Bike Tour Reviews page 130
- Albania
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Bulgaria
- Cambodia
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- England
- Estonia
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Holland
- Hungary
- Ireland
- Italy
- Japan
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Montenegro
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Scotland
- Serbia
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- South Africa
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Turkey
- United States
- Vietnam
- Wales
-
★★★★★ Bob VG October 9, 2023Wonderful trip!
· · The Istrian Peninsula by Electric Bike
Explored the Istrian Peninsula by day while relaxing on the wonderful Andela Lora at night. Pro tip: Don't book a lesser boat! Staff was very attentive. Guide Yana was a delight with her bubbly enthusiasm. Appreciated many costal ports as well as old historic inland villages. Would have appreciated the opportunity to for upgraded bikes and more food variety. The booking process was smooth and we would defiantly go with BikeTours.com again!
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- one
- 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?
- Croatia
-
★★★★★ John Foster September 4, 2024Beautiful bit challenging :)
· Gravel Biking Sardinia's Rugged Beauty
Sardinia has long been on our "bucket list" and the scenery, wine, and food did not disappoint! The 3 different accommodations chosen were all great and each was a bit different. The staffs were great at all 3 and the on site coordinators were terrific! The routes were well laid out and Ride with GPS was a breeze to follow (though I use the app at home all the time) Some of the off-road trails were a bit rougher than anticipated and so they took a bit longer to complete than the estimates.
- How many tours have you completed?
- number 6 out of country, but first with Bike Tours
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
-
★★★★★ James Cieslak November 12, 2022A Greay Way to Experience Greece
· Greece: The Peloponnese Peninsula
Enjoyed a quieter side of Greece and met wonderful people along the way. The mountains were beautiful, sea side riding scenic, the agricultural valleys relaxing, and the ancient sites were amazing. We were a group of experienced riders ( ages early 60's through late 70's). E-bikes made the physical part of the trip very enjoyable and not too difficult. The cycling routes kept us off of the main highways the vast majority of the time. Greek hospitality was everywhere. On our daily routes we were offered water, invited into a home for a meal, and received gifts of fruit and nuts all along the way. One of our best trips!
Points to consider for future cyclists on this trip:
1-The e-bikes were either Fuji (step over seat) or Breezer (step through) models. Request your preference when booking. Had a few problems charging batteries overnight. Double check that your bike is indeed charging before leaving it for the night.
2-Use the app 'Ride with GPS' for your routes. Much easier than the materials provided by the company.
3- Hotels in Vytina, Tripoli, and Napflio were very satisfactory. The hotel in Paralia Astros (Ariandne Hotel) was unsatisfactory. The pool was not maintained (green, filthy water present) which led to a mosquito problem throughout the hotel. A new hotel is needed.
4-None of the bikes had water bottle holders. Had to carry water in the pannier or strapped to the rear rack (bring a few short bungee cords for that purpose).
5-Request a full sized tire pump. Flats happen and you'll make changing tires much easier.- What was the date of your tour?
- October 2022
- How many tours have you completed?
- 8
- 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?
- Greece
-
★★★★★ JOHN BEST June 27, 2024Beautiful trip with the kids
· Danube Family Tour 7 Nights
A great way to see Austria with kids--we took six kids ranging from 3 to 9 years old. There were a variety of small towns with old streets, playgrounds, and castles that the kids loved exploring. The hotels were comfortable (a bit hot with no A/C and 95 F days) and all had extensive breakfasts, much better than is typical in the U.S. The routes were also clearly laid out via the app and hardcopy maps they provided. I gave this four stars for a couple reasons; one, the mileage was actually higher per day than was represented, which was challenging for the smaller kids. Two, the communication could have been better, especially towards the end of the tour. Last, the route took us on several shared roads with vehicular traffic (70 kph) and in an industrial area, which was fine for the adults, but again, may not be suitable for some children.
- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2024
- How many tours have you completed?
- 8
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- 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?
