Bike routes were beautiful and enjoyable! Loved the town of St. Remy and the location of our hotel. Really enjoyed Avignon and again, the location of the hotel made exploring the city very easy.
France
Provence is a Pleasure!
Idaho21, Idaho
France: Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, Les Baux & Avignon
Exceptional vacation
This was our first VBT vacation and we have already registered for a second trip. Provence and the Alpilles is a beautiful region of France with abundant fruits, vegetables and other agriculture. The bicycle travel through the French countryside gives an up-close and personal travel experience.
CMMitch, Arlington, VA, USA
France: Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, Les Baux & Avignon
Highly recommend - VBT and Alsace Region
This was our first VBT trip and we thoroughly enjoyed it. The guides were knowledgeable, positive, friendly, helpful and very professional. The GPS navigation was great. The routes were scenic, culturally diverse, and well thought out. The excursions/tours were interesting too. Recommend the ebike for the hills!
L Byrne, Outside Philadelphia PA
Switzerland, Germany & France: The Black Forest & the Alsace Wine Route
Couldn't be better.
I LOVED this vacation. I am an avid biker; my husband is not; and we both enjoyed the levels of activity and flexibility. The vineyards and villages were amazing to see, especially by bicycle. Jean and Jean Francois took care of our every need, and the accommodations were wonderful. What's not to like?
Jenny H, Plymouth, MN, United States
Switzerland, Germany & France: The Black Forest & the Alsace Wine Route
Bicycling France Normandy/Brittany
Planning and ride with VBT was priceless!. Our bicycle hosts did a fabulous job taking care of our every need. We also did the 3 day in Paris pre-trip, which if you do the 3 day Paris pre-trip, make sure you book all excursions in advance. We pre-booked Eiffel Tower, Palace Versailles, Tuk Tuk Paris, Louvre Museum. My one negative comment was in the city of Dinan. We had a tour guide that was obviously very familiar with the City, Architecture and history. Unfortunately, we could not hear a thing she said. She talked softly, kept walking away, talking to 1 or 2 people....you get the idea. It would have been much better if she had us wear earpieces while she talked. Other than that, fantastic time and would recommend this trip.
Beech9A, DC
France: Normandy & Brittany
Amazing trip!
We had a wonderful experience. The itinerary, guides and bike routes couldn’t have been any better. Everything was planned the minute we landed in Paris. Would definitely recommend to anyone with an interest in the Normandy history.
Tami O,
France: Normandy & Brittany
Best vacation ever.
This was our first Vermont Bike vacation but it certainly will not be our last! What a great time .For us it was a perfect mix of activity,culture ,wine and food. The countryside is just delightful and beautiful. The guides were excellent and our fellow travelers were wonderful .
Goldenboy1, Vancouver, WA, USA
France: Burgundy, Beaujolais & Dijon
Fantastic trip!
The Burgundy Wine Route trip was an exceptional vacation...it was a great mix of activity, leisure, learning and sightseeing. The trip leaders were personable, knowledgeable, and fun-loving, our fellow travelers were all interesting and friendly people, and the food, accommodations, and scenery were all first class. The daily route length choices ensured that everyone would be happy with their activity level, too. I’d highly recommend this trip to anyone who loves good food, wine, and outdoor activity. The pre and post trip extensions are also well worth it...especially the pre-trip in Lyon...there was so much to explore there!
karen27, Denver, CO, USA
France: Burgundy, Beaujolais & Dijon
Fantastic trip
This was our fifth trip with VBT, but our first bike and boat trip. Staying aboard a river cruise ship while doing a week-long bike ride certainly has the advantage of only having to unpack once. Like others here, though, I think I prefer a motel to motel trip where you get more immersed in the countries and cities you visit by staying at local hotels and eating at local restaurants. I think the bike group is also more tightly knit by the end of the ride when traveling with just your small bike group rather than a ship full of river cruisers. But I am glad I experienced at least one bike and boat trip, and if you are considering a bike and boat trip, this is a great one. We biked in four countries. The cities and villages we visited were beautiful, interesting, and quaint. The bike rides outside of those cities took us through beautiful countryside, along canals, and past vineyards. The ride is mostly on bike paths, mostly flat, and mostly easy. There is one significant climb that was tough for this 69-year-old and a couple afternoons of strong headwinds. Otherwise - easy riding. The guides were fantastic. The ship was nice enough, although not as nice as some we’ve been on. We wondered when we signed up for the ride why they were busing us to Den Haag after we left the ship at the end of the cruise rather than keeping us in Amsterdam. But we are glad they did. We thoroughly enjoyed our day there.
bnkrby, Illinois
Rhine Bike & River Cruise: Basel to Amsterdam
Bike and Boat tour - Basel to Amsterdam
This was our first river boat and bike tour and it was a very enjoyable tour. It was nice to only unpack once at the start and not pack up until the end. The guides were great and knowledgeable of the areas. Everyone in the group rode the first day in the rain, we didn't want to miss a thing! Accommodations on the boat were great and the ship's crew were attentive and polite. Only suggestion for making it better would be to cut down on the time allotment for lunch and spend more time exploring the areas instead of eating. Enjoyed the pre and post extensions also, especially Den Haag.
