Bike Tour Reviews page 3
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★★★★★ Ronald Schwarcz
Extremely disappointing.
Sail & Bike to Picturesque Villages and Nature Reserves
The ship was terrible. Our cabin was so small that it could not accommodate two people comfortably. Also, the ventilation was poor and it was always warm and muggy. There was inadequate seating on the deck. No comfortable chaises or stairs. The Captain did not communicate well or do anything help the travelers meet and mingle. It was especially frustrating as my friend and I were the only Americans and there were no native born English speaking traveling. Unlike all other trips we were on, nothing was done to provide us information about the villages we docked at. The captain or crew did not offer to take us into towns and show us around or even recommend bars or other places to visit. There were no daily information sheets, recommendation or even maps. We were completely on our own. The food was marginal at best. The dinner portions were small. Must dinner wasn’t an”event”, everyone was in and out in around 40 minutes. In general the amenities were totally lacking. We believe that the most Americans would not be satisfied with the Sail and Bike tours offered by Bike Boat Tours. On our ship, the crew were friendly and worked hard, but it seemed that they were understaffed. As it seems that they were working a very tight budget. We only had meat was the dinner entree one night and that was at the BBQ. Two nights we had vegetarian main course. We were never taught anything about sailing except helping pulling ropes to raise and lower sails. I could go on and on, but, I will end by saying that the ship was not comfortable and nothing was done to help the travelers fully enjoy the experience.
- What was the date of your tour?
- August 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 10
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Holland
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★★★★★ Carol Bly
Not what hoped for. Poor directions. Unsafe routes and not well marked.
Tauern Bike Path (Krimml-Passau)
Loved quiet rides in country and thru villages but dangerous conditions were not marked due to recent storms. We should have been notified and got onto dangerous routes.
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★★★★★ Sequoia
Not quite the Danube River Trip we expected
Vienna to Budapest (Classic)
Too much of the trip was off the river, and off trails. Going through corn fields was not our favorite. Dams should be called levees. The route through Budapest on sidewalks was difficult, too busy with trucks and traffic. It is not a bicycle friendly city. Hotel could have been closer to the river. We would recommend 2 nights in Bratislava, there is so much to see there. Add another day to sleep over in Hainburg. We loved the hotel in Vienna. We recommend the lower trail through the National Park on day one, to go swimming!!! The day one detour was difficult because of traffic, maybe there's a walk around the detour on bike path instead of so much road. We loved Gyur. Three days were totally off the river. We enjoyed the ferry rides very much. The last two days were on the river and were the best days.
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★★★★★ John Parsons
Can't recommend it
Aare Cycle Route: Along the Jura, Aare, and Rhine Rivers
Food organization poor. Rhine River portion very industrial
- How many tours have you completed?
- 1
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Switzerland
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BikeTours.com staff reply from Lindsay Nash
Hi John, thanks very much for your review. We're sorry to hear this trip did not meet expectations. Since this is a self-guided tour, only breakfast is provided. The rest of the meals are on your own, as is typical with self-guided tours. We're glad to see, though, the higher ratings for the local tour company services and bikes/equipment. Thanks again for your feedback.
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★★★★★ kirbymom
Great Effort but we were frequently lost
A Taste of Italy: Emilia-Romagna
We had titanium bikes and a very intro. Unfortunately we were lost so often that instead of enjoying time at q location, we were biking around asking locals and using our compass. I think Bike Tour tried too hard to use route with less traffic or a bicycle trail. This made it very hard to get in and out of cities. We had both a bike gps with the routes inputted and the written instructions. Just give us the most direct route out of the cities.
The hotels were nice and mostly well located. Sometimes they weren't well located like the one on the farm. We very much enjoyed the cooking class, the visit to the balsamic vinegar producer, and the gelato machine making -- that ws great. Also the dinners and breakfasts were very good to excellent.
I would recommend this tour IF the routes were adjusted and the visit to the farm was eliminated- What was the date of your tour?
- 10-4-16
- How many tours have you completed?
- thousands of miles w/o guides
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Roger
Last minute change
Lyon Highlights E-Bike Tour
Our tour was changed from 3h to 2h at last minute - we were told to expect a partial refund? My 1st city tour using ebike but it felt 'light' compared to similar city bike experiences in other places. This was in the middle of a heatwave so maybe that affected some logistics. First time a bike tour has not included a bottle of water .. but we did stop at a drinking fountain 😂
- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2026
- How many tours have you completed?