- Austria, Germany
-
★★★★★ Jim D. 3 weeks agoSwiss Trip
· Swiss Lakes by E-bike: Lake Geneva to Lake Lucerne
Beautiful way to experience Switzerland. Good workout everyday, Hotels were nice and breakfast was very good. Route was generally good but some spots with heavy traffic. Route signs were usually easy to follow but some signs were in odd spots and hard to find. Road surfaces were outstanding. The rest day gave us time to explore the area.
Overall a very good trip!- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- None before this one
- 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?
- Switzerland
-
★★★★★ Jess Z. May 5, 2023A really great way to visit the monuments!
· Washington DC Monuments & Memorials Bike Tour
I've been to DC a few times but this was by far the best experience. Cycling is such an effective and FUN way to explore the monuments and memorials. The guides were really knowledgeable and gave us a lot of interesting facts at each stop. We had a large group and I think splitting into two smaller groups would have made it even more enjoyable.
-
★★★★★ Jett August 12, 2023Interesting ride through the city
· Bucharest Communist Bike Tour
A nice way to explore the city and it's turbulent past. Through the tour you get to know more about the recent history of the country.
-
★★★★★ Jfletc3233 May 16, 2019The tulips were beautiful
· · Holland’s Super Tulip Tour
Overall the tour was very good. The ship’s crew was excellent and the food was wonderful. We were able to see a lot of tulips even though the tulips bloomed early this year. The tulips at Keukenhof were fabulous and not to be missed. I wish we could have had more time there. We saw lots of windmills and also happened upon a miller setting up his mill for operation it was fascinating. We learned about the creation of polders from sea and spend a fair amount of time on the polders. The scenery was really beautiful. On the negative side, we had to do a lot of riding in congested areas that weren’t especially interesting or historic. I wasn’t expecting this. Some of that may have been because a canal was closed and the boat couldn’t meet us where it was supposed to. Additionally, we had two guides during our tour one who started off with us for 2 days and another for the rest of the tour. Neither of them taught the inexperienced riders in our group how to ride as a group, communicate with each other about hazards coming up or when the group was slowing or stopping. As a result several people fell during the ride. Some of the riders on the tour explained those things to the newer riders and after that people rode better as a group.
- What was the date of your tour?
- April 27, 2019
- How many tours have you completed?
- Many on our own.
- 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?
- Holland
-
★★★★★ Jane Fletcher October 4, 2023Good trip - lots of orchards and vineyards
· Innsbruck to Lake Garda Across the Southern Slopes of the Alps
I enjoyed this trip through the Dolomites but didn’t see as much of the craggy Dolomites as I expected. We were almost always in the flat valley with the mountains along the side of the valley. As we went south the mountains seemed to shrink. I enjoyed the Germanic nature of northern Italy and was very interested to learn more about its history and how Austrian the residents still feel. It didn’t feel like we were in Italy until we arrived in Trento on market day. And then it was almost like a switch flipped and we were in Italy. The architecture as well as the countryside changed and became more Mediterranean influenced. Our ride was generally on bike paths that were very busy with cyclists. Weekends were especially busy but even during the week the paths were busy but it was great to see so many people out riding their bikes. Along the paths we found several bike bars that served drinks and snacks to cyclists and they were perfect places to find a WC. We enjoyed the scenery and marveled at the thousands of acres of apple orchards that we rode through. The hotels were generally fine but the hotel in Riva del Garda was a disappointment. I paid extra for single rooms after a friend had to cancel her trip and this room was a real disappointment, it was more like a cell.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 20+
- 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, Italy
-
★★★★★ Jane Fletcher October 4, 2023Great to have one hotel as a home base
· Lake Garda (Based in One Hotel)
Lake Garda was beautiful and we enjoyed staying in Desenzano. Our hotel in Desenzano was in the perfect location, right on the water and close enough to the old town to walk to dinner.
