The green heart of Holland | MS Gandalf

Embarkation and check-in where the crew will welcome you on board is from 2 p.m. in the center of Amsterdam. After unpacking your luggage in your cabin an introduction to the tour will take place at 3 p.m. After that your rental bicycles will be distributed and your tour leader will invite you to a short test-ride. Upon your return your first dinner on board will be served.

After a short cruise,  visit of the open air museum Zaanse Schans, which is copied by a Holland village from the 19th century. Here you can visit for example windmills, cheese manufactures and wooden shoes manufactures.  Afterwards you cycle to Haarlem, where you can stroll around the old city centre and the market place. If you want you can cycle longer with passing the big North Sea lock and the beautiful landscape with dunes.

Along the North Sea Coast and via Noordwijk and Katwijk aan Zee into University City Leiden. Stroll along the tracks of painter Rembrandt.

From Leiden into porcelain city Delft, where the boat stays overnight. You can go by train (not included) or by bike on an excursion to Den Haag and the well-known bathing resort Scheveningen. Alternative you can also cycle back to the North Sea, through the dunes you will arrive in Scheveningen, Den Haag and back zo the boat in Delft.

This morning you will sail from Delft on the barge to the city of Rotterdam. From here you can hop on the “Waterbus”, a fast ferry that will bring you and your bicycle over the river in 30-40 minutes to Alblasserdam. From there you cycle just a few miles to Kinderdijk, world famous for an impressive row of 19 large windmills. These 19 windmills have a UNESCO cultural heritage listing and are a definite highlight. From Kinderdijk you will cycle directly to the cheese city of Gouda, or if you prefer, on a longer tour via the silver city of Schoonhoven to Gouda, your destination for the day. Dinner tonight (not included) will be in town in a restaurant of your choice (recommendations available on board).

The highlight of today’s cycling tour is the naturally idyllic beauty of the South Holland landscape. Your destination for the day is the village of Kudelstaart where the barge will be waiting for you. Along the way you will cycle along numerous small canals and past picture-perfect farms and small villages. At the mooring place on the banks of the Westeinder Plassen (‘West End’ lakes) there is a beautiful view to savor while enjoying a wine during or after dinner.

If you are keen for an early start to the day you can visit the largest trade center for plants and flowers in the world at Aalsmeer (optional extra, not included). The market is a hive of activity; it is guaranteed that you will never have seen so many flowers in the one place. After a late breakfast you can either stay on board the barge as it cruises through the City of Amsterdam to its mooring place or you can cycle into the city through the city park ‘Amsterdamse Bos’ or along the Amstel river. Once you reach Amsterdam take the opportunity during the afternoon and evening to go for a canal cruise, discover Anne Frank’s House, the Rembrandt House Museum, the Royal Palace of Amsterdam and Dam Square, the very center and heart of the city.

End of your tour: Disembarkation after breakfast until 9.30 a.m.