Duration
8 days
Activities
  • 8 day guided cycle
Accommodation
  • 7 nights in a twin share cabin
Meals
  • 6 Dinners
  • 6 Lunches
  • 7 Breakfasts

Price

$USD

 
 

Overview

Trip Code: SOG8218

Trip highlights


  • Discover the vibrant city of Amsterdam
  • Cycling through the countryside of Holland past locks, windmills and cheese farms to reach interesting towns such as Gouda, and Zaanse Schans that boasts working windmills that are more than 300 years old.
  • Enjoying the camaraderie of your fellow passengers aboard a comfortable barge
  • Sample local specialties including Belgian waffles, beer and cheese.
  • Visit Keukenhof garden, one of the worlds largest, to view the spring blooms at their peak.

You will spend time in the historical cities of Haarlem, Leiden, Gouda and Alkmaar and learn about the water management of these lowlands at the North Sea. You will also visit the Keukenhof gardens, famous for the hundreds of thousands of blooming tulips, hyacinths, daffodils and other bulb flowers. The world-famous Aalsmeer flower auction is on the program where an astonishing volume of beautiful flowers are being traded daily and exported all over the world. One night the barge mooring is at the open air museum ‘the Zaanse Schans’ with its windmills, cheese farm and picturesque wooden houses. You will be surprised by the beautiful, varied scenery and the wonderful bikeways of Holland.

Trip Grading

introductory

More info about grading system

At approximately 1:00pm, you can check into the barge. Later that afternoon at 2:30pm the barge leaves the harbour and you will be welcomed by the crew and enjoy some refreshments. After your safety and procedures information session, you are free to enjoy the ship and settle in. We arrive at the lock of Spaarndam at 4pm and will take a short ride to test the fit of the bicycles and make any adjustments. You will return to the barge for dinner at about 6:30pm and afterwards are free to enjoy a walk through the city of Haarlem. (approx. 15km).

Meals:  D

Today's trip leads you through the oldest tulip fields of Holland, including a visit of the Keukenhof gardens. This is the most beautiful bulb park in the world. An overwhelming blaze of colours; seven million flowering tulips in a magnificent 80-acres' background of traditional and modern gardening architecture. You can also admire the various hyacinths, narcisses and many other colourful flowers. In the afternoon you bike to the city of Leiden. Dinner on board and after that you can join the walk through town.

Meals:  B,L,D

Breakfast while sailing out of Leiden. Your bike tour starts just outside Leiden and leads through the ‘green heart’ of Holland. Near Zoeterwoude, you will visit the cheese farm where you will learn about the cheese-making process and you will have the opportunity to taste the results. In the afternoon you reach Gouda, famous for the Gouda cheese. Gouda has an attractive compact center with her pretty market square and Gothic town hall. The main church of Gouda, devoted to Saint John, is world famous for its stained glass windows. After dinner you can join the walk through town.

Meals:  B,L,D

After breakfast you cycle out of the port to the Zeeschelde, and follow this beautiful tidal river upstream on a bike path to Dendermonde. Along the way will admire the magnificent Flemish countryside around the Schelde. The River Schedle stretches for 435km through northern France, western Belgium and the southwestern part of the Netherlands and is connected by several canals to the basins of the Rhine, Meuse and Seine Rivers. The Schelde has always had considerable commercial and strategic importance over the years. You will cycle either to St-Amands or Dendermonde, a friendly provincial town along the river, for the night.

Meals:  B,L,D

At 7 am you can drink an early cup of coffee. After that you go by bike to the flower auction of Aalsmeer, the largest of Europe. Here huge quantities of flowers are trucked in and sold every day, after which they are distributed all over Europe. After your visit you return on board (around 9 am) for a late breakfast while the barge sails to Amsterdam. You will enjoy a nice cruise, right through the city. Today's bike tour takes you from Amsterdam to Zaanse Schans, a unique hamlet where people live and work, with original houses and windmills from the river Zaan area. The hamlet is dominated by operating windmills, the oldest built in 1673, for grinding mustard, spices, paint and oil and for sawing wood into planks. As you walk through the village you will see a clock museum, an old-fashioned grocery store, a house with period furniture, a clog maker and a cheese farm.