- 5+
- 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?
- No
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★★★★★ pmcmanamon
Tour instructions were outdated, and hard to follow
Strasbourg to Mainz: Imperial Cities and Charming Landscapes Along the Rhine
The cities we visited were great, and so were the hotels. I was warm, so air conditions would have been nice, but not a big deal. The tour instructions consisted of a generic book with instructions, and a generic set of maps. The maps were not that detailed. When the maps disagreed with the instructions the maps were right. The signage along the routes changed since they made the instructions . We were told to look for a large E along European bike paths, but it appears to have been replaced by a circle with 15 inside it, i guess for the # of countries in the EU. The bikes were great. The luggage was always delivered on time. I downloaded a Eurobike app to help with the directions, but it did not work well. In order to update my positions I had to quit the app, and restart it. The Biketours people did suggest a new app, RidewithGPS, that worked much better. Because they did not have cues the pass could not tell me ahead of a turn, but it did tell me if we go off course.
I think the local tour company, Eurobike, needs to update their instructions. I also would appreciate if they made unique instructions for each tour. The instructions start and end at a city center. When we got close I would use google maps to find the hotel directly, rather than going to the city center and then to the hotel. My ideal would be a unique set of instructions for a tour, with small maps above or below each instruction. We have had that with other tours, but different providers. On this tour I could not mount my instructions and maps so I could see both while riding, I picked the instructions. In some cases they recommend stopping at a certain place for lunch, but you cannot see if from the tour route, and there is no map to locate it.
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★★★★★ Aileen Gray
Tour was not 5 hour tour as stated
Bilbao Gold Coast E-Bike Tour
Excellent guide. We left bilboa at 10 am. Arrived in Getxo at 1220. Had option to return with guide or pay 7 each to return on our own. Return was 45 mins. Not worth 55 euro we paid.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 17
- How many tours have you completed?
- 20 plus
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Much easier
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
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★★★★★ Astrid
Good ride, good guide but mixed feelings…
Washington DC Monuments at Night Bike Tour
The lady at the reception wasn’t motivated and not very friendly.
Joe was a good guide. The tour at dusk was very nice. But it was really annoying that the bikes are in a very poor condition. Dirty, poorly maintained and worn. My chain fell out twice my husband‘s once. Joe could fix them everytime, but anyway…. Very annoying.
I would have expected better quality for this price.-
BikeTours.com staff reply from bozena_kusovac
Astrid,
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re glad to hear that you enjoyed the tour with Joe and appreciated his guidance. At the same time, we regret that other aspects of your experience, including the bikes and reception, did not meet expectations. We take your comments seriously and will work on improving these areas to provide a smoother experience in the future.
Bozena
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★★★★★ Elizabeth Anderson
Not ideal
Bolzano to Verona: Orchards, Mountains & Timeless Culture
Sorry, this tour was not great. We have used biketours.com for five different trips and this was our least favorite. The hotels were way out of the city centers making it difficult to get dinner or see sights after biking. The routes were not well planned.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- Lots and lots
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ May
First family cycling trip completed!
Danube Bike Path 8 Nights (Upscale Lodging)
Overall a satisfactory trip! The GPS is very useful for navigation. The hotels are great! Just on first day, we find that 2 of the 4 bikes are not fit. We have enter our age and height and has not been told specifically what kinds of bikes will be assigned. I found that they just give standard bikes for adult female and male disregard our height and age (Asians in average are shorter than Westerners.) The person, Robert, arrived for “bike fitting” was not helpful at all. He suggested my daughter to cycle 30km to their bike shop to change bike. When we asked him to call customer service, he said he didn’t have Wi-Fi. So, Eurobike send a staff without communication methods to help customers’ solve problems? Finally, Robert had to use my phone to call the CS number. And in the phone, he said we are “bla, bla, bla.” Is it the customers cannot voice their requests, even the bikes are not fit and customers have to take the risk of getting hurt or accident? and seems to Robert, customers’ requests are “bla, bla, bla..” And customers need to take the riding risk to go 30km to change bike? Later he mentioned it may need to charge EUR 50 per bike change if need to switch bikes in Passau. I have emailed biketour and I am grateful that next day the 2 bikes were changed without additional charges. In second day, Simon is much more helpful. Simon helps us do the testing & it works. Simon is v polite and helpful. Passau is the starting point of Danube cycle path. I feel strange that the outsource company does not have a bike rental centre there. This is our first family cycling trip and it did create stresses at the beginning. The outsource company probably need to have better communication with biketour.
