet roads to explore on two wheels. The crew gets a 10+, informative, attentive and friendly. Even with a ride in the rain this trip was 'over the top' in my memory. Evening theme parties, costumes provided on board - not to be missed.
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★★★★★ Scott and Susie Blackshaw 3 months ago
Biking the Danube: just the right amount of challenge.
· Danube Bike Path 7 Nights (Classic)
The self-guided bike tour prepared by BikeTours.com was the perfect amount of challenge and adventure. We got to see and experience nature, history and the local culture of Austria.
Each night we laid our weary heads down in comfortable and unique accommodations. The hearty breakfasts provided each morning helped to keep us going.
This was just the right amount of challenge for our average level of fitness. The e-bikes, app and maps and luggage transfer certainly made the whole experience easier.
We are already dreaming about our next bike tour.
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★★★★★ Michael 3 months ago
Love active travel? You’ll love this!
· · Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
Meals were good / not overwhelming. Rooms were fine (we chose the upper deck). Bikes were not to the level we are used to at home and for 50-60 km days were “adequate”. There weeent many hills. The optional bike tours were great in Budapest and Vienna although you need to expect traffic in Vienna. The landscape was beautiful. Great trip!
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★★★★★ Corbin 4 months ago
A great adventure!
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
This was a fantastic experience for both myself and my fiancé to explore the Swiss and German countryside. The tour maps laid out everything very clearly and we enjoyed biking through beautiful small villages. We would take every opportunity to stop along the biking trail at local historic sites and castles that were all suggested in our tour guide booklet. Each hotel we stayed at was top notch with very comfortable amenities and free breakfast included in the morning (which was great before biking 30-40miles). Overall we were super pleased with our decision to go on this trip. It was so well organized and it took out all the stress of having to plan out all the small details so that we could just enjoy biking and having fun.
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- 2
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat easier
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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BikeTours.com staff reply from bozena_kusovac May 16, 2025
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We're thrilled to hear you and your fiancé had such a fantastic time exploring the Swiss and German countryside. We also absolutely love your photos - thank you for sharing those special moments with us!
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★★★★★ Sue L 4 months ago
Brilliantly organized, fabulous, interesting route
· Best of Holland South: Canals, Windmills & Historic Towns
A huge thanks for a fabulous trip! Pieter patiently spent over an hour at the start of the trip explaining the finer details of the bike’s operation and security guidelines and the ride with gps app was the perfect way to provide autonomy without having the hassle of working out your own route. The route was interesting and varied with each night spent in a charming town oozing character but away from the main tourist traps. The luggage transfer was perfectly executed and Pieter checked in regularly to make sure everything was okay. Bravo and merci! Highly recommend and would happily do another trip!
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 24
- 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?
- Holland
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★★★★★ Anne C 4 months ago
Perfect trip
· Amsterdam to Bruges: Cycling through South Holland and Zeeland
Our bike trip through Holland was amazing—tulip fields, canals, and charming towns all along a beautifully planned route. We loved meeting the locals, and Pieter, who organized it all, didn’t miss a detail. The hotels were great, too. Just a perfect trip.
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★★★★★ Anne C 4 months ago
Perfect trip
· Amsterdam to Bruges: Cycling through South Holland and Zeeland
Our bike trip through Holland was amazing—tulip fields, canals, and charming towns all along a beautifully planned route. We loved meeting the locals, and Pieter, who organized it all, didn’t miss a detail. The hotels were great, too. Just a perfect trip.
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★★★★★ Samantha 4 months ago
Loved our trip, amazing way to see this part of the world
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
We loved every minute of our trip. We got lost a few times, but realised that in Austria the sign posting wasn't as reliable than it was in Germany and Switzerland.
Accommodation was exceptional at each location, and breakfasts were more than we expected.- What was the date of your tour?
- April 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- 1
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat easier
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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BikeTours.com staff reply from bozena_kusovac May 5, 2025
Hi Samantha,
Thank you so much for your kind words! We're thrilled you enjoyed the trip and that the accommodations and breakfasts exceeded your expectations. Thanks also for your feedback on the signage!
Bozena
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★★★★★ Emily W 4 months ago
Exceeded my expectations
· · Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
I've gone on a number of bike/hotel tours and really loved them. Adding the river cruise exceeded my expectations. We met many new friends, enjoyed a very nice cabin for resting, and appreciated the very helpful staff. Having a daily talk meant we were very prepared, even though we selected the self-guided experience. The only "self" portion was on the route; every other step of the way, we had guidance. All of this, in addition to the exceptional route, helped make the trip so much fun. We did experience some country-specific issues that required rerouting for biking days 2 and 3, but the cruise director acted very quickly, and we made lemonade out of lemons. I would be happy to do this kind of trip again.
