Netherlands – Spring Tulip Bike and Barge Tour
TOUR HIGHLIGHTS:
- An 8-day guided bike and barge tour of the canals surrounding Amsterdam.
- Cycle flat roads and paths in the bike-friendly Netherlands.
- Savor gourmet meals and a comfortable room aboard our “floating hotel” every night.
- Visit the famous Keukenhof Gardens, known for the hundreds of thousands of blooming tulips, hyacinths, daffodils and other bulb flowers.
- Attend the world-famous Aalsmeer flower auction and take a guided tour of a flower museum.
- Take a guided tour of Molen van Sloten to learn about the elegant genius and crucial importance of windmills.
- Pedal past windmills, cheese farms, picturesque homes and a beach on the North Sea.
Bicycles and cycling are central to life in The Netherlands. Tulips and other beautiful flowers are big business. Windmills are elegant and efficient. Come experience all of this and more on our wonderful bike and barge trip! The tour starts and ends in Amsterdam and takes you through the provinces of South- and North Holland while spring flowers are in bloom. Spend time in the historical cities of Haarlem, Leiden, Gouda and Alkmaar and learn about the water management of these lowlands from the North Sea. Visit the famous Keukenhof gardens, known 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 cycling paths of Holland. In between cycling excursions, you cruise along with the ship, which travels to a new destination every day. You dine, sleep and eat breakfast on board. You’ll receive a packed lunch every day, and you can usually choose between a longer or shorter bike ride. It’s also possible to spend a day on board if you like.
PEDAL HAPPY! The tour is suitable for all levels. Elevation gains for all rides are less that 500ft, so no elevation stats are included. Ride like a local! Bicycles included with this tour are Dutch-style unisex casual/commuter bicycles with a low bar and an upright riding position. Stable, reliable, and relatively lightweight – they are built for comfort and sightseeing. We offer an ebike version for an additional $300 as well, which can provide a nice assist on a windy day.
Itinerary
Day 01
Tour the Molen van Sloten (Sloten Mill) and “set sail” in the early afternoon.
Meals
– Lunch-Cafe
– Dinner
Distance
3-8 mile test ride
Meet us at Amsterdam’s “Oosterdok” (boat dock) in the late morning to drop off luggage. Then board a private motor coach which will take us to Molen van Sloten (Sloten Mill) for a guided tour to learn about the elegant genius and crucial importance of drainage windmills to the Netherlands – roughly one-third of which is below sea level. Enjoy lunch at Grand Café Hans and head back to the boat afterward to meet the crew, get settled, have an orientation, and begin sailing. When we reach Spaarndam you have the option to do a little test ride. After we enjoy our first dinner on board, the tour leader will take you on a town walk through the beautiful city center of Haarlem.
Day 02
Visit Keukenhof Gardens and the oldest tulip fields in Holland before cycling on to Leiden.
Meals
– Breakfast
– Lunch-Pack
– Dinner
Distance
23 miles
Today’s trip leads you through the oldest tulip fields in Holland. Visit the Keukenhof Gardens – considered by many the most beautiful bulb park in the world. It is said that Keukenhof is the place where spring breaks. An overwhelming blaze of colors; seven million flowering tulips cover 80 acres against a backdrop of traditional and modern gardening architecture. You also can admire the various hyacinths, daffodils and many other colorful flowers. In the afternoon you cycle to the city of Leiden. Dinner on board and after that you can join us on a walk around town.
Day 03
Pedal from Leiden to Gouda to sample and learn about Holland’s world-renowned cheeses!
Meals
– Breakfast
– Lunch-Cafe
– Dinner
Distance
22 miles, or 26 miles.
After breakfast, cycle out of Leiden and begin making your way through the ‘Green Heart’ of Holland. Near Zoeterwoude, visit a cheese farm where to learn about the cheese-making process and 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 a pretty market square and Gothic town hall. The main church of Gouda, devoted to Saint John (Sint Jan), is world famous for its stained-glass windows (entrance included). After dinner you can join the walk around town.
Day 04
Enjoy Gouda in the morning and cycle through the “Green Heart” of southern Holland to Kudelstaart in the afternoon.
Meals
– Breakfast
– Lunch-Barge
– Dinner
Distance
12 miles, or 27 miles.
We stay in Gouda this morning. You have the opportunity to do some shopping and explore the market square with its cheese weigh house, or you can visit the St. Johns church. We leave by barge around noon and have a light lunch on board. From Alphen aan den Rijn we cycle through the ‘Green Heart’ of South Holland via river Drecht and Amstel-Drecht channel to Kudelstaart. The Green Heart is a vast rural oasis characterized by meadows, farms, canals, rivers, lakes and picturesque villages amidst the urban sprawl of the greater Amsterdam area.
Day 05
Visit the bustling Alsmeer flower auction, cruise the canals back to Amsterdam, and pedal to a hamlet of historic windmills!
Meals
– Breakfast
– Lunch-Pack
– Dinner
Distance
AM: 5mi ride to flower auction.
PM: options to ride 14.5 miles, or 23 miles.
At 6.30 a.m. have an early cup of coffee before cycling to Europe’s largest flower auction at Aalsmeer. Here, huge quantities of flowers are trucked in and sold every day, after which they are distributed all over Europe. Take a guided tour (included) to learn about the auction, its history and the floral trade. After our visit, we return to the boat for a late breakfast and a nice cruise to Amsterdam, right through the city. In the afternoon, cycle 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.
Day 06
Tour Hortus Bulborum flower and bulb museum on your way to the well-preserved historic “cheese-city” of Alkmaar.
Meals
– Breakfast
– Lunch-Cafe
Distance
22 miles, or 28 miles.
This morning we ride 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. Discover their many fascinating secrets on a guided tour with a flower expert (included). Your cycling journey continues to Egmond on the North Sea, passing through sand dunes as we make our way to the Dutch cheese city of Alkmaar. 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 is on your own tonight.
Day 07
Cycle past more windmills, visit a centuries-old town, and cap off the tour with a private cruise along the canals of Amsterdam.
Meals
– Breakfast
– Lunch-Cafe
– Dinner
Distance
28 miles, or 33 miles.
After breakfast, we pedal past the former windmill complex of the Schermer Polder and on to our next stop in 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. Cycle back to Amsterdam in the afternoon and get ready for a private canal tour and a fabulous farewell dinner.
Day 08
Departure Day. Breakfast included.
Meals
– Breakfast
We disembark after breakfast (around 9:30am) from our port of arrival / disembarkation at Amsterdam, Oosterdok.
