8 day Bike & Barge tour Holland's South

It doesn’t get any better than the Holland Southern Tour on board your home away from home, the barge! Not only will you get the chance to visit a number of famous Dutch cities, but you will also uncover another side of Holland as you cycle through the countryside – the country’s “Green Heart”. It is here that you will see a landscape of water, meadows, grazing cows, windmills and picturesque farms... it is a landscape that is impossible to feel or look any more Dutch. In short the Southern tour is the perfect tour for anyone wanting to see as much of “typical” central Holland as is possible in one week. What you will come away with at the end of the tour is a greater appreciation of why this part of the Netherlands attracts so many visitors from all corners of the globe every year.

As well as being able to discover the natural beauty of Holland’s Green Heart you will visit: The world famous city of Amsterdam ; Utrecht, the geographical centre of Holland ; Rotterdam, the busiest port in Europe ; Delft, a city with close ties to the Dutch Royal family and the world renowned painter Johannes Vermeer ; Haarlem, a sightseers’ paradise.

Other attractions over the course of the tour include the cheese city of Gouda, the windmills at Kinderdijk, the silver city of Schoonhoven, the dunes and beaches of the North Sea coastline and the open air museum “Zaanse Schans”. For the duration of the tour you will live and travel on board our barge . In 2014 all of the barge’s cabins and the salon/restaurant at the front of the vessel were fully renovated, with the result that you are guaranteed a week of travel in total comfort.

Semi-guided cycling tours: daily individual cycling at your own pace. The tour leader also cycles all tours and is available for tips, directions and in cases of emergency.

A guided option:

On a few departure dates you can book a fully guided option. That means you will cycle with a tour leader in a small group of max. 20 guests. If you have already booked a semi-guided tour on one of these dates, you can add the fully guided option. (limited availability).

For 2019 the dates are: May 4 and 25, June 15, August 31, September 14. 

For 2020 the dates are: May 02 and 23, June 13, August 29 and September 12

The surcharge for this ‘fully-guided’ option is € 125 pp.

All distances are “approximate distances” of recommended bike tours. When a guest does not want to cycle, he/she can skip the bike tour and relax on board while cruising to the next harbour.

Accommodation:

The barge has a spacious restaurant on the lower deck. The pleasant lounge on the upper deck has large windows around, which offers you a great view of the surroundings. There is also a bar with a dance floor. Wi-Fi is available. On the partially roofed sun deck, chairs and sun loungers invite for a stay. Here you can relax and have a drink and enjoy the scenery while sailing.  Bicycles will be stored on a separate part of the sun deck.

The lower deck offers space to 30 twin cabins (11 m² – 135 sq.ft.) The upper deck has 18 twin cabins (11 m² – 135 sq.ft.) and 8 spacious suites (15 m² – 200 sq.ft.). All twin cabins have two separate single beds (200 x 80 cm – 78 x 31 inches), the suites have two separate beds set next to each other as a hotel style bed (200 x 160 cm – 78 x 62 inches) which, on previous request, can be arranged as two separate single beds. All 56 cabins aboard have an individual climate control system, digital TV, wardrobe, mini-safe, hair dryer, 230V and 115V sockets and a private bathroom with shower, toilet and basin.

The twin cabins have a large picture window (140 x 90 cm – 55 x 35 inches) that can be partly opened. The suites have the same amenities as the twin cabins, but are larger and – in addition – also have a minibar, a “French Balcony” (floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors) instead of a window.

Included in the Bike and Barge Tour:

Tour and accommodation on board 8 days/7 nights (Saturday-Saturday) from/to Amsterdam, cabin in the booked category
Full board (7x breakfast, 6x self-made picnic lunch for bike tours, 7x three course dinner)
Use of bed linen and towels (change of towels daily possible); daily short cleaning of the cabin
Welcoming drink and speech on the first evening
Experienced and local tour leader (multilingual) with daily briefings of the bike tours, some short city walking tours; during the day the tour leader is cycling the daily bike tour as well and can be reached on his cell phone
Printed instructions and detailed maps for cycling tours, 1 set per cabin
Min. 2 city walks (Rotterdam, Dordrecht) with the tour leader
Visits (optional): Delftware factory, visitors centre windmills Kinderdijk, St-Jans church Gouda, cheese farm Oudewater, silversmith Schoonhoven, city hall Zaandam, and some more (entrance fees not included, but for our guests with discounts)
Small cheese tasting and 1x live music night on board
Discounts on entrance fees and excursions as mentioned in the program, value up to €25 p.p.
Use of free WiFi in the lounge of the ship
Daily complimentary coffee and tea till 4 PM

Not included in the tour:

Transfers to/from the docking place at the Sumatrakade in Amsterdam
Rental bicycle
Other transfers
Parking fee
Entrance fees & excursions
Fees for ferries
Drinks on board
Personal insurances
Gratuities (at your discretion)
Dietary requirements on request/surcharges may be calculated

If you would like to rent a bike, please contact our office when booking: [email protected]

Rental bicycle with 7 gears, hand and pedal brakes, pannier bag: €75 per week (optional) (80 in 2020)
Rental E-Bike : €175 per week (only on request, limited number available) (180 in 2020)
Helmets: A helmet can be rented for € 10 per week, only on prior reservation and payment.

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