During this tour some of the most beautiful cities of Holland and Flanders are highlighted: Amsterdam, Antwerp, Ghent and Bruges, where you still can feel the charm of the days long gone. After embarkation in Amsterdam you will cross through a beautiful part of the Netherlands. After a short cruise with the ship, you bike along the winding small river Vecht with its impressive mansions and country houses on its banks. You visit a real Dutch cheese farm and the 19 Dutch windmills in Kinderdijk. Via Dordrecht and the fortified town of Willemstad, the ship cruises through the “Delta” Province of Zeeland to Belgium. You will spend the night in Antwerp, the city of Rubens, whose paintings can be admired in the cathedral. You will cycle from Antwerp to Ghent along the beautiful tidal river Lower Schelde. Destination of your tour is Bruges, the “Pearl of Flanders” with its picturesque medieval town centre.
Embarkation and check-in where the crew will welcome you on board is at 1 p.m. At around 2 p.m. the MS FLUVIUS will depart from Amsterdam for Vianen, a small fortified village on the Lek river. After the distribution of bicycles, you can enjoy a short bicycle ride.
Today you cycle via the silver town of Schoon-hoven to Kinderdijk, the most famous row of windmills in Holland - keep your cameras ready, it's worth it. The last part of today's cycle route is by 'Waterbus' (not included, approx. € 4,- p.p.) from Alblasserdam (near Kinderdijk) to Dordrecht in approx. 10 minutes. The historic city centre of Dordrecht is impressively nestled between mighty rivers.
During breakfast the ship sails to Tholen.You cycle through a forest area, “the Wouwse Plantage“, towards the south to the impressive Kreekrak lock. Then you will sail to Antwerp, which is not only known as diamond city, but also as native city of painter Rubens. You will find some of his paintings in the “Onze Lieve Vrouwe (our lady) Cathedral”.
Today’s tour will see you cycle out of Antwerp on a beautiful cycle path along the picturesque tidal Schelde River to Dendermonde, your home for the night. There is only one way to describe the landscape around the Schelde and that is “magnificent”. It is without doubt one of the natural highlights of the tour.
The bike tour follows again the river Schelde in the direction of Ghent. Ghent is a lively university city, again, one with a rich past. In the afternoon you have the opportunity to discover the city some more or to shop in the lively centre. The city was founded in Roman times, where the rivers Leie and Schelde converge. The convenient location has over the years brought much prosperity, culminating in the late 13th, early 14th century. The textile industry brought great wealth. In the city, many old patricians preserved. The Cloth Hall (1425) brought cloth merchants together. The main church is the St. Bavo Cathedral, which is built in different ages and in the different corresponding styles. In the cathedral are some masterpieces of medieval art, which "Adoration of the Mystic Lamb" by Jan van Eyck is the most famous. The ship is docked at the lock in Merelbeke, a suburb of Ghent (approx. 30 min by bike from the city centre).
During breakfast the MS Fluvius will sail to Moerbrugge, a suburb of Bruges. Start of your bike tour through the pleasant country side of Western Flanders around Bruges. Bruges also called the Venice of the North is maybe the most beautiful of all Flemish cities. Its old centre which dates from the Middle Ages is almost completely intact. Bruges was at that time a metropolis and center of commerce and art. You can still see this glory at the beautiful buildings. But Bruges is also a nice town for shopping or going out.
The last bike tour takes you to a quiet canal along where you’ll find lots of poplars, through an attractive polder landscape with nice small farm houses to the North Sea coast. A long sandy beach and numerous cafés provide enough variety during your lunch break. Then heading back to Bruges.
After breakfast till 09:30 am: end of the tour and disembarkation.
The route
You cycle through Holland and Belgium on flat and well-maintained cycle paths. The routes can be classified as easy and are also well suited for inexperienced cyclists.
Return transfer by train from Bruges to Amsterdam approx. 40 € per person.
Embarkation: from 1.00 pm to 1.30 pm • Disembarkation: After breakfast, until 09:30 am • Bicycles on board (brand/model may change): Bikkel unisex bicycles, 7 gears, pannier bag, hand brakes and pedal brakes or (only a few) hand brakes only (subject to availability). E-Bikes (Bikkel 1be E2, 8 gears, hand brakes only, pannier bag) are only available after prior request (by booking) and confirmation and at limited number. Please indicate your body height when you book.To bring your own bike: on request only, due to lack of space on sundeck (max. 4 own bikes) • Cycle Tours: individual tours or daily guided bike tours by one guide (for 18 persons or more two guides). If there are two guides on board you can often choose between a shorter and a longer tour. Not all mentioned highlights will be visited during the short bicycle option. It is also possible to ride the bike tours individually. Tour description and maps are available on board. The kilometers/miles indicated for the cycle tours are approximate. The quality of the cycle ways along this route is excellent. Most of the way is paved or asphalted and does not have any gradients of note. This makes the trip suitable for cyclists with an average physical condition. • Luggage on board: we recommend waterproof rain gear, bike helmet, sun hat and sports shoes. We would like to ask you to do without hard-side luggage as storage space in the cabin is very limited! • Alterations of schedule or program: subject to change. In case that as a result of nautical, technical or meteorological reasons a route cannot be taken, the skipper reserves the right to change the route for your safety (this would not be a rea-son for fee-free cancellation) • Travel documents: EU-citizens (without special situations like dual citizenship, main residence abroad or a limited-validity passport) are required to have a valid passport or ID-card, not expiring within six (6) months of the return of your cruise. We kindly ask non-EU citizens, EU-nationals with multiple citizenship or anybody who has to respect special legal entry requirements for the country to visit, to inform about visa and entry documents at the competent embassy. • This trip is not suitable for guests with reduced mobility.
Important notes
More important information about the Package Travel Act and additional information about your trip by bike and boat can be found here!
The small, comfortable and very popular river cruiser MS FLUVIUS sails under Dutch flag and had its sailing area in Holland and Belgium for many years. The salon with bar is a large room for common use and has a semi-separate restaurant area. On the large and partially roofed sun deck of the ca. 70 Meter long ship are sitting places (tables + chairs) and storage room for the bikes.
In Winter 2017/18 MS FLUVIUS will be partly remodelled and will feature 4 new premium twin cabins with french balcony.
Then on board of this cosy ship are a total of 22 cabins (ca. 10 to 12 m² ) for max. 44 guests.
All cabins have shower + toilet, 2 lower beds, TV and air-conditioning, individual adjustable:
Lower deck: 15 x 2-bed-cabins (windows cannot be opened)
Upper deck: 3 x 2-bed-cabins with picture window (cannot be opened) and 4 new premium 2-bed-cabins with french balcony with an opening sliding door.
The interior of the ship is a non-smoking zone: smoking is only allowed on the sun deck. As a safety measure, a statutory smoking ban applies in all cabins; this means that all cabins and rooms on board are no-smoking zones.
Year of construction: 2001 •Length: 70 m •Width: 5,60 m• Depth: 1,00 m •Height: 3,85 m•Crew: ca.5-6 • Currency on board: EURO. Credit cards: MasterCard and Visa.
Es war wirklich eine tolle Zeit auf dem Schiff und mit der Crew. Wir sind toll verwöhnt worden. Die Tour war gut geplant mit vielen interessanten Ausflügen und Highlights. wir können es nur weiterempfehlen