The day trips for biking out of Desenzano were variable in terms of how much we enjoyed them. We really liked Verona but the biking back from Verona was not very enjoyable because of the traffic and a lot of not very scenic areas. However, the day we rode to Brescia, another city, was a good biking day as the route we were on had pretty good cycling infrastructure that kept us separated from cars even though we were entering the city. There was, however, on that day a closed road that we had to navigate around. Luckily with both google maps and ride with gps we were able to find a good alternate route to get around the closure. We used rides with gps to navigate the routes provided by the tour company rather than their app as rides with gps allowed us to enter our individual hotel and ride directly there. It was also better with turn by turn directions. The tour literature said that their app would work on airplane mode if you downloaded the maps ahead of time, we didn’t find that to be the case. Also, their app tended to lose where we were while rides with gps did not lose us.
Our favorite riding day was the day we rode a loop route in the countryside without a city destination. Lots of nice scenic views without having to negotiate city traffic.
One day I had a problem with my e-bike, it wouldn’t change power levels, so I called the emergency number and they wanted me to call the guy who manages the bikes but since we were out on the tour I asked if she could call him for me. She said she would and that he would call me back. He never called back. The next day one of our group decided not to ride so I used her bike. However, there were several other bikes that had been delivered. I called the emergency number again later that day to say that I had not gotten a call back but that several bikes had been delivered and was one of them for me. She didn’t know but again told me to call the guy who manages the bikes. This time I did call him and he seemed to imply that the bike that said reserved was for me. We had a little bit of a language barrier. So, the next day I rode the reserved bike and all was good. All of that to say it would be great if the tour company could work on their communication with customers. The replacement bike for me was apparently there the morning after I called but I didn’t know that.
All in all it was a good trip and we saw some wonderful sites from Lake Garda to Verona to Brescia and in the countryside.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 20+
- 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?
- Italy
-
★★★★★ Jane Fletcher October 5, 2023Lovely towns along the Mosel
· · German Wine Country along the Saar & Mosel Rivers
We really enjoyed our trip down the Mosel and Saar rivers. The Zwaan is a great boat and we really enjoyed the bike tour with a small group. Lots of storybook villages to explore along the way. We were lucky to be there while the grapes along the Mosel were being harvested and it was really interesting to see that going on. We also had the opportunity to try Federweißer, fresh pressed wine. It was very good while being totally different from what you think of as wine. We had e-bikes for the trip which flattened out the hills and made the riding very easy. It was very interesting to see all of the remnants of Roman civilization as well as lots of medieval buildings. So much history. The patchwork quilt of vineyards along the river were amazing especially in some areas where it seemed they rose straight up. So difficult to work on those steep slopes.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 20+
- 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?
- Germany
-
★★★★★ James Yeager November 1, 2023Founders Tour, October, 2024
· Founder's Tour: Turkey and Greece E-Bike & Boat tour
Great Trip with outstanding guides. Food was excellent and bike tours were perfect. The guides were very experienced and knowledgable. The boat cabin was comfortable. Only reason this wasn't given a 5 star is a number of issues on the Love Boat which have been addressed with the tour guides, company owner and boat owner. The Itinerary was also fantastic. A very good group which added to our enjoyment
- What was the date of your tour?
- October 14, 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 25
- 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?
- Greece
-
★★★★★ John Hastie June 5, 2023Wonderful trip!
· A Taste of Italy: Emilia-Romagna
Evrything was great, but we didi have a couple of issues:
* The Garmin GPS unit was programed for an incorrect departure hotel. Destpite our attempts to join up with the route, it constantly told us we were off course. We ended up abandoning it and using google maps to get from point to point.
* Our hotel in Parma informed us that our reservation didn't include breakfast, which was unexpected.Other than that, the trip was wonderful.
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- many self-guided. two through tourig companies.
- 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
-
★★★★★ skinut 7 June 17, 2019good trip with a few qualifiers
· · Danube Bike and Boat: Passau-Budapest-Passau – MS SE-Manon
The accommodation and food were good. The bikes were excellent.
The joining instructions were poor. We followed the bus directions after leaving the train and ended up with a 2 km trek with luggage to the boat-the bus took us to summer dock not winter.
