Travel from Barcelona to Rome on this epic 36-day journey covering 11 countries. Along with the iconic sites in Berlin, Paris and Amsterdam, you’ll also venture to the serene Old Town of Salzburg, get a bird’s eye view of Bratislava from UFO Tower and comb the markets of Avignon for locally grown produce. This trip will suit both those looking to discover Europe for the first time and veterans revisiting their favourite haunts. Steeped in history and stuffed with all your favourite regional cuisines, this small group adventure is the ultimate foray into the European heartlands.
Starting in the historic centre of Bruges, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000 with a plethora of landmarks, museums and historical sights, the city has a fairytale atmosphere with its cobbled streets and squares, canals on which you can take boat trips past the traditional houses as well as its medieval architecture. Bruges is also world-famous for its lace production.
In the province of Zeeland, the beautiful sandy beaches invite you to sunbathe. In Holland, historic fortified towns provide an incomparable atmosphere and the windmills of the Kinderdijk are a must-see when visiting the region. Your week ends in Amsterdam, the famous metropolis with its canals, museums and many boutiques for shopping fans.
In between, lush green landscapes with grazing cows, extensive forests and lots of water await you. You will also see national parks and picturesque villages as well as impressive buildings and monuments, many of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The tour from Bruges to Amsterdam is also a culinary journey, with Flemish delicacies, Belgian beer, cheese and syrupy waffles from Gouda as well as plenty of fresh seafood. Everything your heart desires!
Discover the Highlights of Holland on this mostly gentle circular cycling trip, starting and ending in the delightful city of Amsterdam with its UNESCO World Heritage canal ring area, its bustling squares and cultural hotspots, including the Anne Frank and Van Gogh museums. The varied countryside of Holland beckons with a mix of rectangular polders (low-lying land reclaimed from rivers and protected by dykes), woodland, country estates and wild gardens. Cycle through beautiful traditional villages, past windmills and farmhouses and on to the famous flower fields near Haarlem (visit in April and early May for the full effect of the blooms).As well as Amsterdam and the archetypal countryside of the Netherlands, you get to explore the cities of Zandvoort, The Hague, Rotterdam, Gouda, & Utrecht, all with their own histories and cultural characters. On the North Sea coast, extensive dunes and sandy beaches invite you to sunbathe, or you can simply stroll along the promenades. Art and culture lovers will find exciting museums and shopping fans will get their money's worth in trendy Rotterdam. Don't forget to try the famous delicacies, Gouda cheese and syrup waffles are just two of them. Gouda, as well as being the venue for the famous summer cheese market (Thursday mornings April - August), has a fabulous, gothic town hall in the main square, romantic canals and even more food options with warm syrup waffles - perfect to try after a day of cycling.
Discover Amsterdam's Lake IJssel and numerous Dutch highlights by bike. Numerous highlights are packed into this carefully planned cycling route through Amsterdam and the old fishing villages and trading towns situated around Lake IJssel, the closed-off freshwater lake in the central Netherlands bordering the provinces of Flevoland, North Holland and Friesland. As you pedal through classic Dutch landscapes, cycling below sea level at times, you will visit the star shaped fortified town of Naarden and "Amsterdam Castle" (Muiderslot), along with Edam, famous for its cheese, the fishing village of Volendam, the island of Marken and the historical towns of Enkhuizen and Hoorn which flourished during the Golden Ages with the VOC (United East India Company). Explore the lakes of Friesland and the Weerribben-Wieden National Park with their rich birdlife, take in the Hanseatic city of Kampen and the old fishing village of Harderwijk. If you plan to do just one cycle tour of Holland, this itinerary provides the quintessential Dutch experience.
