Primarily Bike Paths Tour Reviews page 43
-
★★★★★ Thomas Mitchell 4 weeks agoWell 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. -
★★★★★ Adrian Gnyra 4 weeks agoFabulous 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
-
★★★★★ Ian Bailie 4 weeks ago
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.
-
★★★★★ Sarah D 4 weeks agoSuch 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
-
★★★★★ R.M 4 weeks agoBeautiful 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!
-
★★★★★ Frances Clemo 3 weeks agoWonderful trip
· · Danube Delights: Biking through Four Countries
What a wonderful way to experience sites of the Danube. The staff and cruise director (Leslie) of Vivienne were great and very helpful. Our tour guide (Barbara) did a great job and took care of us so well.
-
★★★★★ Patricia Doody 3 weeks ago
Love our cycle through London!
· Original London Bike Tour
Our guide Nani was fantastic! So knowledgeable, so funny. Was so enjoyable even in the rain! Saw more sights than we thought we would and enjoyed every minute of it! He is the best guide ever!
Rode on many good bike paths and lanes so felt very safe!
Thank you Nani!!- What was the date of your tour?
- May 21,24
- 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
-
★★★★★ Christopher McAdam 3 weeks agoA great ride!!!
· Dolomites to Trieste via Lake Bled at the Foot of the Julian Alps
We loved all aspects of the ride. It was great to span 3 different countries. We were glad that we chose the 23 days in Bled, we had a fantastic free day there.
-
★★★★★ LINDA LYNCH 3 weeks ago
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
-
★★★★★ Christopher Schafer 3 weeks ago
Wonderful cycle ride through 3 lovely countries
· Dolomites to Trieste via Lake Bled at the Foot of the Julian Alps
This was a great first bike tour. It's mostly flat and off road on paved bike trails without cars. I felt safe the entire time. Although I was a solo traveller, I met other cyclists that were on the same tour and staying at the same hotels as me which made my solo cycling tour all the more enjoyable. I highly recommend it.
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 2024
- How many tours have you completed?
- My first 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?
- Italy, Slovenia, Austria
-
★★★★★ Amy Jenkins 3 weeks agoDanube Experience
· · Danube Experience Bike and Boat Passau-Vienna-Budapest-Belgrade-Iron Gates-Passau
This trip was great! The boat was very nice and comfortable, bikes were sturdy and visits with local guides outstanding. The paper route was not great but the app seemed to be more accurate. The daily briefings could have been more detailed.
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 2024
- 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?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Serbia, Slovakia
-
★★★★★ klaus albrecht 3 weeks agoTrip of our 35th weding anniversary
· Burgundy Wine Trails: Beaune to Macon on the “Voie Verte”
Excellent trip. Fine hotels. Good bicycles. Food and wine are marvelous. Great
- Countries included in this tour?
- France
-
★★★★★ Robin Jones 3 weeks ago
What a beautiful trip!
· Dolomites to Trieste via Lake Bled at the Foot of the Julian Alps
Seeing the Dolomites was always something I had wanted to experience. Starting the trip in Dobbiacco Toblach allowed us to be close up and witness the beauty of this mountain range. The couple who provided us with our bikes the first day suggested riding to Cortina since the weather was perfectly sunny that day. We rode and were able to see the 3 Sisters and it was amazing! The first day of the trip which allowed us to see the Dolomites was sunny and warm despite earlier weather reports calling for rain. It could not have been a more perfect day for a ride.
We had rain for most of the following days but because it was the beginning day of the season we didn't go in expecting sunshine the entire time. Someone once told me, there are no bad days only bad gear. We had come prepared and did not regret it. Each village we stayed in was nice and the people we came in contact with were friendly and accommodating. The hotels, although many were quite simple, were comfortable and clean. The food in all establishments was good and exactly what we needed. We opted for e-bikes because of the hilly terrain and felt the bikes provided were good quality.
All in all, even in the rain it was a wonderful trip that was well planned out. We did not use the route maps the tour company provided rather we built our own in Strava. However, the people on the same tour who were using the app seemed quite happy. I'm so happy we chose this tour and look forward to many more.
- 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?
- Italy, Slovenia, Austria
-
★★★★★ Brenda Teal 3 weeks agoEnjoyable trip in most ways...
· Innsbruck to Salzburg: Through the Alps Along River Cycle Trails
First, the positives...
The scenery, hotels provided, local emergency/tour representatives and bikes were exceptional. There were interesting and beautiful sights in every town and along the way. The bike shop where we received rental bikes, helmets, etc. was knowledgeable, friendly and Chris in Innsbruck was great to work with and talk to, and he provided great insights toward upcoming routes.
There was useful information about available alternate routes/modes of travel, as well as the scenery we could experience, and the details of our stays at each local inn were seamless, for the most part. I cannot say enough about the friendliness and helpfulness of hotel staff, without exception. The local representative and the transfer drivers were also easy to communicate with, and helpful in every area we needed.
I felt the info given regarding sightseeing was not as detailed or inclusive of all sights, as the last time we worked with BikeTours.
