Boat and bike on Tulip Tour - Magnifique I

A bike and boat cruise from Amsterdam

Here's an exceptional opportunity to discover the Netherlands and the Tulip Route by bike and boat from the port of Amsterdam. Come aboard Le Magnifique I for a journey of encounters, sharing and discovery. You'll travel through Holland from south to north, admiring fields of tulips as far as the eye can see.

Highlights :

• Amsterdam and Gouda
• Keukenhof and Zaanse Shans flower markets
• Tulip fields and cheese factories
• The Magnificent I

Day 1: Amsterdam - Spaarndam/ Spaarndam - Haarlem - 14 km

Board Le Magnifique I and check in between 1:30pm and 2pm. You'll be welcomed with tea and coffee before leaving Amsterdam harbor at 2:30 pm.

As the barge begins its first sail towards Haarlem, your guide will talk you through the week's program and give you a few safety instructions.

After a delicious dinner on board, the guide will take you for a stroll through Haarlem city center.

Day 2: Haarlem - Keukenhof - Leiden - 38 km

This stage guides you through Holland's ancient tulip fields by bike. You'll visit the magnificent gardens of Keukenhof, the most beautiful bulb park in the world.

In the afternoon, you'll cycle on to Leiden. Once on the barge, you'll dine on board before taking a stroll around the city.

Day 3: Leiden - Gouda - 37 km

You leave the city after breakfast for a cycling tour through the "green heart" of Holland. You'll visit a cheese factory near Zoeterwoude before heading for Gouda, also famous for its cheese.

It's a pleasant town with a Gothic town hall and pretty market square.

Enjoy a stroll through the town after dinner.

Day 4: Gouda - Alphen aan den Rijn / Alphen - Kudelstaart - 20 or 44 km

You have the morning to enjoy Gouda, do some shopping and visit St Johns Church, famous for its stained-glass windows. Sailing from midday, then a bike tour through the green heart of South Holland along the Drecht river and the Amstel-Drecht canal, ending in Kudelstaart.

Day 5: Kudelstaart - Flower auction/ Alsmeer - Amsterdam / Amsterdam - Zaanse Schans - 23 km

An early start this morning to the Alsmeer flower auction, the largest in Europe!

Back on board by 9 a.m. for breakfast as we sail to Amsterdam. Your bike tour takes you from Amsterdam to Zaanse Schans, a unique hamlet with windmills still in operation. Here you can visit a clock museum, an old-fashioned grocery store, a house with period furniture and a cheese factory.

Day 6: Zaanse Schanz - Alkmaar - 40 km

This day, you'll cycle to the Hortus Bulborum, a museum-garden dedicated to the preservation of rare and historic bulbs.

Over 4,000 tulips, daffodils and hyacinths are planted in this garden!

You continue your bike ride to Egmond on the North Sea, crossing the dunes to Alkmaar. You'll be charmed by the beauty of Alkmaar's old town, with its 17th-century buildings and narrow canals.

Dinner in town this evening!

Day 7: Alkmaar - Amsterdam - 37 or 54 km

This stage takes you by bike to the former windmill complex of Schermer Polder and a visit to the Schermerhorn Museum. You continue your Dutch bike tour to the town of De Rijp, with its beautiful wooden facades, church and lock.

The tour ends in Amsterdam. In the evening, you can take a trip along the canals to admire the capital of the Netherlands.

Day 8: Amsterdam

This is the end of your bike and boat trip aboard the Magnifique I. Disembarkation after breakfast at 9:30 am.

General information :

• 8 days and 7 nights 
• Comfort level of the barge : Deluxe
• Spoken languages on board : English, Dutch 
• Child prices : please contact us

Dates :

Departure dates 2024 : 

Departures on Mondays 01/04, 08/04, 15/04, 22/04 and 29/04/2024

• Low season: 01/04
• High season: all other dates

Included :

• Full board (picnic lunch) except diner J6
• coffee and tea on board
• welcome cocktail
• daily cleaning of the cabins
• air conditioning
• accompanying guides (group divided in 2)
• some guided walking tours
• road book
• gps tracks on request
• helmet, waterproof bag
• admission to Keukenhof, visit to a Dutch cheese farm, admission to North-Holland Dune nature reserve, admission to Aalsmeer flower market
• port taxes
• wifi on board

Not included :

• Transport to the place of departure
• Personal expenses
• Visits

Options :

• Bike rental
• Personal bike location (mandatory if no rented bike)
• Theft insurance for rented bikes
• Cancellation insurance
• Extra night(s) at the start or end of the tour in a hotel in Amsterdam

Level :

1 2 3 4 5 6

Ground :

Flat, very smooth roads and paths. 90% program on cycle paths.

Weather :

Contrary to popular belief, the temperature in the Netherlands is similar to the temperature in France. Near the coast, the weather is sometimes windy.

Technicality :

0 to 40 km of cycling per day, or about 3 to 4 hours of cycling.

Bibliography :

Guide and maps about the Netherlands on cartovelo.fr

Participants :

On board, you will meet an international community of all ages.

Accompaniment :

People responsible for your bike and boat holidays are : 
On board, the captain and his mate. They are responsible for the smooth running of the vacation on the boat, and bring the boat from stage to stage. The cook prepares the meals.
Each morning, if you wish, you can get benefit from advice on the route to follow and on additional tourist information.

Meals :

Breakfast : on board, you will find a substantial and dutch breakfast, worthy of a cyclist.
Lunch : after the breakfast, you will prepare by yourself a “lunch” (sandwich, fruit, snack, drinks).
Snack : after the daily route, you will find, when you arrive on the boat, various drinks such as tea and coffee prepared for your return, with a cake.
Dinner : at least three very good quality dishes. After dinner, you will have a choice of coffee and tea.
Other drinks, such as wine, beer, lemonade and mineral water, are not included but can be purchased on board at a reasonable price.

Bike :

At the beginning, on Saturday afternoon, a bike corresponding to your height, will be assigned to you. After a test ride, you will sign a receipt. The bike (21-speed bike) will be at your disposal all week until Friday afternoon, when the bike is handed over. The bike will be fitted with panniers as well as an anti-theft device, a container and a tire repair kit. There is no helmet on board.
If you take your own bike, it cannot be insured against theft by our company, you will have to make the necessary arrangements with your usual insurer. Do not forget your anti-theft. The return of your bike will be at your expense.

Transport : 

By train : the departure towns for the bike and boat tours are served by the railway.
Amsterdam train station is very well connected : several trains daily run to and from France.
Thalys is faster.
By plane : AMSTERDAM international airport.

Your vehicle : 

We strongly advise against parking cars on the streets of Amsterdam. Information on guarded parking lots in the city can be found on the following website : parkingcentrumoosterdok.nl.

Cancellation insurance :

In order to guarantee the refund of costs in the event of cancellation of your stay, you can take out cancellation insurance. To learn more, please click here.

Boat description : click here