Netherlands/Belgium bike vacation - rent there or bring our own?

This spring, my wife and I are planning to take a bike & barge trip from Amsterdam to Bruges. We've booked the trip, but he haven't decided what to do regarding bike rental and are soliciting advice. 

The extent of my bike-rental experience is tourist-centered places in the US, and it hasn't been great. The bikes have typically been ill-fitting and designed more for the comfort of people who haven't been on a bike in years than for a daily rider. (i.e., super-low gearing and extremely padded saddles. Not unlike Divvy bikes, now that I think of it). 

We're planning to spend a couple days in Amsterdam on either side of the trip and will want bikes for getting around town there as well.

Anyway, here are the options, as I see them. Any advice or corrections of my misperceptions are really appreciated. 

1. Rent from the touring company

Pros: Will be serviced if we run into issues on the tour

Cons: May not fit well. Won't be available for riding around Amsterdam

2. Rent from a place in Amsterdam for the duration of the tour

Pros: Will have for the length of our trip. Can select a shop based on a reputation for good, well-fitting bikes. 

Cons: Will be on our own if it needs servicing on the tour

3. Bring our own bikes

Pros: The bikes we know and love. We know how to maintain them. We'll have them for the entire trip. 

Cons: Having to fly with the bikes is a PITA and potentially more expensive than renting them. If anything goes wrong with them, we'll be on our own.

As this will be our first time riding in another country, any advice related to that will be very appreciated as well.

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Permalink Reply by Dave Grossman on January 6, 2014 at 2:42pm

I highly recommend speaking to Henry Cutler at Workcycles.  He is a transplant and can likely give you some solid advice.  I own one of his bikes and whenever I have a question regarding maintenance he emails back in no time at all.  His shop does rentals as well and I would assume that if he doesn't have what you are looking for he can tell you where to go.  

Permalink Reply by Cheryl on January 6, 2014 at 5:33pm

I didn't do a bike and barge tour, but I did rent a bike from an Austrian company for a Danube ride and it was fine - it was a Kettler trekking bike and I rode 30-60 miles per day. You can probably ask your tour operator about the specific bikes that they provide.

Permalink Reply by dan brown on January 7, 2014 at 4:43am

I would go with option #2. start shopping around now for the best choice. and it will not likely need servicing; and in the unlikely event it does; I bet it will be handled OK. Europeans are pretty much cooler in every way about most things.

Permalink Reply by Tricolor on January 7, 2014 at 7:05am

Rather than flying your bike you could always ship it ahead of time, but that's still going to cost a lot and you never know if someone's going to run it over with a delivery van.

Permalink Reply by Anne on January 7, 2014 at 8:10am

Having borrowed a bike as well as brought my own bike to Belgium, I agree with your Pros/Cons for your scenarios above. Unlike you, I stay in one hotel and ride 100km a day (say, from Gent to Bruges) as my reason for being there is to ride.

It is 'coals to Newcastle' to bring your own bike to those countries choking on bikes. The 'stadfiets' (city bikes) are just fine for getting around town, but you won't need it in Bruges as the city is SO SMALL. You walk everywhere.

You will not have a problem getting a bike worked on anywhere, there are more shops than in the US.

Depending on the type of barge tour you've booked, it will be the easiest to rent and bring it on the barge with you. You can then tie up at points along the way and ride into town.

How long is your trip and what time of year?

How many miles on bike do you have time to do each day? It's only 80km from Amsterdam to Rotterdam, but you're timeline may only allow a quick detour at a tie up.

Oh, my best restaurant tip would be to seek out Pieter Pourbus in Bruges, it's wonderful!

Permalink Reply by Duppie on January 7, 2014 at 8:38am

Anne's recommendation made me think about my own. I've had some many coworkers visit Amsterdam/Brugge that I made a standard list with things to see/do/eat. Here goes:

Amsterdam:

Van Gogh Museum

http://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/vgm/index.jsp

Best collection of van Gogh’s in the world. Suggest you get the guided audio tour. It’s worth it

Rijksmuseum (National Gallery)

http://www.rijksmuseum.nl/?lang=en

Rembrandt’s and Vermeer’s. Best selection of Dutch Masters. After 10 years of renovations it is now open again in it's full glory. The Honor Gallery is absolutely stunning. You can easily spend half a day here.

