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Join us for a Bike
& Barge tour of Holland
Cycling 12-25 miles a
day with a knowledgeable Dutch guide, we will see
Holland from a new perspective. The pace is slow,
providing time to see the sights, take photos and enjoy
stops at coffee shops, bakeries and pubs along the way.
The Iris, a luxuriously
refitted barge, follows the bike route and serves as
hotel, restaurant and baggage carrier. Breakfast is
served each morning, box lunches are provided, and a hearty dinner is served aboard the barge each
evening.
Don't feel like
cycling? Stay on the barge to enjoy the scenery.
There will be stops along the way at small towns
for interesting shopping and sightseeing. |
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| Land
Rate: |
From
$1,450 per person (double occupancy).
Price includes barge, bikes, guide, all meals
and travel insurance. Airfare is additional |
| Stays
may be extended: |
Pre-
and post hotel nights are additional |
| Tour
Dates: |
May
23-31, 2008 |
Dutch
Cities
Itinerary
Itinerary:
Amsterdam – Haarlem – Leiden – Delft – Gouda -
Amsterdam
Highlights:
Keukenhof - Delft ware – Painting of the Dutch masters
– windmills in Kinderdijk – round trip of the canals
of Amsterdam
Tulips, cheese and Dutch history
The tour begins in Amsterdam and takes you to the beautiful, historical
cities of Haarlem, Leiden en Delft. You visit the
Keukenhof, where you can admire the Dutch tulips in
their entire splendor. The windmills in Kinderdijk are
visited and you will get the opportunity to admire the
famous delft ware. In addition to this, a visit to the
parliament buildings in the capital of The Hague and the
flower auction in Aalsmeer are on the program. On your
return to Amsterdam, you will go for a round trip of the
canals and you will get the opportunity to visit the
Rijksmuseum or the Van Gogh museum.
In case you book this tour as a bike vacation, you will be surprised by
the beautiful, varied scenery and the wonderful bikeways
of Holland. And don’t forget to visit a traditional
cheese farm, where you can taste Dutch cheese
Day
1 (Sat):
Amsterdam
| 16.00
hours |
Arrival |
| 18.00
hours |
Welcoming
Drink |
| 18.30
hours |
Dinner |
| 20.00
hours |
Town
walk through city of Amsterdam |
Day 2 (Sun):
Amsterdam – Zaandam - Haarlem
Biking:
about 20 / 40 km. Cruising time: 6 hours
| 8.00
hours |
Breakfast |
| 9.00
hours |
We
leave Amsterdam by bike or barge into the
direction of Zaandam. Bikers take the route
through natural park ‘t Twiske.
We will cycle
to the historic village of Zaanse Schans,
where you can see an impressive windmill in
action. You can also visit a cheese factory and
a clog factory.
Final destination is the historic center
of Haarlem. |
| 18.30
hours |
Dinner |
| 20.00
hours |
Town
walk through Haarlem |
Day
3 (Mon):
Haarlem – Keukenhof - Leiden
Biking: about 20 / 40 km. Cruising time: 5
hours
| 8.00 hours |
Breakfast |
| 9.00 hours |
Today we bike from Haarlem to the Keukenhof, where you
can admire many kinds of Dutch tulips. But on
your way there, you also bike straight across
the colorful tulip fields. After this, you can
either board in Lisse and enjoy the landscape of
South Holland from the barge, or you can bike to
Leiden together with the guide. Leiden is the
oldest university town of the Netherlands. |
| 18.30 |
Dinner |
| 20.00
hours |
Town
walk through the historic center of Leiden. |
Day 4 (Tue):
Leiden - Delft
Biking:
about 40 km.
Cruising time: 5 hours
| 8.00
hours |
Breakfast |
| 9.00
hours |
Today
we bike from Leiden via the dunes and the North
Sea coast to the Hague. We visit Scheveningen
and the Binnenhof, seat of the Dutch
Parliament. Then we bike further to Delft,
where we visit a pottery. There you can
admire the famous delftware. |
| 18.30
hours |
Dinner |
Day
5 (Wed):
Delft - Gouda
Biking:
about 40 km. Cruising time: 7 hours
| 7.00 hours |
Departure
by barge from Delft to Rotterdam |
| 8.00
hours |
Breakfast
while cruising. We cruise via Rotterdam to
Kinderdijk. During this cruise, you can
see a great deal of interesting architecture
from the river. |
| 10.00 hours |
In
Kinderdijk you have the opportunity to visit the
splendid wind mills. After this, we bike along
the river Hollandse IJssel, to Gouda, the famous
cheese town. Gouda has a picturesque center,
with a wonderful town hall. And the shopping is
also good. |
| 18.30 |
Dinner |
| 20.00
hours |
Town
walk |
Day
6 (Thu):
Gouda - Uithoorn
Biking: about
35 km. Sailing time: 5 hours
| 8.00 hours |
Breakfast |
| 9.00 hours |
We stay in Gouda this morning. You have the opportunity to do some
shopping and to visit the market with its cheese
weigh house. |
| 12.00
hours |
We
leave by barge around noon and have a light
lunch on board. From Alphen a/d Rijn we bike
through the ‘green heart’ of South Holland
via river Drecht and Amstel-Drecht channel to
Uithoorn. |
| 18.30
hours |
Dinner |
Day
7 (Fri):
Uithoorn - Amsterdam
Biking: about 30 km. Cruising time: 4 hours
| 7.00 hours |
Coffee |
| 7.15 hours |
Today you go by bike 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. |
| 9.00
hours |
After
your visit you return on board for a late
breakfast. |
| 10.00
hours |
The
final bike tour of this trip takes you back to
Amsterdam via river Amstel. It is possible to
visit a cheese farm on the way.
Here the cheese is prepared according to
traditional methods. |
| 15.00
hours |
We
are back in Amsterdam early in the afternoon, so
you have time to visit the Rijksmuseum or the
Van Gogh museum, if you like |
| 18.30
hours |
Dinner |
| 20.00 |
Roundtrip
of the canals of Amsterdam |
Day
8 (Sat):
Amsterdam
| 8.00
hours |
Breakfast |
| 9.00
hours |
Departure |
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For
Further information or to reserve your spot on
this amazing tour of Holland, Call Kathy at
(630)
983-7300 or e-mail her at kathy@designedforyoutravel.com
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