Regarding directions and mapping, the GPS we rented from BT was useless, and we stopped using or even charging it after a couple of days....the routes didn't seem to match those on the map given, and even when we were clearly on the cycle path designated, it constantly said to make a u-turn or offroute; 60 euros we should have kept for other things. The map directions were often unclear, especially entering and leaving cities, and since the GPS wasn't working, we had to constantly stop to take the map out as there was no place to clip it to the bike handlebar. The alternate routes on the Lofer travel day were confusing as well.
Despite these issues, we would have probably used BT again, except for the unexpected hotel expenses after we arrived in Austria. We asked for a final invoice, before booking, to make sure of costs in planning this trip, and was sent one which listed a "total" of all charges and a list of all services covered under our quoted tour cost, including specific hotel stays, with no mention of added costs to be paid when we arrived at each hotel. When we arrived in Innsbruck, the hotel informed us we still owed city taxes (this was the case in almost every town/hotel booked). Though the amounts were not big, the attitude we got from the tour when we called to check was off-putting ("that fact was included in the general description of the tour on the internet," and "a company does not have to put every little detail in an invoice.").
We suggest that BT put an * next to each hotel stay on their invoice/quotes, and then include in small print at the bottom " *some hotels may charge a city tax at checkout, usually from 2-8 euros per night, which is not covered by BikeTours." This is a detail that can be corrected easily, and sure would help travelers budget appropriately as well.
One thing is for sure, however you plan for it, go to Austria and experience the marvelous places on this river tour (we added extra time in Salzburg and Vienna)....you won't regret it. SHOW MORE- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
-
★★★★★ Patricia Doody 3 weeks agoLove our cycle through London!
· Original London Bike Tour
Our guide Nani was fantastic! So knowledgeable, so funny. Was so enjoyable even in the rain! Saw more sights than we thought we would and enjoyed every minute of it! He is the best guide ever!
Rode on many good bike paths and lanes so felt very safe!
Thank you Nani!!- What was the date of your tour?
- May 21,24
- 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
-
★★★★★ LINDA LYNCH 3 weeks ago
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
-
★★★★★ Amy Jenkins 3 weeks ago
Great trip!
· · Danube Experience Bike and Boat Passau-Vienna-Budapest-Belgrade-Iron Gates-Passau
Great trip with a lot of variation. The crew on the Swiss Crown was wonderful, the food was very good and the cabins comfortable
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 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?
- Austria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Serbia, Slovakia
-
★★★★★ Joanne Hamilton 2 weeks ago
An Amazing Experience
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
We did the self-guided tour around Lake Konstanz. It was a wonderful trip. Right from the moment we got to Constance, we were impressed the attention to the details that made our trip very enjoyable. Tour operator was such a great bike rental company. They also had a very impressive book with maps and hotels that was detailed just for us. So it had all the updated info on our trip. We loved our bikes. They ran very smoothly. They were quite heavy..... and the only time that was a challenge was a couple of times when we stopped to walk our bikes up a hill. We rode through two days of rain and the paniers and map pouches stayed dry. The hotels were so, so nice. We stayed in 5 different hotels and 4 out of the 5 were, for us.... 5 star! The breakfast at each hotel was complimentary and all very tasty, extensive buffets, so we could fuel up for the day ahead. We found so many cute places to stop along the way for snacks and drinks and little breaks.
The one thing I would encourage bikers to do, is to figure out your GPS/data service for the road. There were a few times we lost the trail and our GPS's failed us because our data wasn't working. Gratefully people like to help out and we found some people who spoke English. By the third day we really had the GPS thing figured out. I will say that the company did give us EXCELLENT maps! So that too helped us find our way.
We had three days of sun, two days of rain, and one day of threatening rain (but did not rain). It was all great! We really felt like it was all part of the adventure. We cycled 30-60 km a day. Gratefully, the one day we were SOAKED and all our clothes and shoes were soaked, our hotel had radiators that worked and a towel warmer so we were able to dry out clothes. Another hotel had a towel dryer and radiator that did not work, so we would have really been challenged to dry out. All in all it was a great trip and we totally plan on using BikeTours.com again!- What was the date of your tour?
- May 19-24, 2024
- How many tours have you completed?
- 1
- 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
-
★★★★★ Om Apte 2 weeks agoPerfect way to enjoy Italian Alps
· Innsbruck to Lake Garda Across the Southern Slopes of the Alps
The tour experience was great. All the stays were perfect. The mobile app was very helpful to navigate from point A to B. All instructions in the docket were easy to understand and follow. This was my 2 tour with bike tours and I found the quality of services was as good as it was on our last tour.
-
★★★★★ Cheryl Sparks 2 weeks agoScenery and castles and yummy food, oh my!!!
· Nature, Villages & Castles of the Loire River Valley
Very very enjoyable trip. All of the hotels were clean, comfortable and beautiful. Whole experience was great. We found that the app “ Geovelo” worked a lot better for navigation than the app from the bike company.
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 24
- How many tours have you completed?
- 4
- 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?
- France