Meals:  B,L,D

After breakfast your bike tour leads you to the beautiful town of De Rijp. Centuries of history are still evident here in De Rijp's wooden facades, beautiful church, lock and town hall. From here, your ride continues across the Beemster Polder, an almost untouched open polder landscape. Your next stop is at the former windmill complex of the Schermer Polder. Here we visit the Schermerhorn Windmill Museum. After that you bike to Alkmaar. The town is known as a Dutch cheese city. As you wander through the streets you'll be amazed by the beauty of Alkmaar's Old Town, with its well-preserved 17th century buildings and narrow, winding canals. Dinner in town at your own account

Meals:  B,L

This morning you bike to the Hortus Bulborum, a unique garden museum dedicated to the preservation of rare and historic bulbs. More than 4,000 tulips, daffodils, hyacinths and other flowers are planted here. After that your bike tours leads through the unique Waterland back to Amsterdam. In the late afternoon or evening there is time for a canal tour through the famous canals of the city.

Meals:  B,L,D

After breakfast the journey comes to an end as you say farewell to the guide and crew. Check out until 9:00am sharp.

Meals:  B


Inclusions

  • 7 breakfasts, 6 picnic lunches, six 3 course dinners (does not include drinks)
  • Continental breakfasts are served and will usually consist of breads, cheese, ham, tea, coffee & juices. At breakfast you will prepare your packed lunch for the day which will be sandwiches, fruit & juice. If you choose not to cycle on a particular day, the crew will serve lunch on board. Dinner will consist of three courses inclusive of either a pasta, vegetarian or meat dish.
  • 7 nights accommodation aboard the Magnifique III with ensuite facilities on a twinshare basis. Cabins are configured with two lower beds.
  • 11 speed Gudereit hybrid bike with handbrakes, water bottle, and pannier. Helmets are available for use. (E-Bikes are only on request, limited number available, early bookings strongly recommended. Supplement applies.)
  • Information pack including route notes & maps (one set per cabin)
  • Welcome drink and briefing on the first evening
  • Experienced multilingual guide for fully guided cycle tours and daily briefings
  • Linen and change of towels as required
  • Daily cabin cleaning
  • Daily tea and coffee 3-4pm
  • Entrance fee for Keukenhof Garden
  • Fully Guided Tour - 2 guides from 18 guests up
  • Fees for Ferries
  • A visit to an original Dutch cheese farm
  • Entrance to North-Holland Dune reserve
  • Entrance to flower auction Aalsmeer

  • Travel to and from Amsterdam
  • Meals not detailed in the itinerary
  • Drinks and other items of a personal nature
  • Entrance fees and excursions not specified
  • Transfers not specified
  • Travel insurance - mandatory
  • Tips - while tipping is not obligatory, it is customary to offer a tip if the guide and crew have done a good job. As a guide we would recommend EUR30-60 per person (to be distributed between the guide/s, captain and crew).
  • 1 x dinner in Alkmaar
  • Parking Fees
  • Bike insurance - must be booked in advance ($18 for standard bikes, $43 for e-bikes) - further details of this Limitation of Liability (damage) policy are available on request

Bike information


Grading

introductory  

INTRODUCTORY - GRADE 1 The cycling is introductory (1) grade with daily cycling distances from 15 to 56km (9 to 35mi). As with all of our cycling programs, wind and poor weather could make the trip grade change. Should you not wish to cycle there are walking options available. The accent is on keeping a relaxed pace to take in all of the attractions, with time to stop and take photos, visit a museum or enjoy the market places in many of the interesting towns visited. It is considered suitable for children, as long as they have road sense, are familiar with the workings of a bike (gear change etc) and are comfortable cycling alongside moving vehicles at times. *For safety reasons, we highly recommend that cycle helmets be worn during cycle sections.


Departure dates


Notes

BP
Base Price
S
Surcharge

Want to organise a private group?

Fundraising events, sporting groups, family treats; learn how you can organise a Private Group from just 6 travellers.

Priceper person from

$USD


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