Bike Tour Reviews page 81
- Albania
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★★★★★ Harvey Wilds July 11, 2023Wonderful tour of Czech and Austrian countryside
· Prague to Vienna via Cesky Krumlov
My wife and I had an excellent time on our self guided tour. The accomodations and logistics were perfect! We are definitely planning our next trip already.
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Czech Republic
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★★★★★ Rob Russell July 9, 2023Fantastic bike trip - downhill all the way!
· Dolomites to Venice Along the Old Dolomites Railway Track
I did this trip with my daughter who had never been to Italy. The folks at ''Fun Active Tours" were exceptional. They let us have the bikes a day early, call our hotels to make sure we had two beds as some of the hotels thought 'double' ment one bed! They let my daughter ride with the luggage transfer guy in the middle of the tour as her U-?-What was sore ;). Hotels were great and the route was unbelievable. Frendly Italians and some of the best food we've ever had. Go for it!
- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 15
- 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?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Bruce Kozarsky July 8, 2023Terrific trip under unexpected circumstances
Best of Northern Zealand
One week before our trip was to start, something happened that made it impossible for my wife to bike. The tour was non-refundable at that point, and while we had purchased travel insurance, we weren't sure what they would cover. So we went ahead anyway and in retrospect, we're glad we did. Thanks to Denmark's remarkable rail network, it was very easy (and cheap) to go from hotel to hotel via train. We decided that I would bike for two of the five days and the local tour operator, Ruby Rejser, was wonderfully accommodating, delivering my bike at the start of my two biking days and picking it up at the end. Whether riding or not, the luggage transfer was seamless. The destinations were great, specially the Louisiana Museum, Helsingor (Elsinor), the day in Helsingborg, Sweden, and the Fredericksborg castle in Hillerod.
On the two days that I rode, the routes were great, combining seaside vistas with forests, parks, farmland, small towns and castles. Most roads have dedicated bike lanes and the bike trails were great, too.
My only complaints were two: the bike I rode was OK but not in optimal shape because the gears occasionally slipped, and the Garmin didn't always work properly. Written cue sheets would have served well as a backup but there were none -- just some printed maps. Still, I was able to get where I needed to go with just a few wrong turns and confusing moments. Nothing wrong with a couple of extra miles given the short routes on this tour.
All the hotels were great except for one (Best Western in Hillerod, though that was still fine). And the breakfasts were great.
Overall, we had a great time and I want to give a special shout-out to the Ruby Rejser representative in charge of the tour who was exceptionally flexible and accommodating to our unusual circumstances.
- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 3
- 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?
- Denmark
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★★★★★ Lisa Samson-Fang July 8, 2023Had a great time!
· Sardinia: A Mine of Memories
Great week in Sardinia biking. Everything planned for us on a self-guided tour. Great accommodations. Great routes. Beautiful. I would consider upgrading bike to lighter bike next time (e.g. gravel bike). Otherwise, wouldn't change a thing,it was perfect.
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Donald Zirkelbach July 7, 2023A great family trip - highly recommend
· Vienna to Budapest (Classic)
Family of 6 adults. 4 were first timers on a bike vacation. 2 had never been to Europe. Trip was enjoyed by all and went very smoothly. Hotels were good. 2 E bikes and all 6 bikes were in good condition with no issues.
In researching the trip last year, the one thing that came up multiple times were that the trail wasn't always clearly marked and the paper map/ instructions weren't always easy to follow. They have an App now that goes along with the paper instructions. It marks your location to the route. This is the 1st year for the App. I rate it very good. It could be excellent if they made a few mods. Would be happy to share my thoughts on those if they ask.
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★★★★★ David Doehr July 7, 2023Holland is Bike-Centric!!!
· Best of Holland North: Dutch Villages, Landscapes & the Keukenhof
Holland was a wonderful tour, and here is specifically why:
The entire country is bike-centric - which means everyone (in cars) yields to bikes,
The bike lanes are impeccable in quality,
Our bikes (rented from Tulip Tours) were outstanding 8-speed, belt drive, touring bikes (best yet out of 4 European tours I have done),
Hotels were all 4/3 star in quality - no losers in the entire route (sometimes there are),
Dutch prefer to speak English if you don't know Dutch, so there is no issue if you don't speak Dutch,
Pieter, from Tulip Tours, did an outstanding set-up and send-off with us (spent over an hour putting on our pedals, making sure we had our equipment setup properly, and then he went thru the Garmin device in detail, as well as showed us all of the printed dailies he made for us, and ensured that we had emergency contact numbers etc., (this proved vital as we had two circumstances when we needed help, and it was handled efficiently and effectively in a short (20 minutes) matter of time,
Our routes (programmed into the Garmin) were expertly designed by a cyclist, and included loops that were spectacular (Kroller Mueller National Park), this made each day special,
Landscapes were beautiful, big skies and clouds, at times the winds blew and it rained, but it just made me appreciate the Dutch resolve, as they were all riding bikes in it.