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★★★★★ Collette
Lecce Loop of the Trip is Beautiful
Apulia and Basilicata: Alberobello to Lecce
The segment of this trip within the Puglia region provided stunning views almost all day long of the Adriatic and Ionian Seas. We took frequent advantage of public beaches, stopping for a swim along the way, and the towns were charming, making it easy to linger over an espresso and seaside lunch, or tour on foot once we were settled into our hotel for the night. Our E-bikes made us happy as this Puglia section of the route is quite hilly. The hotels were excellent to good, and the GPS mapping on our phones made it super easy to stay on track or find the route after we had chosen to deviate from it. This portion of the trip was a delight.
The first third of this bike trip includes the the route from Matera to Alberobello and Ostuni. A previous reviewer had mentioned, "an inordinate amount of garbage," on this section. I cannot stress enough how the garbage surpasses the word "inordinate." Hundreds of thousands of water bottles, household trash, appliances, used diapers and debris of all sorts litters the first three days of this trip, like riding through an open landfill.
This section of the Basilicata route has long been abandoned for repair. We had to turn off the "emergency SOS" app on our phones - the one that calls your emergency contact using severe shaking of your phone - due to the broken concrete and tar on these roads as our phones kept sending SOS pings out to family members in the US. Where I live, I often have to ride on gravel roads and those seemed like a dream compared to these first 3 days of road conditions. The Lecce portion of this trip was great but I cannot recommend this trip if it includes the first section. Bike Tours is wonderful, this was our second trip with them and we plan more, but I will heed reviews, which is why I'm offering this one.- What was the date of your tour?
- Sept 26 - Oct 1, 2021
- How many tours have you completed?
- two
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Francisco Averhoff
beautiful countryside
Cycling Paradise of Provence - to and from Avignon
the hotels were very nice (we upgraded) and the bike riding was very doable and the countryside was beautiful. we have done 5 self guided bike tours through biketours.com and have been very satisfied, however for this trip the actual travel agency in France (Walk Inn) was unsatisfactory: 1. they did not meet with us and did not go over the routes; 2.did not meet with us to go over the bike equipment; 3. we had trouble with the GPS system on our phones and they provided no assistance; 4. the written maps/routes did not match the routes on the GPS (once we were able to get it on our phone); 5. the GPS routes that we finally downloaded were often for the trip going in the opposite direction which made the navigation more challenging; 6. Finally, the hotel transfers and bike provider were subcontracted by Walk Inn making coordination difficult and furthermore, Walk Inn did not answer our calls using the phone number provider for emergency contact. Overall because of the in country travel agency , Walk Inn, this trip was only fair and could have been excellent.
- Countries included in this tour?
- France
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★★★★★ frank vaughan
More of a boat trip than a bike trip
Danube Discovery: Bike and Boat through Enchanting Capitals
We have been on 4 boat and bike tours. This was not a favorite. The boat company charges additional fees for anything- $15 daily fee for internet, $3.50 for a bottle of water, and $5+ for alcohol. They cover a long distance on the boat, so you do not have much time to ride the bike. When you do, it is a stringent timeline- off the ship at 9 am and meet the boat at 2:30 or you will miss the boat. It does not give you much time to look around. They have strictly enforced assigned seating at breakfast and dinner so it minimizes the chances of meeting other people. The guide was not very nice and did not ride the trails. They were covered in places with 4-6 inches of mud from the recent flooding and many were unrideable. Then the guide got mad when we returned to the boat covered in mud. The extra tours they sell were expensive and ok, but the guide on the Vienna tour left 2 of our group behind so they had to find their way back. The maps provided were ok, but somewhat confusing, and the briefing by the guide was rushed and not helpful. It's a German boat with German food and lots of retired Germans. There is nothing wrong with that, but many of them did not go on the rides described but just used the trip as a cheap river trip with some side rides.