There needs to be clearer advisories re trips in late May and possibly early June, that due to high water in the Danube, there is a greater likelihood of delays and alterations to plans. We were 4 hours late docking at Passau at the end and missed our flight from Vienna. We had arranged a transfer for 12noon as directed(not the scheduled time of 10am) but could not make our flight with a 2pm arrival.
Also our scheduled stop in Devin was not possible due to high water.- What was the date of your tour?
- May 20 2019
- How many tours have you completed?
- 2 including this one
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia
-
★★★★★ JimJ December 3, 2015First time in Bulgaria won't be last!
· Danube River and Black Sea
(Staff review) Bulgaria did not disappoint! During this tour, we explored seacoast and farmland, toured castles and monasteries, and ate in fine restaurants and village homes. Our guides were excellent--committed, knowledgeable and cordial. One of them was a bird expert, and we learned so much about the fauna in the region. After a day along the Danube in Romania, we overnighted in a tiny farm village where we became the main attraction. We couldn't speak Romanian, and the farm folks couldn't speak English, but we all made ourselves known. And three of our party even got invited into a private home to enjoy the local home made brandy! Some days were on routes that sometimes had too much traffic for my taste, and we've advised the local tour operator on ways to avoid or bridge these sections.
- How many tours have you completed?
- 35
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Bulgaria, Romania
-
★★★★★ JDMM August 18, 2017· Dolomites to Lake Garda: Picturesque Cities and Stunning Scenery
- What was the date of your tour?
- July 2017
- How many tours have you completed?
- 20
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with young kids, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
-
★★★★★ Jim G September 21, 2017Rainy Days
· Danube Bike Path 7 Nights (Classic)
Beautiful bike path, superior bike path route signs. Very historical cities and sites.
We booked Class A lodging package with dinner plan and were very pleased with everything except our stay at the Diamond City Hotel, Tulin. Although the Hotel was new and very nice, they sent us to the Albrechtsstuben Gasthof restaurant. It was a totally bad experience. Only 1 other couple dining, all sent from the Diamond Hotel.
Horrible food, although hungry, neither Bonnie or I could eat much. Requested tap water to drink, restaurant would only provide $4 euros bottles of water.
Spoke with other couple in restaurant, and they concurred, "very bad"
Upon return to hotel, I expressed our disappointment with the restaurant.
I was informed that I was the only person that ever complained, everyone else loved the restaurant.
It was obvious, there is a family connection, we saw the women who waited on us, with the desk clerk, together the next day. (All related)
Overall, great ride- What was the date of your tour?
- September, 2017
- How many tours have you completed?
- 6
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with young kids, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany
-
★★★★★ Zephyr February 17, 2016The Two Italys: from Alto Adige to Trentino and South
· Bolzano to Verona: Orchards, Mountains & Timeless Culture
- How many tours have you completed?
- six
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Families with teens, Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
-
★★★★★ Jeffrey Kuhl September 12, 2022second tour
· Rhine Bike Path: Mainz to Cologne
Day 1 - 3 were fantastic.
Day 4 was too long partly because of route, a few mistakes and a long detour to local bike repair shop. Broken seat was replaced quickly, but caused 3 or 4 stops to attempt to tighten seat with tools that didn't fix the problem. I could only ride a short distance before stopping to flatten seat. The issue was a broken ratchet that had to be replaced. Local tour company worked to find repair and notify them I would be there. I arrived right before closing.
Day 5 I just wanted it to be over.- What was the date of your tour?
- September 3
- How many tours have you completed?
- 2
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Much harder
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Germany
-
★★★★★ Jeffrey 4 weeks agoBoat bike 3
· · Amsterdam – Bruges by Bike and Boat – Fluvius (and reverse)
Enjoyed city walking tours and biking during the day. Boat was comfortable and food was good. Staying on the boat is much easier than packing each morning and finding the hotel for the next night. Local beer selection was nice. I was unaware of cash only policy on board. This caused concern, but final bill was manageable with the cash I had.
I have met with friends to tell them how good a boat and bike tour is to travel. They are planning for next year.
