5 Star Iris boat/barge tour reviews — 1 to 30 of 64

4.8 out of 5

 


Donna B.
10 months ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - Amsterdam to Bruges - 11 day
Netherlands, Belgium

The guides and crew were all wonderful and did everything within their power to make the trip as enjoyable as possible. The Iris was a very comfortable boat. The cycling took us through varied landscapes. Helmets waterbottles and panniers are provided so no need to bring with you.

Louise C.
11 months ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - Amsterdam to Bruges - 11 day
Netherlands, Belgium

Great trip. The guides where wonderful.

Ann M.
11 months ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

Absolutely beautiful scenery-the best way to see this charming country is on a bike. The bike paths are very well maintained. I would suggest considering an e-bike. I did the first 4 days on a regular bike and this was fine. But after a day of rain and headwinds, I tried an e-bike-it was awesome! Our guides were great (Alice, Wolter and Timothy), were helpful, personable and really helped make the trip the incredible experience that it was. The food was fabulous-thanks to our amazing chef, Jules. Loved Reik (not sure of spelling of her name). Entire crew was great!

Marcia S.
11 months ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

The staff and crew on the Iris did everything in their power to give us an enjoyable experience. It was obvious they all enjoyed their jobs and wanted us to share in that joy.

Nancy C.
11 months ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

The barge and staff were fantastic! The meals were fabulous. The bicycle was much better than I anticipated. Overall it was a well organized trip. They kept us busy with biking and each night there was a walking tour. I highly recommend this trip and am planning another one on the same boat in the future.

Vickie G.
11 months ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

The biking guides were personable, knowledgeable, well organized. The staff on board the Iris were top rate, helpful, interactive. The itinerary/biking paths followed/led were varied and quite interesting - loved biking through the villages and countryside. Most memorable: Keukenhof, biking past all the tulip fields, past the windmills, receiving tidbits of historical info from the guides.

Wallace E.
11 months ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

Overall, a great trip. The crew and guides on the Iris were wonderful and helped to make the trip a memorable experience. Thought the tour itinerary was a great balance of Dutch culture, historic towns and places, canals, dikes and locks, windmills, and fields of flowers. Fun seeing the Netherlands on a bike. Chef was amazing and the Food was superb. Made good friends and enjoyed everyone on the bike tour. I would recommend this trip to anyone who wants to experience the beauty of springtime in Holland.

stewart h.
11 months ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

This trip was amazing. The pre-planning info, the easy to follow arrival, and the overall organization made my first trip an enticement for future excursions. The crew iof the Iris and our guides were engaging and easily created a family-like experience. Every day was greeted with smiles and experiences which made all of us feel the excitement of the voyage. Thank you for the great memories!

Marilyn S.
11 months ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

Oh my, this is a difficult question as every part of our trip on the IRIS Tulip Tour was memorable! We loved the biking and felt totally immersed into the Dutch culture as we meandered through cute villages, lush green grazing pastures adorned with baby animals (lambs, ducks, goats, cows), by castles, windmills, and, of course, the spectacular, vibrant tulip fields! Our tour guides were, hands down, the best tour guides ever!! Genuinely, wonderful people who were so knowledgeable about their culture and history and eager to share! Each stop we made on our bikes whether it for a coffee break, lunch break, or a site to see, was unique and fabulous! We loved the different cafes (w/ to-die-for pastries and treats), lunch stop areas (an old schoolhouse; a beach on the North Sea; adorable towns), and the many Dutch experiences (castles, windmills, cheese farm, tulip fields, and the spectacular tulip gardens at the Kuekenhof)! The boat staff and meals were amazing also . . . first Read More

Randy P.
11 months ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

Loved everything about our boat bike vacation! Great crew, accommodations and guides. Thanks so much. We look forward to more trips

Dave H.
1 year ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Metz to Cochem
France, Luxembourg, Germany

I worked with TripSite to plan this trip for 20 friends and family and they were fantastic to work with: flexible, friendly and professional. And the trip costs half of similar trips offered by US based bike tour operators. The Iris was a superb boat in great condition and the crew were amazing, with a special shout-out to the fantastic food! The riding was hard to believe: miles and miles of flat, scenic, history drenched wine country. Every days ride was enjoyable and had nice prizes and surprises along the way. Some of my group decided to stay on board for one or more days and got to relax and watch the castles go by, read a book, drink some great local white wine, and chat with the friendly crew. This particular tour: the Mosel between Cochem and Metz, was referred to me by a good friend who has done a dozen packaged bike tours and said this was his favorite. Now it's ours!

Derek G.
1 year ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Aschaffenburg to Cochem
Germany

The biking.

Bruce Z.
1 year ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Metz to Cochem
France, Luxembourg, Germany

The places we biked to were wonderful....villages, river views, vineyards. The Iris was fantastic. Great crew, wonderful boat. Was very hot part of the trip and the crew did a great job adapting to the heat. Would highly recommend this trip.