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★★★★★ quin101
Beautiful area but hectic pace
Baltic Capitals: Historic Cities of Vilnius, Riga and Tallinn
We did experience the Baltic Countries and we went to places we never would have seen. But, there are issues about the tour, that others should be aware of, the cycling was much faster then we thought, often cycling on roads, busy roads,it was not a relaxed pace, one guide for 15 riders, people often got lost/left behind. We never arrived to the hotel until at least 8pm No free time, no time to shop, take pictures. We feel the guide was unorganized, no care for the slower riders. When we booked this tour it was rated as a 1 in difficulty. This is too low for the terrain and pace that we encountered.
That said we are still glad we did the tour as we did see beautiful and interesting places. I hope the company makes some changes to the tour to make it more enjoyable to all. -
★★★★★ bonnie100
So So Vacation
Bruges to Paris by Bike and Boat (and reverse)
Good bike trip if you like a slow pace. Lots of time wasted at not very interesting sites. Had to "kill" time in order not to get to the barges anchoring site before the barge got there which was usually between 4-6 PM. The barge itself was fair. But some of the scenery in Belgium and France was beautiful making the trip tolerable. Food was average. Bikes were very good.
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★★★★★ Barbara Stanley
Good trip with a few problems.
Dolomites to Venice Along the Old Dolomites Railway Track
Instruction , hotels and app were very good overall. Could improve to have ability to put in hotel for city navigation when it really counts. I had a collision with a tram at the end of the ride but lucky that I had minimal damage. Also , in our group of 5 , one had a horrible bike and the chain kept coming off.
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Bicycling in Philly
Salzburg to Vienna, Lakes Option
- What was the date of your tour?
- Aug 13-19
- How many tours have you completed?
- Greater than 10
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat easier
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
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★★★★★ Bernadette
NOT QUITE AS EXPECTED
Amsterdam – Bruges by Bike and Boat – Magnifique III (and reverse)
If you are expecting a leisurely bike ride along a well-marked path, plenty of time to stop for pictures and sightseeing, you will probably be disappointed. The route is not a dedicated, clearly-marked bike path along the river from Bruges to Brussels. It is so long and convoluted that even a guide got lost — twice.
Participants who don’t pay extra for a guided tour are provided a GPS app to navigate the route. Those accustomed to using GPS did o.k. We got lost right away. The GPS wasn’t much help since the signal was weak. We made it to the first town on the route where we ran into the guided tour group and decided to follow them. Some of the group members said the guide had gotten lost before we met up with them. She got lost again after we joined them. A 30-mile bike ride turned into a 55-mile ride after all the back tracking. Batteries on most of the e-bikes expired. One rider was so exhausted that she collapsed on the side of the road. We went past historic windmills, but the guide said little or nothing about them.
On another day, a different guide (after the previous incident, the trip became a guided tour for all), took us speedily through rugged, forested terrain that was more suitable for a mountain bike. It was all we could do to keep up, even though most participants rode their own bikes regularly at home. The route also included short stretches through busy, urban areas.
During the trip, there were numerous spills and a few non-incapacitating injuries. One person had bloody scrapes on her leg, which a passing good Samaritan bandaged. One scraped and bruised rider was possibly saved from a concussion by her helmet. While regular bikes are also available, E-bikes are heavy and harder to balance, especially on take-off.
The boat portion of the trip was much more enjoyable. The boat literally glided down the canal. The rooms were spotless and the crew friendly and courteous. The chef, who announced each night’s offering in a charming way, prepared meals on par with an upscale restaurant. That salvaged what otherwise would have been a rough ride.
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★★★★★ Cassidy
Cool but disappointed
Washington DC Monuments at Night Bike Tour
I really enjoyed this tour overall - it's hard to go wrong with seeing all of the beautiful monuments in DC as the sun sets! That being said, our guide didn't given much history or narrative to each spot we visited, I was hoping to hear more about each monument, rather than the stats. Also I was disappointed by how the guide talked about the various war memorials - our guide did give us some background but based on the tone used, I felt like I was hearing about a fun fact, rather than a very somber event/location. Overall, I wanted to hear little known facts, local lore and knowledge but instead, I felt like I could have just looked up each site we went to on wikipedia and gotten the same information (and more) than what I heard on this tour.
Also, our guide also was biking so far ahead of everyone, it felt like he was racing to get around, leaving people behind. Given this was a tour that went into the night, he also didn't warn much about the terrain or being careful around various areas. I saw multiple people fall and one person ran into a barrier at a narrow pathway area.
- What was the date of your tour?
- April 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- 0
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
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