Reviews

Late in April, rolling into the first week in May, we had a group of 16 friends meet up on a premium tulip tour around Amsterdam on the Zwaantje ship, captained by Martÿn. We had a great week on the ship, with great meals and a nicely stocked bar with very reasonable prices. The ship was clean and fairly modern. The bike tours were wonderful and we had a wide range of experiences over the week. The rooms were “cozy”, which means they were a bit tight, but that wasn’t really a surprise given the nature of the ship we were on. Our two medium-sized suitcases fit nicely under the two separate twin beds. The beds were surprisingly comfortable, so we slept nicely. The in-room bathroom basically had room enough for one, be it at the sink, toilet, or the shower. We do wish they would upgrade the little window in the room to be able to open and get some fresh air in there, but no big deal. The rooms were cleaned every day. The ship had 12 cabins, 24 guests. On the main level there was a sitting area and a dining area with four tables for the meals. We ate breakfast and dinners on the ship. The dining area was nice, lots of windows and it felt open. The meals were prepared by an on-board chef and they were great. Everyone sat together for each meal.. Each evening after dinner, there was usually a guided walking tour of the city we were docked at, which was nice. There was an open outside deck upstairs where we spent most of the late afternoons on drinking beer and wine and re-hydrating and socializing. We had good weather for most of the week, and the evenings were perfect for being outside up on the deck. The staff on the ship were delightful. “Joke” was our hostess and she was wonderful, always watching out for all of the guests. For the record, her name is not sounded like the English common pronunciation, the j is soft and the ke is a separate syllable. We spent the whole week trying to get used to the Dutch pronunciations. The first mate – Ytse – was always helpful and around the ship. The two of them made the trip very nice. The captain was always around and helped with the meals and tables. That was a pleasant surprise ! The bike tours were nicely planned. The bikes were provided by Boat Bike Tours company. Most people had the sit-up style “normal” geared bikes common in Amsterdam, and about 4-6 people (it varied day to day) used electric bikes. Each day we split into two groups of 12 max, each group led by one of the guides — Hans or Hetty. Both guides were super nice, and it was nice riding with different groups each day. Each day’s touring had options which were covered the evening before. All in all, our group had a great time on the ship and the tours. We would definitely highly recommend Martÿn’s Zwaantje ship and taking a premium tour package with Boat Bike Tours. My wife and I are already planning a similar Boat Bike Tour for next year along the Croatia coast.

Great planning, great people, great experience.

The ship was clean and stayed clean even with 24 guests on board. The crew and chef were friendly, supportive, helpful, respectful and kept us well fed, & informed about our whereabouts! All our needs were met with a smile. The cycling guides were equally amazing and worked in “tandem” with the crew and “went overboard” to be helpful & safe! Our experience was beyond our expectations! We’re ready to explore Belgium & Paris with this group!

All services are good!

Since the weather couldn’t be changed I’m glad we could ride the bike in all kinds of weather. It was nice small group and we could learn everyone’s name. Sometimes I thought the guide was going to fast then realized we needed to keep a reasonable rate of speed or we would never finish. Also the chef was considerate of everyones food needs.

Like: guide, boat, and bikes, meals were good but a bit bland Dislike: limited bar, requirement to buy full bottle of wine rather than by-the-glass; coffee not available before 7:30am (7:00 would be perfect); no Wi-Fi in rooms; no rainy day/evening entertainment (movies, games, etc.); only tiny amount of time touring (95% bike riding and short, coffee stops); pillows were too big and hard; no artificial sweeteners; hair dryer is ancient (too small, very old, weak, sucks in hair & pulls it out); 4 evening meals own-your-own (not as advertised); $25/person for water was too excessive!; would be nice to offer shorter rides for those interested on days when rides were very long

Super-great hosts, both on the boat and guiding the daily bike tours.

Well organized tour, very nice rides through country side. Bikes were comfortable and we’ll prepared. Boat was clean, comfortable and food delicious. All crew members worked together sharing their duties.

What a great way to see the NL/Belguim country side and a handful of cities and towns. There was a great balance of riding and touring. The food was also excellent and the tour giudes were bang on.

The staff and the accommodations made the experience memorable and special. The biking was great too.