Day to day schedule
Day 1:Amsterdam, sailing to Oude Wetering, cycling around Oude Wetering, 10 km
The barge is moored at the Oosterdok in central Amsterdam, near the train station. You are expected to arrive at our barge on Thursday between 12:30 PM and 1:30 PM. When you arrive on board, you can settle in and enjoy a cup of coffee or tea. It is also a good moment to become acquainted with the tour leader, skipper and crew and of course your fellow passengers. The barge leaves dock at 2 PM. You will first cruise through Amsterdam before reaching the wetlands south of the city and the mooring place of today, the village of Oude Wetering. A relaxed way of starting your trip and get used to life on the barge.During dinner aboard the ship, the program for the next day and the global planning of the week are discussed. Instruc-tions on cycling and safely procedures will also be given. After dinner the tour leader will escort you on the first kilometers on your bike during a short ride around the village.
Day 2:Oude Wetering – Gouda, 45 km
From Oude Wetering, we will continue our tour over country roads, banks and channels through the Green Heart and pol-ders to the city known for its cheese: Gouda.
Today is Sunday, the day on which most Dutch take out their bikes for a ride. Your ride takes you through a typical Dutch landscape filed with green meadows, wetlands, canals, rivers and small villages. You will cross waterways on small ferries and over bridges. Before we reach Gouda you ride through the Reeuwijkse Plassen, a nature reserve and renowned wet-land.
Who thinks of Gouda, not only thinks of cheese, pipes, ‘stroopwafels’ (treacle-waffle) and pottery, but also of stained-glass windows, a fairy-like town hall and atmospheric canals. Gouda is beautiful Old-Dutch city with a mostly intact city center. The ‘St. Janskerk’, Gouda’s 123-metre-long church, with its renowned ‘Goudse Glazen’ (leaded light windows), the beauti-ful gothic town hall and the ‘Waag’ (a building once used for weighing cheese) are absolutely worth a visit. As on most evenings after dinner the tour guide will take you on a walk through the city.
Day 3:Gouda – Dordrecht, 40 km
From Gouda you will cycle over quiet countryroads and narrow cycling paths to Dordrecht. You ride past scenic polders and through the deepest lying polder of the Netherlands, Krimpenerwaard. After arriving on the dyke of the river ‘Lek’ you cross by ferry to Kinderdijk. From the embankments of the river Lek, you will witness an amazing view of the 19 windmills, which are now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The windmills at Kinderdijk were still actively used until 1950. These days, a large pumping station is responsible for con-trolling the water level in the polder. This is where you will take a break and can visit the interior of a windmill. An impres-sive piece of centuries old technique that is still functional today. After a beautiful tour through the Alblasserwaardpolder we will arrive at Alblasserdam. A modern, fast ferry will take us over to Dordrecht, one of the oldest cities of the country, situated at a busy crossing of waterways. Dordrecht is also the birthplace of independance of the Netherlands as this is the town where in 1572 the first free State assembly was held. This assembly can be seen as start of the Netherlands as an independent country as the resistance against Spain was formed here.
Day 4:Dordrecht sailing to Willemstad and cycling to Zierikzee, 54 km
From Dordrecht we will sail to the Delta area of the Dutch greater rivers during breakfast. Years ago, an open connection existed with the sea due to the many tributaries in this area. After the disastrous flooding in 1953, the Deltaplan was de-veloped and most tidal outlets were closed from the sea by dams. Most parts of Zeeland were, and still are, under sea le-vel and in 1953 the embankments were too weak and too low, causing this area to be at risk for flooding’s once in every 80 years. Now, because of the flood barriers, that chance is reduced to less than once every 4000 years. Just before rea-ching our destination of today (Zierikzee, on the island of Schouwen-Duivenland) we will visit the ‘Watersnoodmuseum’. This museum tells the tragic events of 1953 and is built in recently renewed caissons, once used for the last closure gap. This was done in November 1953, ten months after the storm surge which broke through more than 300 embankments. Zierikzee is a beautiful town and the centre of the ‘mussel culture’. The ‘Zeeuwse mosselen’ (blue mussels) are a re-nowned delicacy.
Day 5:Zierikzee - Middelburg, 51 km
This morning you cycle along the Oosterschelde towards the North Sea, to cross the Oosterscheldedam. The enormous floodgates are built in this barrier and can be closed during storms and high tides protecting the south-west of the Nether-lands against the sea. When cycling along the embankment, you will realize why this has been one of the most difficult and costly challenges. The barrier protects the country and also lets salt water into the widespread Delta area. It is preci-sely why the Deltaworks are referred to as the one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World by the American Society of Civil Engineers. After this dam you will paddle to Middelburg, but not without visiting the picturesque port town of Vee-re. Middelburg is the lively principal town of Zeeland with many old houses, churches, the beautiful town hall and a pleasant shopping. Also to be found in Middelburg is the Roosevelt Academy, a liberal arts college, located in the former late-gothic town hall on the market of Middelburg.
Day 6:Middelburg, ferry to Breskens, cycling to Sas van Gent, sailing to Ghent, 45 km
Today you have to cross the ‘Westerschelde’, the only estuary which isn’t closed by a dam because it is the gateway to the port of Antwerp. The barges takes you to the lively harbor town Vlissingen where we make a short tour in bike. From Vlis-singen a short ferry trip brings you to Breskens in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen (Dutch-Flanders)! We are getting close to Belgium. You will cross the border between the Netherlands and Belgium several times before you definitely cross the border by boat to sail to Ghent. Ghent is proud of its rich past but the role of the city is not restricted to a museum-city. The city is a stunning mixture of medieval buildings, chic shopping areas with beautiful mansions, old workers districts from the early twentieth century which now house hundreds of students and busy squares where one can sit and enjoy warm summer nights until the early hours.
Day 7: Ghent – Bruges, 45 km
This morning you will cycle through Ghent and through the scenic countryside of Oost-Vlaanderen (East-Flanders). Charac-teristic for this area are the woods, fields, small villages and castles. From the Aalterbrug the last part of this route takes us over the former tow path along the canal of Oostende-Gent, the oldest canal of Belgium, to Bruges. The impressive city of Bruges is the end destination of this bike and barge trip. This evening you can enjoy the medieval city of Bruges and many of you are likely to stay another day in this beautiful city.
Day 8: Bruges, end of the tour after breakfast. Disembarkationbefore 10 AM
Included
- All nights on board (incl. bedding, towels, soap)
- Breakfast and dinner on board
- Lunch packages when on the road
- Coffee and tea on board
- Tour guide, cycles with the group (speaks Dutch/English; some speak German/French)
- Min. 3 city walks with tour guide
- Free WiFi (limited available in lounge and on deck)
- Road book, 1x per cabin
- Ferry fares on the route
- GPS-tracks (on request)
Not included
- Bicycle rent ( bike insurance included)
- Entrance fees to museums; approx. € 25,-
- Personal insurance
If you have special meal requirements (vegetarian/ pescatarian, or if you are on a medical diet), please indicate this when booking.
In case of gluten free/lactose free/vegan diet there is an additional charge of € 100,- per diet per week. When ordered upon arrival the additional charge is € 150,- per diet per week, to be paid on site.
We do not allow private e-bikes on board (due to safety regulations).
Dutch Barge Cruises reserves the right to cancel tours with fewer than 12 participants up to 21 days prior to the date of departure.
The program is subject to change without notice due to weather, nautical reasons like bridges and locks, technical issues and other unforeseen circumstances .
