Merlijn's famous Holland & Belgium tour

Day 1: Amsterdam – Overnight dock

Afternoon check in, afterwards Merlijn will set sail. We’ll present you with a welcome drink and introduce the crew. We will also provide information on the tour, the ship, and offer you a safety briefing. After you have become acquainted with your home for the next 10 days, we will serve you dinner in Merlijn’s restaurant while cruising. In the evening, there will be time for a stroll on land because Merlijn will be docked for the night in a small Dutch town.

Day 2: Overnight dock – Vreeswijk/nieuwegein.

Bike tour: 20-25 km or extend to 40-45

After a first delicious breakfast, our guide will give you a good explanation on how to use the bikes and safety on the road. Meanwhile the crew will unload the bikes ashore, we'll assign you  one of our bikes and your first bike ride can begin. You cycle on good bike paths along the small ‘Vecht’ river and beautiful surroundings, you begin to understand why cycling is so popular in the Netherlands! Just after your picknick lunch, Merlijn will await you at a dock. You can choose to board or cycle on and extend your tour. Afternoon everyone boards the ship and enjoy an afternoon cruise to Vreeswijk/nieuwegein.

Day 3: Vreeswijk/nieuwegein - Rotterdam. Bike tour: 40-45 km

This morning you cruise along with Merlijn during breakfast and soon start the cycle tour for the ride of the day! One of these days we will visit a real Dutch cheese farm, these hard-working farmers are not always open for visits, so we will look at when is most convenient. You can see how cheese is made and often buy tasty 'souvenirs'. Talking about cheese, you cycle by Gouda along the way! The city you might know as 'Gudah', known worldwide for its cheeses.

After your visit, you cycle on passing the polder landscape Netherlands is famous for. Reaching Rotterdam, your guide will choose the most quiet bike paths leading you to the Merlijn docked in the port of Rotterdam. At night there’s time for a stroll on land.

Day 4: Rotterdam – Kinderdijk - Dordrecht. Bike tour: 30-35 km or extend to 40-45 km

Today’s cycling tour starts early for those who want to ride the longer distance, others will cruise along. Either way; soon the skyline of ‘Manhattan on the Maas’ - as the city of Rotterdam is also known - will appear. You will bike along the highlights of this metropole, while following the paved cycle paths. Cross the river with a ferry to reach ‘Kinder-Dijk’, which is world-famous for its windmills, and you will be able to see an impressive row of them, built to drain the ‘Alblasserwaard polder’. Kinderdijk is official UNESCO world heritage. The best way to see this open-air museum is by bike! After your visit, we’ll cycle on. Taking another ferry to reach the island of Dordrecht, todays destination and overnight stay.

Day 5: Dordrecht. Bike tour: 20-25 km + Canoe tour or Hike.

Merlijn stays in port today, giving you the opportunity to enjoy Dordrecht, and it’s amazing nature in the ‘backyard’ to the fullest. We have added this day to the tour to give you more choice and multi adventure. Let’s start with the options.

1. Give your bike a day off, and enjoy everything Dordrecht’s old city offers like; Culture & Museums; in 1814 the first Dutch constitution was signed here. Or shopping; Dordrecht has the longest continuous shopping street in the Netherlands! Of course you can just relax onboard and finally read that book you brought.
2. Our guide can lead you, with a short bike ride, to 'the Biesbosch', a large and very well-known national park. Put your bike on the kickstand, hop into a canoe, and paddle for several hours through the small creeks of this area. You can spot wildlife and enjoy the quiet life of the Biesbosch. Don't be afraid to get lost as we will be guidance. If canoeing isn't for you, take a look at the next option.
3. Also for this option, you will cycle with the group to the national park. We have prepared a hiking trail which, depending on the ability of the group, will be between 10 and 15 km. Many Dutch people preceded you to walk along this unique nature reserve. After your visit to the Biesbosch, we cycle together as a group back to the ship.

Tonight you are enjoying dinner on your own in the city, there is a good range of delicious dishes both local and international. By arranging dinner by yourself, you really have the freedom to arrange this day completely as you wish. Dordrecht is also the home port of Merlin, so we can inform you well about the possibilities.

Day 6: Dordrecht – Willemstad - Tholen. Bike tour: 35-40 km

There will be a sailing breakfast while we cruise to Willemstad. You will then spend some free time in this picturesque small town with its windmill and harbour, after which your bike tour to Tholen will start. The tour will be on flat terrain through a ‘polder landscape’. Tholen was once an island in the middle of the large Zeeland streams, where the main occupation was fishing. Nowadays, it is connected to the mainland in various ways, but is still a charming village with many relics of an eventful past.

Day 7: Tholen – Antwerp. Bike tour: 30-35 km, or extend to 55-60 km.

Cycling the last miles in the Netherlands before crossing borders to Belgium. Today is all about the cultural differences and seeing the landscapes change, scenic rides! Afternoon you can board the Merlijn, and together we’ll sail through Antwerp’s magnificent harbour to our docking place in the historic centre.

Or Carry on biking through the ‘harbour landscape’ until you reach Merlijn’s berth in Antwerp.

All options will cross the border from Netherlands to Belgium, where passports are long gone and lead you to Antwerp. Dinner will be served onboard, tomorrow we’ll stay in port to explore all the cultural highlights.

Day 8: Antwerp. Culture day.

Merlijn will stay a full day in port to give this Antwerp the attention it deserves! This city is not only known as the ‘diamond city’, but also as the native city of the painter Rubens. In the heart of the city you will see the Cathedral of ‘Our Lady’ (entrance included), as well as opulent merchant homes from Antwerp’s illustrious rich past, around the Market Square. Your guide will inform you about the best sights & museums, or you can spend time shopping in the lively city centre. Tonight you can enjoy the Belgian cuisine while eating out in one of the 1000+ local restaurants in Antwerp.

Day 9: Antwerp – Ghent. Bike tour: 30-50 km

Where we normally design the program around the bike tour, today is entirely devoted to the tides of the Scheldt River, and we will determine the bike tour based on nautical priorities. That actually sounds more exciting than it is, because Merlijn's professional captain and guide know this area like no other. In short, this means that part of the distance will be sailed and another part cycled.

In the morning you’ll leave Antwerp behind you, and wave goodbye while follow the Scheldt river further upstream via Temse and Sint-Amands. There is a beautiful cycle path, and the landscape around the river is magnificent. We’ll pass the town of Baasrode and Dendermonde at the Dender estuary. You either cycle or cruise along the beautiful but capricious tidal river Schelde ending the day in Ghent.

Day 10: Ghent - Bruges. Bike tour approx. 40-45 km

In the morning we first take time to visit this lively university city, and once again one with a rich past. Ghent has its origins in Roman times, at the place where the rivers Leie and Schelde converge. This favorable situation brought a great deal of prosperity over the years. The major church is the St. Baafs Cathedral, built in various ages and in various styles. The berth in Ghent is a fair distance from the centre. We will organize a boat ride through the city’s canals, before biking on

Your last bike ride will take you through the pleasant countryside of Western Flanders to Bruges. Bruges, also called ‘the Venice of the North’, is perhaps the most beautiful of all Flemish cities. Its old centre, which dates back to the Middle Ages, is almost completely intact. At the time, Bruges was a metropolis, a centre of art and commerce, which we can still fully enjoy. It’s also a great place to shop or have an evening out. We end the day with a farewell dinner onboard.

Day 11: Bruges

After breakfast, it is time to say goodbye and continue your European trip or leave for the airport.

*Please note that we will not visit Bruges during the tour, we strongly recommend staying a few days longer to see and visit Bruges.