Highlights of Flanders and Holland: 8 days from Bruges to Amsterdam
MS FLUVIUS: Explore beautiful historical art cities and a variety of landscapes!
Eight day guided tours (Sat.-Sat), mid April till end September; depending on departure date from Amsterdam to Bruges or from Bruges to Amsterdam; Total of 245 - 285 cycling kilometers (147-171 miles) in 6 days.
Some of the most beautiful cities of Flanders and Holland are highlighted during this tour: Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp and Amsterdam, where you can still feel the charm of days long gone. After embarkation, you will have plenty of time to discover Bruges, "the pearl of Flanders".The Magnifique will leave Bruges early the next day and you can start your first bike tour which will take you to Ghent. On the following day, you will cycle along the beautiful tidal river Schelde and reach St.-Amands. Further downstream the Schelde the harbour city Antwerp awaits you. Dordrecht, one of the oldest cities of the Netherlands, marks the end of your first day on Dutch ground. On the following day the barge will bring you to Kinderdijk, where the most famous windmills of the Netherlands are located, 19 windmills are standing in line, a wonderful scene for a photograph, in the evening, you can explore Vianen. You spend the last evening of your bike and barge trip in one of Europe's most exciting cities, Amsterdam, before you have to disembark in the morning.
MS FLUVIUS:
On this very beloved tour sails the small and comfortable river cruiser MS FLUVIUS for max. 36 guests. On board of this cosy ship are a total of 19 cabins (ca. 10 qm = 108 square feet) with shower + toilet, all with 2 low beds and air-conditioning, individual adjustable, and ventilation system; 3 cabins on the
upper deck (supplement) and 16 cabins on the lower deck. All cabins have a window (all windows are fixed). The salon with bar is a large room for common use and has a semi-separate restaurant area. On the large and partially roofed sun deck of the ca. 70 Meter long ship are sitting places (tables + chairs) and storage room for the bikes. The ship sails under Dutch flag and had its sailing area in Holland and Germany for many years and it is a very popular small river cruise ship for boat & bike tours.
The interior of the ship is a no-smoking zone: smoking is only allowed on the sun deck. As a safety measure, a statutory smoking ban applies in all cabins; this means that all cabins and rooms on board are no-smoking zones.
Tour details:
Day 1 (Sat): Arrival / embarkation in Bruges
Arrival and embarkation early afternoon in the beautiful city of Bruges, also called "Pearl of Flanders". The crew will welcome you. You will have plenty of time to discover the beautiful historical city of Bruges. Afternoon and evening with city tour in Bruges.
Day 2 (Sun): Bruges-Ghent-Merelbeke (Bike tour ca. 50 km / 24 miles)
Today, your day starts on the water and the barge will leave Bruges early. Just outside, your first bike tour to Ghent through the flat land of West-Flanders will start. Your destination today is the historical centre of Ghent. Enjoy the beautiful parts of Ghent during an afternoon stroll. The barge is docked in Merelbeke (a small suburb of Ghent).
Day 3 (Mon): Ghent-Merelbeke - Dendermonde / St-Amands (Bike tour ca. 40/53 km**/24/32 miles**)
Today, the barge will sail over the river Schelde to Dendermonde, a nice town on the conjunction of the rivers Dender and Schelde. The bike tour leads along one of the most beautiful parts of the Schelde, a tidal river. You will follow this beautiful tidal river downstream. The departure time will be set by the skipper and is depending on high or low tide. The tide has effect on the speed of the barge. By bike or by barge from Dendermonde to St-Amands. Night in St-Amands.
Day 4 (Tue): St-Amands - Temse - Antwerp (Bike tour ca. 45 km / 28 miles)
Today we will follow the Schelde further downstream over Temse to Antwerp. There is a beautiful cycling track along the river and the scenery is magnificent. Harbor city Antwerp with it's beautiful inner city is well known as diamond city and the city where the famous painter Rubens was born.