And since I love food in all its aspects, here are a few food things that are typically Dutch:

Febo

http://www.febodelekkerste.nl/eng/

Quintessential Dutch fast food. Not healthy, not haute cuisine, but it reminds me of my childhood. Lots of locations in A’dam, so it will be hard not to run into one. Almost everything is deep-fried. My personal favorite is a “frikandel speciaal”. Think a deep fried hotdog (but more seasoned), covered in mayo, spiced ketchup and raw onion. You may have to order that at the counter.

 

Indonesische rijsttafel.

I picked this one from google, since it has good reviews. Or you can ask the concierge at the hotel you’re staying. It's somewhat like Korean barbeque, lots of small dishes

http://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:offi...

 

Pannekoekenhuis (pancakehouse)

Ask the concierge in your hotel for a recommendation. There are lots of them around. Get a savory one (bacon, cheese), since those are uniquely Dutch. Have them for lunch or dinner (not breakfast).

 

Café Welling

http://www.cafewelling.nl/ I would be amiss without mentioning Café Welling. This is the archetypical Amsterdam neighborhood bar. Whenever Mrs. Duppie and I visit Amsterdam we have to go there. It’s few minutes walking from the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh museum. The bar cat might even come and sit on your lap.

 

 

Brugge

(Notice the correct Dutch spelling, not the incorrect French one we use in the US)

 

Hospitaal museum

http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/musea/Hospitaalmuseum/index.htm

Housed in a medieval hospital, this museum houses a great collection of Northern Renaissance paintings (earlier than the Dutch masters). I was particularly impressed by the St John Altarpiece which is at the end of the collection.

 

Groeninge museum

http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/musea/Groeningemuseum-Arentshuis/G...

Another great collection of Northern Renaissance paintings

 

Begijnhof

http://www.trabel.com/brugge/bruges-beguinage.htm

Generally open to the public, you can walk through this and enjoy the peace and quiet of it all. If you’re lucky you might even see some ‘begijnen’ on their way to church.

 

Belfort

http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/musea/bruggemuseum/belfort/index.htm

The main historical tower in town. You can climb it to the top and get a good view of the city. Wait around for the bells to ring.

Food.

I remember having some great food, but I do not remember the specifics. There are many choices, but I would stay away from the main square, as it’s a place where the tourists go to fill up. Anne's recommendation sounds like a great choice.

Permalink Reply by Larry Mysz on January 7, 2014 at 10:00am

My wife and I did a bike 'n' boat on the Danube R. from Passau, Germany to Budapest, Hungary in Sept.  We used your options 1 and 2, renting tour company bikes for the week on the boat, then renting bikes locally as we bounced around Germany for a couple more weeks.

 

We looked closely at the tour company bikes and talked with the tour company a lot before deciding to rent from them.  Drop me an e-mail if you want more about how we finally decided on the tour company bikes.  

 

We just took our chances with local rentals.

 

The tour company bikes were 21 speed derailleur equipped hybrids with a rear rack and a step-through frame.  While not my LHT nor her Aurora, they weren't Divvy bikes either.  They fit fine and were more than adequate for the distance, speed, and type of riding we did on the bike 'n' boat trip.  We weren't trying to cover long distances at any speed.  A typical day covered 30 to 40 miles.  We were very happy to cruise along at 12-15 mph, stopping frequently to take photos, and enjoy the sights (and food).  There were a few hills climbing out of the river valley, but pedalling up was not nearly as hard as with a loaded touring bike.  The tour company provided a pannier with tools, a spare tube, and plenty of space for a bag lunch, bottle of water, and rain gear.  Even if we had our own bikes, we wouldn't have gone farther nor faster. 

The easy-to-get in town rentals after the bike 'n' boat were more like Divvy bikes. I would have preferred our own bikes, but we were doing urban sight seeing, so slow and heavy didn't get in the way of our enjoying the trip.  If we had planned 40 or 50 milers out of town I would have spent more time looking for road bikes to rent.

 

Permalink Reply by Larry Mysz on January 7, 2014 at 10:18am

Forgot to mention: Another con to bringing your own bikes is the possibility of having them stolen while you stop to eat at a restaurant or tour museum.

Permalink Reply by Anne on January 7, 2014 at 10:47am

lol yes, the rental is free but the lock is 20 euro!

Larry Mysz said:

Forgot to mention: Another con to bringing your own bikes is the possibility of having them stolen while you stop to eat at a restaurant or tour museum.

