Find a Slow Tour
Tap to search
Premium 8-Day Tulip Bike & Barge Tour (MAG 1&2)
This wonderful bike and barge trip that starts and ends in Amsterdam, takes you through the provinces of South- and North Holland while spring flowers are in bloom. 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 famous Keukenhof gardens, known by 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 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.
Fully Guided
Accompanied by a competent, professional and multilingual tour leader, you and the group will visit interesting sights and places on the daily cycling tours. During the bike tour, they will explain the local history and culture behind the things you encounter along the way. You can also choose to ride individually with the help of our Ride with GPS app and our cycling map (available on board).
Easy cycling with flat terrain. Cycling with a guide
If you would like to rent a Bike (154 EUR) or E-Bike (287 EUR), please contact [email protected] when booking
Slow Tours offers a range of Tulip Tours Europe
Amsterdam – Spaarndam | Spaarndam – Haarlem (6 km/3 mi. or 14 km/8 mi.)
You are welcome to check in at 2 p.m. The crew will welcome you with coffee and tea. At 2.30 p.m. the barge leaves the harbor. While the barge sails to Haarlem, your tour leader will tell you about the tour, the cycling and safety. From Spaarndam you have the option to do a little test ride. After dinner on board, the tour leader will take you on a town walk through the beautiful city centre of Haarlem.
Haarlem – Keukenhof – Leiden (38 km/23 mi.)
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. Keukenhof is the place where the spring breaks. An overwhelming blaze of colors
seven million flowering tulips in a magnificent 80-acres’ background 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 the walk through town.
Leiden – Gouda (37 km/22.2 mi. or 43 km/25.8 mi.)
After breakfast you will cycle out of Leiden. You will travel through the ‘green heart’ of Holland. Near Zoeterwoude, you will visit a 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.
Gouda – Alphen a/d Rijn | Alphen a/d Rijn – Kudelstaart or Oude Wetering (20 km/12 mi. or 44 km/27 mi.)
We stay in Gouda this morning. You have the opportunity to do some shopping and to visit 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 you cycle through the ‘green heart’ of South Holland via river Drecht and Amstel-Drecht channel to Kudelstaart or Oude Wetering.
Kudelstaart/Oude Wetering – Flower auction (9 km/5.4 mi.) | Aalsmeer – Amsterdam | Amsterdam – Zaanse Schans (23 km/13.8 mi.)
At 6.30 a.m. you can drink an early cup of coffee. After that you cycle 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 a.m.) for a late breakfast while the barge sails to Amsterdam. You will enjoy a nice cruise, right through the city.
Today’s cycling 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. From the Zaanse Schans, it is a 5.5 km bike ride to this docking place.
Zaanse Schans/Zaandam – Alkmaar (40 km/24 mi.)
This morning you cycle 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. Your cycling tour continues to Egmond at the Northsea. The tour goes through the dunes to Alkmaar. This 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.
Alkmaar – Amsterdam (37 km/22 mi. or 54 km/33 mi.)
After breakfast your cycling tour leads you to the former windmill complex of the Schermer Polder. Here we visit the Schermerhorn Windmill Museum. Your next stop is 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 back to Amsterdam. In the late afternoon or evening there is time for a canal tour through the famous canals of the city.
Amsterdam
End of your tour: Disembarkation after breakfast until 9.30 a.m.
Tours marked with are special prices.
| Start | End | Max. No. Guests | Accommodation | Price p.p. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 30 2027 | Apr 06 2027 | 32 | Single rooms | 2,640€ | ||
| Double rooms | 1,759€ | |||||
| Apr 01 2027 | Apr 08 2027 | 32 | Single rooms | 2,640€ | ||
| Double rooms | 1,759€ | |||||
| Apr 06 2027 | Apr 13 2027 | 32 | Single rooms | 3,360€ | ||
| Double rooms | 2,239€ | |||||
| Apr 20 2027 | Apr 27 2027 | 32 | Single rooms | 0€ | ||
| Double rooms | 2,239€ | |||||
| Apr 22 2027 | Apr 29 2027 | 32 | Single rooms | 3,360€ | ||
| Double rooms | 2,239€ | |||||
| Apr 27 2027 | May 04 2027 | 32 | Single rooms | 0€ | ||
| Double rooms | 2,239€ |
If you would like to drive yourself before or after your tour, ask us for a quote on any brand new Renault, Peugeot or Citroen vehicle for driving in Europe.
Pick up your vehicle from most capital cities in Europe and return it to your drop off destination. Top insurance cover. Email [email protected] for a competitive quote
Wander the World Without Worry
Local language barriers. Lost passport. Unexpected medical expenses. Sometimes, our trips don’t go as planned. That’s why Slow Tours Pty Ltd wants you to have the most robust travel advisory and protection for your vacation.
Ask us for a quote [email protected]
35