Patricia G.
1 year ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Metz to Cochem
France, Luxembourg, Germany

The chance to (finally) reunite with friends made on a previous bike and barge tour! As before, we met many very nice people on our trip. The crew and guides were excellent, as were the accommodations. Iris is a lovely vessel. Ellen’s meals were superb. I can’t believe I didn’t gain weight!
The scenery along the Mosel was very nice and the biking was generally as advertised- easy. Day 2 was more challenging than expected with more hills (not steep but long). It might have been helpful to know in advance, as the description only mentioned the downhills. Strictly speaking, I’m not sure I’d classify it as an easy ride. Having said that it was a truly gorgeous ride.
I also enjoyed the ride through Trier. Rikko did an excellent job giving the historical background.
Rikko and Paul were eager for feedback on the days rides and open to suggestions during the evening briefing. As a result we often split into 2 groups, allowing riders to go Read More

LOIS R.
1 year ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Aschaffenburg to Bamberg
Germany

the biking in beautiful towns.

Jeryl C.
1 year ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Aschaffenburg to Bamberg
Germany

This was my first bike and barge and I truly enjoyed it. We did have some rain and I didn't even mind it. We had come prepared. The staff were very kind and accommodating and the guides were just terrific! The room was more spacious than I expected including the bathroom. We had hot water everyday after getting back to the boat after biking all day. It was a very relaxed atmosphere and I would definitively go on another one.

Rosemary V.
1 year ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Aschaffenburg to Cochem
Germany

I loved this trip. It was a great combination of physical activity, culture, phenomenal scenery , great guides and interesting fellow passengers. No question that I will do more bike and barge trips. Very well organized.

Linda C.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Metz to Cochem
France, Luxembourg, Germany

The biking throughout was excellent: we had great guides and the barge crew was friendly, accommodating, and VERY professional. Plus there seemed to be a castle on every hill, like biking through a fairytale.

John V.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

The guides and crew were wonderful and really made the trip special. Although you will be riding and walking a good part of the day, don't expect to lose much weight as the food is delicious

Annette v.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

The biking route was just perfect. The scenery and sights were wonderful. Staff was friendly and knowledgeable.

The new bikes were so great to use. There were 2 smaller people on our trip that had bikes that were too big for them. One had a couple falls and we were always afraid they might be injured.

Another thing that could be helpful is to have some more road safety tips. The shark teeth at intersections, the red path is for bikes etc. While these were explained to us it might be more helpful to see a video with these actually shown. I loved having Lenny as sweep the one day just reinforcing "you are on the right so he will stop " and "he has shark teeth so you can go".

Thank you for a wonderful vacation

Melanie K.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

The guides and staff were extremely engaging and accommodating . The chef selection of food and wine pairings exceeded expectations . The guides were knowledgeable and personable . The tour route had the right balance of cycling , exploring and relaxing .
To improve
Rooms stuffy . Better ventilation needed for sleeping . Suggest a check to set the climate control .
Two members of our group required extra small bikes not available .
Face clothes in rooms .

Theresa S.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

The e bike was a fabulous way for me to be able to keep up. It was of superior quality to mine at home and I’d unequivocally say that almost any riding capability would be able to enjoy this trip by requesting the Gazelle e bike offering. For the barge, we really noticed the lack of air circulation in our rooms at night. They advised us when we got there that ac wasn’t working- they worked on fixing that during our time aboard but it was the one thing that prevents me from giving it an absolutely perfect rating.

Niemiec R.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

When thinking about the trip, the biking is what I thought about most. Once the trip began, I realized the "extra" aspects of the trip were the most meaningful:
- visiting a cheese farm to learn about
- walking through the cities with our guides learning about their history
- fabulous meals on board
- friendly and talented staff

Kimberly J.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

This trip had it all great cycling through gorgeous and historic NL with some fun informative guides, delicious meals prepared by chef Ellen, spending time with great friends and meeting new people. Highly recommend this trip. Lenny is an excellent host.

Charles B.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

This trip was perfect. The boat was clean, roomy and comfortable. I liked the ride and stay in Haarlem best, but wait the ride to Leiden … really loved it all! Did I mention the Chef and meals, wow.

Gloria A.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

Amazing rides through the countryside, full of spring blossoms

Debra L.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

Great trip, staff was very helpful ,food was wonderful. The bike trails in the Netherlands are never ending and scenic. Would highly recommend.

Joyce N.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

Love the scenery. The canal with the houses and beautiful yards next to them, Keukenhof gardens snd the tulip fields were absolutely gorgeous.
If I did this tour again I would get an e bike. The wind was blowing pretty hard so I was struggling to keep up. Also it was a lot colder than I thought it would be.

Joyce N.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

Love the scenery. The canal with the houses and beautiful yards next to them, Keukenhof gardens snd the tulip fields were absolutely gorgeous.
If I did this tour again I would get an e bike. The wind was blowing pretty hard so I was struggling to keep up. Also it was a lot colder than I thought it would be.

Janina D.
2 years ago

Verified Reviewer

  Iris Tulip Tour - 8 day
Netherlands

The staff of the Iris was great! We loved the intimacy and comfort of this barge. Biking through the Netherlands was a very immersive and great way to truly experience the various layers and beauty of their culture. We are hoping to do a Bike n Barge annually to explore other countries.

The communication from Tripsite could have been better. We were dismayed to see others in our group received Tripsite vests and gaiters. We had not. We literally received our travel documents/tips 5 days before departure.