Start: Amsterdam Finish: Amsterdam
Get here early and opt to wander around the gorgeous and surprisingly peaceful seventeenth century canal ring area (World Heritage Site). If you like bustle, make your way to the city’s famous squares: Dam, Rembrandtplein and Leidseplein. Should you prefer to roam off the beaten track, saunter up Brouwersgracht or hire a canal bike and find out what the city looks like from the water. Parking in Amsterdam is difficult. Your hotel charges a fee for the car park.
Get an early start and beat the queues at the Van Gogh or Anne Frank museum. At the end of the morning, say "tot ziens!” to amazing Amsterdam and mount your bike to journey through Kennemerland where a great variety of lovely countryside awaits: vast polders, wild(life) gardens, country estates, woods and beautiful peatland. You will stay the night in the elegant city of Haarlem. The attractive city centre offers a wealth of possibilities for shopping, delving into art and culture, or relaxing in cafes and restaurants.
Challenge: 29 km
Downtown Haarlem deserves to be explored thoroughly. We recommend a city walk to discover the city’s hidden "hofjes”. A hofje is a square of tiny almshouses set around an idyllic courtyard, often built by the church or by private charity to house single older women. Also dating back to the Dutch Golden Age, the works of Haarlem painter Frans Hals (group portraiture) and his townsmen including Jacob Ruysdael (land- and seascapes) and Pieter Saenredam (church interiors) are on display at the Frans Hals museum.
In the afternoon get set for a colourful bike trip through the Dune and Bulb Region. Try to time this holiday before mid-May to capture the bulb flower fields in their full splendour! Tulips, crocuses, daffodils and hyacinths are grown here commercially (for bulb export) and temporarily transform the landscape into one of the country’s best-loved tourist attractions. Should you want to spend a day at world famous Keukenhof flower exhibition, we recommend you book an extra night in Leiden. Leiden is our oldest university town. It has a very busy cultural events calendar and a friendly city centre with canals, monuments windmills and museums. The historical botanical gardens get special mention.
Challenge: 38 km
After taking your leave of lively Leiden, peace and quiet will reign once more in today’s typically Dutch scenery. Note all the orderly rectangles in this man-made polder landscape (mostly peatland reclamations). Let shining lakes and green pastures, old windmills and farmhouses pass you by whilst pedalling on to the famous city of Delft. The melancholy charm of historical Delft is breathtaking. Most will associate Delft with its blue and white hand-painted pottery: Delftware. But did you know that painter Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675) lived in Delft all his life? The Vermeer Centre gives illuminating insights into his life, works and city (no original paintings on show here).
Challenge: 24 km
This stretch of the tour takes you through the Green Heart: a stronghold against urban sprawl in Randstad conurbation. Balancing atop polder dikes, delight in characteristic villages, far horizons and pleasingly strict rectangles cut by ditches in fields of vibrant green. As you wander around the city of Gouda at the end of the day, don’t miss the gothic town hall (1450); the Weighing House (1667); the romantic inner city canals and the stained glass windows in St. John’s Church. Gouda is also famous for making syrup waffles (try one hot!) and candles. If you’re travelling in Summer, plan your trip so that you can witness the traditional Thursday morning cheese market at the start of Day 6 (last Thursday in June till last Thursday in August).