Day 5 (Wed): Antwerp-Kreekrak locks | Tholen - Willemstad | Dordrecht (Bike tour ca. 25-45 km**/ 15-28 miles**)
The barge will sail over the Schelde-Rhine Canal, over the huge Kreekrak locks to Tholen, a former fishing village amidst the large streams of the province of Zeeland. From Tholen you will cycle along the impressive large Volkerak locks to the fortified town of Willemstad, then further to end in Dordrecht, one of the oldest cities of the Netherlands. Today, the skipper will discuss with you which part of the tour will be covered by bicycle
Day 6 (Thu): Dordrecht - Kinderdijk - Schoonhoven - Vianen (Bike tour ca. 25 - 50 km / 16 - 32 miles)
Today you will start your tour with the "Waterbus" (not included, approx. EUR 4,- per person), a fast ferry that will take you and your bike in just 10 minutes to Alblasserdam. After just a few minutes of cycling you will reach Kinderdijk, a village famous for its impressive row of 19 UNESCO cultural heritage-listed windmills - one of which you can visit (don't forget your camera!). The windmills were constructed in the 18th century to pump water out of the low Alblasserwaard polder (a polder is a low-lying tract of land enclosed by embankments). You will then continue to cycle via Schoonhoven to Vianen, a small fortified town on the river Lek where you will spend the evening. Since the 17th century Schoonhoven - nicknamed Silver City - has been renowned for its talented silversmiths.
Day 7 (Fri): Vianen-Breukelen | Breukelen - Amsterdam (Bike tour ca. 35 km / 21 miles)
First the ship cruises to Breukelen, where you disembark and your cycling tour starts. Ride along the small river Vecht: this area is well known for its beautiful mansions, small castles and beautiful houses with large gardens and parks. Over the small villages of Nieuwersluis, Loenen and Vreeland to Nigtevecht, where you can visit a traditional cheese farm. Continue cycling through the historical town of Muiden and on to Amsterdam where you will meet the barge for the final time in the Amsterdam harbor.
Day 8 (Sat): Amsterdam
After breakfast: end of the tour and disembarkation till 10:00 am.
**: Both possibilities are being offered: the guest can choose.
Important information:
- Embarkation: from 3.00 to 5.00 pm
- Disembarkation: After breakfast, until 10:00 am
- Bike hire on board: Unisex bicycles with normal mount (ladies model), 7 gears, hand brake and pedal brake and pannier bag, limited number of freewheel hub bikes. E-Bikes are only available after prior request (by booking) and confirmation and at limited number
- Cycle Tours: Daily guided bike tours. It is also possible to ride the bike tours individually. Tour description and maps are available on board. You will cycle about 25 to 56 km/15 to 35 miles. The kilometers/miles indicated for the cycle tours are approximate
- Cycle ways / level of difficulty: The quality of the cycle ways along this route is excellent. Most of the way is paved or asphalted and does not have any gradients of note. This makes the trip suitable even for unpracticed cyclists
- Luggage on board: we recommend waterproof rain gear, bike helmet, sun hat and sports shoes. We would like to ask you to do without hard-side luggage as storage space in the cabin is very limited!
- Alterations of schedule or program: subject to change. In case that as a result of nautical, technical or meteorological reasons a route cannot be taken, the skipper reserves the right to change the route for your safety (this would not be a rea-son for fee-free cancellation)
- Travel documents: EU citizens need a valid identity card or passport for this journey
- Special dietary needs and food allergies: inform us about your dietary needs and we will do our best to take them into consideration. There will be an extra fee of approx. EUR 25 per person/week (to be paid directly on board). Please inform us on booking.
Characteristics:
Operator:
Participants:
from 24
Tourtype:
guided
Children:
no
Regions:
Amsterdam, Antwerp, Bruges, Flanders, Ghent, Lake Yssel, North Brabant, North Holland, North Sea, South Holland, Utrecht, Zealand
Countries:
Belgium, Netherlands
Benefits:
- Tour and accommodation on board in the booked category, 8 days / 7 nights (Sat.-Sat.) from Bruges to Amsterdam
- Full board (7 x breakfast, 6 x picnic lunch during bike tours or light lunch, 7 x 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
- Tour leader (multilingual) with daily briefings of the bike tours, some short city tours
- during the day the tour leader is cycling the daily bike tour (guided tours) and can be reached by individual travelers on his/her cell phone
- Printed instructions and detailed maps for daily bike tours (deposited on board)
- daily coffee and tea till 4 PM
Start date: on request
End date:
Duration:
Price:
Click to order
Startdate
Middate
On request
Additional costs:
- All other costs: on request (bikehire, cabin categories, additional nights, transfers and so on)