I highly recommend this tour, we capped it with three days in Amsterdam, which allowed us to take in all of the museums (NDSM is a must!) and a Heineken brewery tour which were all delightful.- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- Four European tours of 1 - 2 weeks
- 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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★★★★★ Patti Hinsdale July 7, 2023Perfect
· Royal Zealand and Copenhagen
A few mistakes with our booking. The last night Comwell Portside did not have our booking. They straightened it out fortunately.
The downloaded electronic trail quide was incorrect for two of the hotel locations we were to stay at.Still the trip was more than I expected Absolutely, lovely!
- Countries included in this tour?
- Denmark
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★★★★★ DORIT AVIELI July 7, 2023Beautiful area
· Tauern Bike Path (Salzburg-Salzburg)
We disappointed from the bikes, very heavy, not comfortable not properly handling .
Hotel das berau was a shame to your company!
All other details were taken care of perfectly- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
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★★★★★ DORIT AVIELI July 7, 2023
Beautiful area
· Tauern Bike Path (Salzburg-Salzburg)
We disappointed from the bikes, very heavy, not comfortable not properly handling .
Hotel das berau was a shame to your company!
All other details were taken care of perfectly- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
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★★★★★ Ronan Gardiner July 6, 2023Incredible Trip
· Atlantic Coast of France
From spectacular coastline to fields of sunflowers to rolling vineyards, this tour offers a "nature bath" that ignites all the senses. Add to that, beautiful overnight towns, historic hotels and incredible food and wine - what's not to love!
This was our second bicycle trip in France (the first was in the equally incredible Loire Valley) and it will certainly not be our last. The distances were just right (the shorter but hillier day was actually the toughest), the bikes were terrific, as was the Roadbook for Discovery AP that served as our guide. Our bags were waiting for us at every overnight town and the entire trip was seamless.
We traveled in late June / early July and there were surprisingly few tourists in the towns we visited. Restaurants and sight seeing activities were therefore easily accessible, requiring no advance reservations. We added a couple of nights in La Rochelle pre-trip and in Bordeaux post, which we would highly recommend, we actually wished we'd had more time in Bordeaux - a spectacular city with lot's to see and do .... and eat and drink. Bon voyage!- What was the date of your tour?
- June/July 23
- How many tours have you completed?
- 3
- 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?
- France
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★★★★★ Carey July 5, 2023Exploring Slovenia by bike
· Best of Slovenia: Highlights Across the Country From Bled to Piran
This was our 5th self-guided cycling trip, and a great way to see Slovenia. The route was great and highlighted the different areas of the country, from the alps to the adriatic. There are some hills which can be challenging in the heat, but very manageable with some training. Most of the roads were fairly low traffic; even on the busier roads Slovenians seemed to be pretty courteous to cyclists. There were some gravel roads which were manageable. Note that there is some conflicting information about whether you'll receive a paper copy of the route directions - you won't unless you've requested this for a fee. And there was also supposed to be one odometer included per couple - there wasn't. So I strongly suggest having a phone with a data plan so that you can follow the GPS instructions. These were fairly easy to follow, but in some cases the app had trouble finding the route so having access to google maps, etc was handy.
Hotels were good for the most part with some being really great; a couple were only adequate, but that is likely due to what is available in the specific town. Included breakfasts were all fabulous. We arranged to spend an extra day in Ljubljana after day 3, which was a great idea. We also added extra days in Piran which we were happy with. For lunches and other stops during the riding day, there are recommendations that appear on the app. However, these don't seem to be in any order for each day, so it's probably worth while to take a look at them all before you set out for the day to see what they're recommending and where.
Overall a really great vacation! Biketours.com was great to work with for booking, and although we had no issues needing local support, we were happy with the planning and the bikes were perfectly adequate.
- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 5
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Slovenia
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★★★★★ Debbie McLaughlin July 5, 2023An amazing, exhilarating and exciting trip
· Andalusia: Southern Spain
My husband and I are so happy we chose to explore southern Spain by bike. This was a very different trip than we were used to but it was the best way to see this beautiful part of the country. Even our mis-adventures (truth be told, the way out of Seville in 90 plus weather was tough and some of the directions were a little off) left us laughing like kids (we are in our 60s)! We will definitely explore other bike tour options with this company. I will never forget the beautiful and endless landscape of sunflowers. Breathtaking! And the accommodations after a long, hot ride were simply outstanding. We would do it again in a heartbeat!
- Countries included in this tour?
- Spain
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★★★★★ Sharon Johnson July 5, 2023Sail and bike to picturesque villages and nature reserved
· · Sail & Bike to Picturesque Villages and Nature Reserves
Great experience on a tall ship sailing vessel. Food was average. Crew was very good but English translations on biking details was lacking.
- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 10
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Holland
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★★★★★ Paula Seliga July 4, 2023Cycling and Cooking in Tuscany
· Cycling and Cooking in Tuscany
We had excellent guides, hosts, chefs, restaurants, sites to see, bikes, fellow tourists, and accommodations. The only thing I would have changed is to begin the cooking classes earlier, so we could have eaten earlier. Difficult to pass up all that gorgeous food, but if you ate it, difficult to go to sleep with such a full stomach, and then get up and eat again!
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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BikeTours.com staff reply from JV July 5, 2023
Thanks for your business, the pics, and a glorious review. Hope to help you again on another glutinous journey. :)
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★★★★★ Helen Beban July 4, 2023Languedoc Adventure
· South of France: UNESCO World Heritage Sites
Did this tour as a couple in our early seventies. We have done many cycle trips mostly self guided carrying our own luggage. This time we hired ebikes. Bikes were perfect. Hotels stunning. The trip notes comprehensive and the GPS really excellent. We had good communication. Meals average.
We have feedback for Adventure France about the route: on the Canal day MIDI Day the trip notes and GPS gave different routes. This was unexpected and a bit confusing.
We followed the Canal du MIDI using the trip notes it worked well. The route to the hotel in Carcassonne used many small roads with 4 way intersections. Difficult. Also used the traffic bridge and main roads. Using the cycle/ pedestrian bridge would have been much better. We loved the routes especially the fascinating rock formations on the first cycling day and the high route above the lake. Magic.- Countries included in this tour?
- France
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★★★★★ Diane Witters July 3, 2023Great first trip with BikeTours.com
· Dolomites to Trieste via Lake Bled at the Foot of the Julian Alps
Overall, we really enjoyed the experience and were impressed with the scenery, lodging, quality of the bikes (one of us had an e-bike and the other a “top bike “), and the multiple layers of navigation provided by Fun Active Tours, the local outfitter. We also appreciated the detailed instructions for the luggage and train transfers. We especially enjoyed the first 3 legs of the journey through the Dolomites of northern Italy, into Austria, and then the entry into Slovenia with views of the Julian Alps and into Lake Bled. Trieste may have its merits but the city was quite chaotic and difficult to navigate and find our hotel by bike.
- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- this was our 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?
- Italy, Slovenia, Austria
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★★★★★ Anne Nurse July 3, 2023
Easy, fun, and beautiful
· Vienna to Budapest (Classic)
We loved this tour. The biking was beautiful and the distances manageable. The tour company was super supportive--they provide paper maps plus an app. Our luggage always arrived on time and the hotels were excellent. In the past we have biked on our own but this was so much easier and it was nice to know that if something went wrong a local person had our back. Highly recommend.
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★★★★★ Emily Magnavita July 3, 2023
Great trip
· Dolomites to Trieste via Lake Bled at the Foot of the Julian Alps
Trip was great, however, there was lack of communication with the company as far as planning logistics. Directions were unclear and sometimes incorrect, got lost on the route multiple times due to lack of information and description in the directions.
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★★★★★ joseph eberly July 2, 2023Amazing scenery and people
· Highlights of the Highlands: Donegal by E-bike
The North West coast of Ireland is breathtaking. For the most part, quiet country roads or bike paths. Our B&Bs were very nice and the hosts even nicer. There are some areas that were quite challenging and we were very happy to have e-bikes. A little rain but nothing that kept us from riding. We had a fun and challenging ride through the national park with a dirt path and a steep climb on a gravel path. We had some equipment issues that slowed us down but operator got us going again. The Garman GPS was amazing. We made plenty of wrong turns, but it always got us back on track. All in all, this is the most beautiful part of Ireland and we had great food at every stop.
- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- This is our second trip with Bike Tours
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Ireland
