Bike and Barge Holland — Tulips and More!

April 3-10* & 17-24, 2010

$1,170 per person

*April 3-10 tour hosted by our good friend and wonderful cycle guide, Francien Van der Lee.

Trip Itinerary

Utrecht (25-30 miles)

Our trip starts Saturday at noon when we board our barge/hotel, settle into our cabins, and get our bikes fitted and ready to go.

We will sail by boat the great Rhine Canal to the tiny town of Nigtevecht where we a zigzag along the famous Vecht River.

We have entered the Province of Utrecht - a region of centuries-old villages, expanses of flat and watery pastureland punctuated by windmills, castles and dozens of mansions built by Amsterdam merchants as weekend retreats during the 17th and 18th centuries.

We'll stop at Vreeland — one of the smallest villages on route and catch a visit to its working windmill which grinds grain for farm animals.

Passing Breukelen and Lonen — more charming villages adorning our route — we cycle into the famous city of Utrecht to partake of its Saturday market festivity before heading for our boat for the evening.

This evening we enjoy a wonderful Welcome Dinner created by Els!

Zaltbommel (30 miles)

Today we'll cycle some of the beautiful area surrounding the Province of Utrecht in search of some of Holland's medieval history.

During breakfast our captain will sail us to Wijk Bij Duurstede where we'll explore the Castle Durstede dating back to 1200.

We start pedaling south and enjoy the Spring landscapes of the Betuwe region — Holland's largest fruit producing area also known as the "Orchard of Holland".

Mid-April is prime blooming season and we hope to catch the beauty of hectars of flowering apple, pear and cherry trees!

Midway in our day we'll join the famous Linge Route — a meandering voyage along the beautiful Linge River — passing lovely farmhouses and quaint old Dutch villages.

We'll stop for a visit to one of the Orchards and enjoy a talk by the farmer and a coffee and fresh apple cake baked on his farm.

Crossing the great Waal River we'll skirt along the river dikes until we reach our nights destination — Zaltbommel.

We will take time for a town walk to some of the town's noteable sites including a 15th century almshouse chapel; the medieval Waterpoort; Market and the side streets opening off it lined with fine old 16th and 17th century houses.

Dordrecht (35-40 miles)

We take leave of Zaltbommel following the beautiful and mighty Waal River along a picturesque dike route.

We'll stop for a visit and enjoy an enploration of nearby Woudrichem — one of Holland's most beautifully preserved Medieval fortress towns dating back to the 800s.

A little further we enter the Biesbosch National Park — a green maze of several rivers, islands and a vast network of narrow and wide creeks.

Known as one of the largest, valuable natural areas in the Netherlands, it's also one of the few remaining fresh-water tidal areas in Europe.

We reach Dordrecht — our stop for the night. Over a thousand years old, Dordrecht lies on the confluence of three mighty rivers.

We'll explore the city's beauty and treasured history as we walk along its cozy harbor, past old merchant houses and beautifully reflected in nearly 1,000 well preserved monuments.

Gouda (30 miles)

Today we head north to explore the wonderful village of Kinderdijk — honored as a World Heritage Treasure by UNESCO in 1997. Built in 1740 and preserved to this day, 19 sturdy mills were built in Kinderdijk — a concentration of this number found nowhere else in the world.

Today is our day to count windmills- usually 30 of them as we cycle the dike of the Lek River and enjoy panoramic views reaching miles. For those animal lovers, just born baby lambs will be scampering with their mothers and crossing our paths on the dikes.

We cross the Lek by small ferry and reach Schoonhoven - founded in 1280 and called Silvertown because of its famous past in Silversmithing. We will take time to enjoy lunch in the beautiful town square and to sightsee the town's little canals, intimate streets, beautiful walls and patrician houses.

The touring and sites that you took us to were all excellent, the towns were something that you could only imagine unless you were there. The accommodations on the boat were more than any of us could have expected and so much more.

~ Mike Affrunti, Massachusetts

Heading north we'll travel through the Krimpenerwaard — a vast area of Holland's Green Heart — polderlands separated by hundreds of canals and dotted with charming old villages.

We cross the "Dutch Ijssel" by bridge to enter Gouda.

With over 300 preserved buildings, Gouda boasts a vibrant historic center including the 123-metre long St. Janskerk (St. John’s Church) with its world-famous stained-glass windows, the fabulous Gothic Town Hall, the Waag (Weigh House), and many wonderful museums such as the pipe and earthenware museum and the Verzetsmuseum Zuid-Holland (Resistance Museum).

You can also visit the Cultural and Harbour Quarter with Weeshuisplein (Orphanage Square), the Catharinatuin (Catherina Garden, various hofjes (almshouses) and Museumhaven Gouda (Gouda Harbour Museum).

We'll make a special visit to see, and of course enjoy, traditional Stroop Waffles made and sample chocolates from an original Gouda candy store.