Challenge: 34 km
After a hearty breakfast at your hotel, get back on your bike and set off on the longest leg of this bike tour! You will be making a tour via the rual Green Heart. On the way, the scenery is punctuated by rivers, polders and lakes (bird lovers bring your binoculars!). In this Green Haert of Holland only small villages, lakes and meadows. Do stop for a sample of Dutch style apple tart! Thus fortified, continue on your way back to Amsterdam pursuing beautiful River Amstel. Would the 72 km be to long for you then you can split this day by booking an extra overnight in Mijdrecht. (44 km and 27 km)
Challenge: 72 km
Your cycling holiday has come to an end. Enjoy a big hearty breakfast one last time – don’t forget to try chocolate sprinkles! – and then it’s time to go home
Starting dates 2020: | |
Daily from April 1 till September 24 | |
Prices € | Euro |
Per person in a double room 6 nights’ accommodation, breakfast included |
620,00 |
A supplement will be required for: | |
Single room (€ 30 x 6) | 180,00 |
Dinner (€ 30 x 6) | 180,00 |
Bike rental (€ 12 x 6) | 72,00 |
E-Bike (€ 25 x 6) | 150,00 |
Emergency Call Out Service/Bike breakdown pass (€ 2,75 x 6) | 16,50 |
GPS rental | 10,00 |
Surcharge staying overnight in Amsterdam on Saturday in a double room | 17,50 |
Surcharge staying overnight in Amsterdam on Saturday in a single room | 35,00 |
Surcharge staying overnight in Amsterdam during the periods 13 - 15 April 2019 20 - 21 May 2019 12 - 15 June 2019 12 - 16 September 2019 staying overnight in a double room staying overnight in a single room |
52,50 105,00 |
Extra night | 70,00 |
All accomodations are carefully selected because of their location, atmosphere and/or unique services. All rooms are en-suite.
We choose comfortable 3* hotels, farmhouses and B&Bs where all rooms have private en-suite bathroom.
You can find below the standard hotels of this trip. If a hotel is fully booked, then we will book a similar one for you and inform you about the alternative booked.
Extra overnight:
You can book additional night(s) at any of the accommodations along the way.
This hotel is on the border of the Spaarndammer neighbourhood, which is known for its architecture. In the lobby you can find an original piece of Herman Brood. Every room has an 'art' item.
Hotel Lion d'Or can be found in the hearth of Haarlem. The service is remarkable and the rooms are clean and comfortable.
Rooms are simple, clean and comfortable. The hotel has its own restaurant wherin you can find a good breakfast in the morning.
This hotel has a great location in the hearth of Delft. The rooms are basic and clean.
This hotel is only minutes away from the historical centre of Gouda.
You can start on any day of the week, subject to availability, between April 1st and September 24th.
The closest airport you can fly into is Amsterdam Schipol (AMS).
From Amsterdam Schipol airport(AMS), you take a train from Amsterdam Schiphol station to Amsterdam Amstel or Amsterdam Central, depending on the hotel you are staying at.
If you don’t bring your own, you can rent a bicycle from us. Our 24 gear touring bikes will be delivered to you at the start of your holiday and you must return them before you go home. All bikes are equipped with a chain lock and a repair kit. Hybrid and e-bikes also include a saddlebag.
Chain lock Saddlebag Repair kit
Our hybrid bikes have 21-gears with hand brakes. We will assign the bikes according to gender, as we have both men- and women style bikes.
Our premium bikes are lightweight and make excellent touring bikes with 27-gears and disc brakes. The bikes are less heavy than our hybrid bikes: they weigh +/- 15 KG. We have both men- and women style premium bikes, which will be assigned according to gender. Our premium bikes have normal pedals. Most of our premium bikes are Koga Grand Tourer bikes or similar. Premium bikes are always on request.
Two of our mostly used race bikes are Montreal 74 Eddy Merckx and Blockhaus 67 Eddy Merckx, both unisex. The bikes are made from aluminium.
For children who are at least 125 cm, we can also arrange bikes (these are 24”or 26” for children that are bigger than 140 cm)
Tandem bikes are suitable for two adults only. The tandem bikes have a frame size of 48 cm. We mostly use the Victoria Spezial 8.7. This tandem bike comes with 24-derailleur gears or nuvinci gears. The height of the handle bars on a tandem bike cannot be adjusted.
E-bikes are always on request, as we have a limited amount of e-bikes available. Our e-bikes are unisex, have handbrakes and have ten gears. Our smallest e-bike has a frame size of 49 cm and is suitable for persons that are 155 cm (5ft1) or taller.
GPS tracks are available on request.
NOTE: In case of staying overnight in Amsterdam on Saturdays a surcharge of € 15,- per person in a double room applies (30€ per person and night in single room). It can also be applied in certain periods along the year.