If you're trying to decide between a bike/boat trip and bike/hotel trip, the major difference is that you do not have all day to complete your ride. You are on the riverboat schedule, which can make for odd timing and shortened riding days. If your primary goal is biking, then I would recommend a bike/hotel trip instead. The other downside is that you are rarely in a port during the evening. Walking around Budapest at night was a BIG highlight! On a bike/hotel tour, you can do that every night.
Lastly, I was very happy with the biketours.com experience. Everything was handled very professionally. I would book through them again, especially if I were traveling to a country where I didn't know the language. Using the site was instrumental in my finding this amazing tour, and I look forward to looking for another tour again soon!
- What was the date of your tour?
- April 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- 4
- 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, Hungary, Slovakia
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★★★★★ Ollie S 4 months ago
Dutch Delight
· · Holland by Bike and Boat, Southern Tour
Amazing tour and incredible way to discover this amazing country. Our guides Bart and Andreas were excellent hosts and did a great job making sure everything went smoothly. The De Amsterdam boat was clean, crew was excellent and meals were very good. The bikes all seemed quite new and functioned very well. The daily routines were well organized for scenic rides with perfect amount of time and distance to enjoy many stops along the way. I would easily recommend this tour to anyone looking for a relaxing week of sightseeing and moderate cycling. Looking forward to more adventures in the future with bikeboat tours!
- What was the date of your tour?
- April 2025
- 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?
- Holland
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★★★★★ Cindy 4 months ago
Virgin bike boat trip !
· · Amsterdam – Bruges by Bike and Boat – Fluvius (and reverse)
Such a great way to experience a country whilst keeping active. You see a side to the country you wouldn’t otherwise. Such a great way to meet others . The staff were exceptional and good was great .
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★★★★★ Laurie S. 4 months ago
Terrific easy ride downriver
· Danube Bike Path 7 Nights (Classic)
We really enjoyed the self-guided ride. We were glad to have the e-bikes for windy days although even we could’ve done this on regular bikes. The hotels were great, luggage on time every day, great breakfast buffets. Bikes were in great condition and hotels had an easy setup to allow for charging in a secured area so we never had to move batteries around to charge them.
I got the gpx files from the local provider and uploaded them to Komoot, which worked great. The provider’s app had more local info but we were used to the Komoot interface so preferred it. Definitely pay attention to where you will be on Sundays/holidays as grocery stores are closed and the hotel restaurant might be closed some days too.
We will for sure be back for another tour. This just whet our appetites for the more intimate interaction with your surroundings that cycling provides. -
★★★★★ Cindy 4 months ago
Great place for bike lovers
· · Holland by Bike and Boat, Southern Tour
The biking was outstanding. The bike paths in the cities were crowded with some aggressive riders. I’n most places motor scooters are allowed on the bike paths. Bring a side/rear view mirror. Although not luxurious, the ship was clean and comfortable. The crew was friendly and helpful, especially the three biking guides. The breakfast buffet was plentiful but it was not set up efficiently so the lines were long. We asked for a carafe of hot water to be placed on our table at breakfast because there were 5 tea drinkers at our table. We were told this was not possible but there were carafes of hot water when tea and coffee was served in the afternoon. When the cookies and cakes in the afternoon were eaten, they were not replaced even though there was often another hour left to this snack time. We did not care for the dinners but most people at our table did like the dinners.
- Countries included in this tour?
- Holland
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★★★★★ Stephanie L. 5 months ago
Excellent Tour
· Best of Holland South: Canals, Windmills & Historic Towns
A cycling tour of South Holland was an excellent way to experience the beauty of the Netherlands. The routes showcased a stunning variety of landscapes, including canals, cities, windmills, farms, ferry crossings, and coastal sand dunes. The modern hotels offered warm welcomes and hearty breakfasts, making the journey both comfortable and enjoyable. Highly recommended!
- What was the date of your tour?
- April 2025
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Holland
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★★★★★ Adriano B. 6 months ago
Perfect for families
· Greenways of Girona Family Tour 5 Nights
Our route was great and easy to run, Vias Verdes are very pleasant. Hotels were good, but we loved Can Garay e Can Dionís. Our family will never forget this trip!
- What was the date of your tour?
- March 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- 2
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Spain
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★★★★★ Jan V 10 months ago
Leafde fan Fryslân is a stunning ship!
· · Netherlands Bike & Sail Adventure: Wadden Sea and IJsselmeer
I can't fully speak for the cycling part of this tour - though have personally biked all over Holland many times - but was on this ship for a private dinner event earlier this fall. It's truly a stunning boat (they recently expanded and refurbished it) and I'm 100% certain it will provide for an amazing holiday experience in and around an area that is also UNESCO World Heritage site.
- Countries included in this tour?
- Holland