Permalink Reply by Liz W. Durham on January 7, 2014 at 2:15pm

I just recently returned from a week in Amsterdam. The majority of the rental bikes there will be the traditional "Dutch bike." These bikes are indeed quite upright with slightly fatter saddles and only a few gears. Of course, this makes sense in Amsterdam where you will be riding shorter distances and will be riding with quite a bit of bike traffic... not the time or place for zippy riding.

Permalink Reply by David Altenburg on January 8, 2014 at 5:42pm

Thanks for all the advice - about bikes and everything else. It sounds like renting from a shop in Amsterdam is the way to go. I'm going to start by contacting WorkCycles.  The riding itself is only 30 miles/day, so  we certainly don't need fast or light bikes. 

Permalink Reply by Anne on January 9, 2014 at 4:24am

A good basic list, have you gone to Belgium yet Duppie, or just dreaming of it? Depending on the time of year you visit, Bruges can be crazy-touristy or dank and medieval. You may prefer one over the other! But for a multi-day visit, don't limit yourself to just this city, as the best of Flanders is always 100k or less away.

Outside of the usual art/culture musuems, as a cycling enthusiast you have more than one option for cycling themed museums nearby. Just south of Bruges is Roeselare, where the Wielermuseum offers you an entirely Belgian-centered history of the bicycle. Further south and East in Oudenaarde you have the museum for the Ronde Van Vlaanderen; the only museum in the world dedicated to a single day sporting event (except for the Indy 500).

Agree about the food in the main square, I'd follow a local or take advice from a shopkeeper.

Duppie said:

Anne's recommendation made me think about my own. I've had some many coworkers visit Amsterdam/Brugge that I made a standard list with things to see/do/eat. Here goes:

Amsterdam:

Van Gogh Museum

http://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/vgm/index.jsp

Best collection of van Gogh’s in the world. Suggest you get the guided audio tour. It’s worth it

Rijksmuseum (National Gallery)

http://www.rijksmuseum.nl/?lang=en

Rembrandt’s and Vermeer’s. Best selection of Dutch Masters. After 10 years of renovations it is now open again in it's full glory. The Honor Gallery is absolutely stunning. You can easily spend half a day here.

And since I love food in all its aspects, here are a few food things that are typically Dutch:

Febo

http://www.febodelekkerste.nl/eng/

Quintessential Dutch fast food. Not healthy, not haute cuisine, but it reminds me of my childhood. Lots of locations in A’dam, so it will be hard not to run into one. Almost everything is deep-fried. My personal favorite is a “frikandel speciaal”. Think a deep fried hotdog (but more seasoned), covered in mayo, spiced ketchup and raw onion. You may have to order that at the counter.

 

Indonesische rijsttafel.

I picked this one from google, since it has good reviews. Or you can ask the concierge at the hotel you’re staying. It's somewhat like Korean barbeque, lots of small dishes

http://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:offi...

 

Pannekoekenhuis (pancakehouse)

Ask the concierge in your hotel for a recommendation. There are lots of them around. Get a savory one (bacon, cheese), since those are uniquely Dutch. Have them for lunch or dinner (not breakfast).

 

Café Welling

http://www.cafewelling.nl/ I would be amiss without mentioning Café Welling. This is the archetypical Amsterdam neighborhood bar. Whenever Mrs. Duppie and I visit Amsterdam we have to go there. It’s few minutes walking from the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh museum. The bar cat might even come and sit on your lap.

 

 

Brugge

(Notice the correct Dutch spelling, not the incorrect French one we use in the US)

 

Hospitaal museum

http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/musea/Hospitaalmuseum/index.htm

Housed in a medieval hospital, this museum houses a great collection of Northern Renaissance paintings (earlier than the Dutch masters). I was particularly impressed by the St John Altarpiece which is at the end of the collection.

 

Groeninge museum

http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/musea/Groeningemuseum-Arentshuis/G...

Another great collection of Northern Renaissance paintings

 

Begijnhof

http://www.trabel.com/brugge/bruges-beguinage.htm

Generally open to the public, you can walk through this and enjoy the peace and quiet of it all. If you’re lucky you might even see some ‘begijnen’ on their way to church.

 

Belfort

http://www.brugge.be/internet/en/musea/bruggemuseum/belfort/index.htm

The main historical tower in town. You can climb it to the top and get a good view of the city. Wait around for the bells to ring.

Food.

I remember having some great food, but I do not remember the specifics. There are many choices, but I would stay away from the main square, as it’s a place where the tourists go to fill up. Anne's recommendation sounds like a great choice.

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