Leiden (30 miles)

We leave Gouda today following the Gouwe River, one of the oldest trading routes in Holland. We'll cycle westward along quiet roads and winding rural bike paths dotted with mills until we reach history rich Leiden.

Leiden is an unuaully beautiful city, famous for being not only the birthplace of Rembrandt but where he developed his painting skills and where Clusius brought the first Dutch tulips into flower.

Then there are 12 museums, whose priceless and unique collections have gained international fame.

Of course, of significant importance is that Leiden is the home of the first university in Holland (1575), which has developed into a world-famous centre of science.

Every Wednesday in Leiden, a fantastic open-air market is held along the banks of the Rhine. Along with wonderful sighseeing we will also enjoy the festivity of this 900 year old event!

Keukenhof — A day to visit the Tulips! Night in town of Haarlem (34 miles)

We depart Leiden today for a 10 mile ride to the famous bulb fields of the Keukenhof — known also as the Garden of Holland. The latter part of April — when we will be visiting — is known to be the best time to see eveything in full bloom! In 2008 it was a remarkable showing which we include in pictures on this page and our Photo Album.

Just a few miles outside of Leiden we'll enter the old village of Warmond and cycle through the grounds of the old mansion that look out onto the Kager Plaasen (lake). Just beyond we reach the town of Sassenheim with fields bursting forth in colors of reds, yellows, pinks, purples and more!

We like to meander the miles of Tulip Fields so our cyclists can enjoy and snapshot every bit of color! Mid-day we reach the Keukenhof and spend about 3 hours-taking in the spectacular grounds and all the pavilions packed with Expos, history and background of flowers, including all kinds of interesting information!

The Keukenhof also offers many places on the grounds to choose for a leisurely picnic lunch!

Our day ends not far from the Keukenhof in the capital of North Holland — Haarlem. Known for one of the most beautiful Market Squares and famous Hofjes (courtyards) in Holland, we'll spend the evening sightseeing Haarlem's historical treasures.

Dinner is "on your own" this night so you can partake of the wonderful restaurants and cafes for which Haarlem has earned the reputation as "the most appetizing city in Holland."

Back to Amsterdam (30 miles)

After breakfast on Friday, we'll start our course back to Amsterdam. Depending on the group's energy today, we can start with a diversion west to visit the lovely Dunes in the National Park Kennermerland.

We come east again along beautiful woods to make a stop at the enchanting castle ruins of the Castle Brederode.

Heading along protected bikepaths on dikes with long vistas of canal laden landscapes we fill with the excitement of having traveled back into Amsterdam "ON TWO WHEELS."

We see the planes approaching Schiphol Airport as we head straight for the city center and cycle the bike lanes along the canals back to our boat.

Good Bye to the Netherlands

Saturday morning we will have a farewell breakfast feast, say our goodbyes to cycling friends and the wonderful hospitality of Winfred and Els of the Feniks. We disembark at 9 a.m. for home.

Trip Difficulty

The Netherlands terrain is mostly flat, but we can experience wind and rain which are weather factors that impact cyling experience and ability.

So, we recommend this trip for an athletic person or experienced cyclist who can complete the daily 30-some miles and likes to average 10-12 m.p.h. on easy/flat terrain while enjoying a leisurely trip. Leisurely means that we are never rushing and like to stop frequently to explore and take pictures.

We will average 30-40 miles on most days with Suzie as ride leader and Roger as route "sweep" and mechanic. We advocate a "stop and smell the roses" philosophy to cycling and our group cycles together as a shared experience.

Of course, you can always take a break from cycling and enjoy sailing from the sundeck of our barge — quite a delightful experience!

We do not use the assistance of a support vehicle on our Bike and Barge tours.

Transportation

Amsterdam is serviced by Schiphol Airport, located just a few miles from the city center where our boats are located. There is both excellent public transportation and reasonably priced shuttle service available from the airport to the city.

As with all European trips, we advise our cyclists to arrive a few days early to acclimate to the time change, get acquainted with the new culture and sightsee beautiful Amsterdam.

Additional Information

We will partake of the wonderful hospitality of the boat — Feniks.

Our hosts, Captains Winfred and Els are an endearing team who strive to make our stay on their boat a memorable experience.

Our cyclists learn quickly that Els is also a great chef and look forward each night to her culinary creations.

The Feniks is a cheery boat with cozy bedrooms featuring a few rooms with 2-lower beds (assigned on a first-come, first served basis) and other rooms with upper and lower berths- all with private bathroom.

It also features a relaxing dining-common area and large sundeck where we enjoy afternoon snacks and dinner several evenings.

Information about this, what to pack, pre-trip lodging in Amsterdam, traveling abroad, tips on airfare, and other important pre-trip details will be provided in our detailed WELCOME LETTER sent to you when we receive your registration for the trip.

Please visit the Trip Information page for more general trip information and registration. Also feel free to e-mail us with any questions.

Trip Photos