Barbara Sarasota FL,
Rhine Bike & River Cruise: Basel to Amsterdam
Just do it!
What a well planned tour. So special to have every aspect of our trip prearranged for us. They thought of everything. Just ride and enjoy.
Germany, Luxembourg & France Bike & Boat: Mosel River Valley
VBT Staff are Top Notch
A well organized and well executed excursion. The VBT staff was experienced and prepared for the trip. All VBT staff were friendly, understanding and willing to engage all guest questions and issues. Several times the VBT staff went well above the normal expectations in addressing the passengers requests. It was obvious that they were well trained and also loved what they do.
Vincent, Pennsylvania
Germany, Luxembourg & France Bike & Boat: Mosel River Valley
Super Bike Guides
The bike guides, Axel and Chris, were very knowledgeable about the area's history and customs. They also worked endlessly on the bikes to keep them in top running order for the cruisers. During down times at meals they shared about their lives and asked questions about our lives. They were patient with all the different personalities of cruisers.
Teacher, Minnesota
France, Luxembourg & Germany Bike & Boat: Mosel River Valley
The service
The Guides are excellent. Patient with questions and always there to assist in bike/trail matters. Also giving us a heads up on what to expect in our travels. We learned some German as well. Bonus!🤣We always saw a guide somewhere! The crew was quite attentive ; from Stephanie and her selection of snacks, yeh!!, to her serving us nice wines. Chef did a wonderful job in such a tiny space. And the cleaning crew and Captain kept us afloat!!!
Michele R, California
France, Luxembourg & Germany Bike & Boat: Mosel River Valley
Biking France Vineyard
The trip was amazing and very enjoyable. The only glitch was the tunnel was closed on one of the day trips and the copied map provided for the alternative route wasn’t very clear and we got lost. We called the support person but it was 2 hours before he called us back.
BikingBow, Alaska
France: Vineyards of Beaujolais
Reasonable Value
The self-guided Beaujolais tour is a reasonable value and can be enjoyed without the guide (although the VBT guides are always great). We appreciated the excellent lodging and quality bikes, per usual with VBT. Locals in this region are very friendly but fewer folks speak English than in the big cities. The Beaujolais tour has a few really nice views, but the views and scenery aren't as good as other VBT tours. Twice on our tour, the hotels said they didn't have our luggage (not a great thing to hear when you arrive bedraggled after a day of riding) but eventually the hotel found it after some haggling. This tour includes a miserable hilly detour around what appeared to be a perpetually closed tunnel, and it was hard (for us and other riders) to find our way back on the route once we slogged the unplanned hills. The "Ride with GPS App" was okay in general but gave confusing and contradictory directions more often than I'd think...but it wasn't much of a problem.
bob28, Washington DC
France: Vineyards of Beaujolais
VBT France and Switzerland 2023 - Great trip!
VBT France and Switzerland 2023 - Great trip in every way! ============================================== Six fantastic days of biking! The pre-trip in spectacular Chamonix was idyllic in every way. The first highlight was riding up the gondola at '' l 'Aiguille du Midi '' to the top of Mont Blanc. It was our first ever bike trip and we thoroughly enjoyed every part of it. We were very lucky to have such perfect sunny days except on our warm-up ride, we were caught in the rain. Easy riding through stunning scenery on rail trails and around lakes, stops in picturesque medieval town centers, great food, and amazing accommodations. The views were spectacular and one of the many high points were the para gliders in Annecy. Look up on your ride. It looked like butterflies coming down. This would be an excellent trip for someone's first VBT experience. Most of the people on our trip had participated in many other VBT Tours and that fact spoke volumes to the satisfaction and high quality they have previously received. My wife and I will sign up for another trip in the future! This was our first trip and will not be our last. Had an awesome time!
Mike and Lise, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada
Switzerland & France: Lake Geneva, Annecy & Valleys of the Alps
Lake Geneva/Annecy adventure.
It was actually a 4+. The scenery, food, accommodations and guides were all top notch. Two minor problems. A nasty bartender in Switzerland and having to ride thru heavily trafficed streets on the last full day of riding.
Ray Evert,
Switzerland & France: Lake Geneva, Annecy & Valleys of the Alps
Exceptional
Amazing trip. Great guides and the ship staff was exceptional. The chef did an outstanding job of feeding us.
France Bike & River Cruise: Lyon to Nice
Not Typical of VBT
Nice cycling routes, river boat was very nice and food very good. But, it was more riverboat than cycling. There were only two lunches off the boat, we cycled through wine country with no winery stopes, the shore tours with the riverboat were terrible. The warm up cycling route was through heavy pedestrian traffic and was not safe. Communication of times and places to be was poor and as a result we often waited for uninformed or important fellow cyclists. VBT was not important to the riverboat operator and the VBT group was diluted withing the other riverboat passengers. The riverboat approach seemed to attract people who were simply disinterested in cycling. It just wasn't what I had previously experienced from VBT.
Galen, Iowa
France Bike & River Cruise: Lyon to Nice
VBT Bicycling Vacations
Country Walkers