Bike and boat along the Meuse

After embarkation around 2 p.m., you will have plenty of time to explore the nearby center of Maastricht. Pay a visit to the Basilica of St. Servatius and stroll through the Bonnefantenmuseum with artworks from different eras. After dinner on board, grab your bike and visit the banks of the Meuse River. Enjoy the view of the city from one of the Meuse bridges. A side trip is worthwhile to the caves of St. Pieter, located under one of the highest mountains in the Netherlands.

During breakfast your ship will bring you to Born. Your journey by bike and boat on the Meuse begins! From the Born lock you get on your bike and after a few kilometers you reach the Belgian Maaseik. In the birthplace of the famous Flemish painter Jan van Eyck, you can take a first breather at the Grote Markt. The route continues to the Belgian-Dutch border to Thorn. In het witte stadje – the white city – it is worth visiting the Abdijkerk, an abbey reflecting several architectural epochs. In the midst of the lake district Maasplassen lies your today's stage destination Roermond.

Today you will reach the city of Venlo around noon. The center of the old fortified city on the Meuse River was largely destroyed during World War II, but today it presents itself with a mixture of modern and historic buildings. Venlo is particularly popular as a shopping city. A few kilometers further on, you will reach your destination for the day, Arcen, a charming little town in the middle of the Maasduinen. Pay a visit to the magnificent castle complex with various gardens from all over the world or let the Hertog Jan Brouwerij tell you about the art of brewing beer.

First, today's journey by bike and boat along the Meuse takes us to Well. The castle surrounded by a moat is considered one of the most beautiful in the Netherlands. Further you cycle through the national park De Maasduinen. Around noon you will reach Afferden. In your stage town of Cuijk, visit the tower located in the center of town. It houses an archaeological museum with finds from the Roman period. In the neo-Gothic St. Martin's Church you can marvel at one of the oldest organs in the Netherlands.

Along the Meuse, you will cross the fortified towns of Grave and Ravenstein today. In Ravenstein, it's worth stopping at the small Wilskracht Stadsbrouwerij, a brewery that can be spotted from afar by an imposing mill. Before reboarding in Maasbommel, you'll cycle past the first amphibious houses built in the Netherlands. By boat you continue to Heusden. The bastion town looks like an open-air museum because of its restored houses and windmills.

In the morning, take a boat to idyllic Gorinchem. With the Woudrichem fortress on the opposite shore, the town is one of the best-preserved fortified towns in the Netherlands. Through a typical Dutch countryside, take a detour to the glass city Leerdam on the Linge River. The city is also famous for Leerdam cheese. Situated on the river Lek, Vianen is your today's stage destination on the tour with bike and boat at the Maas.

From Vianen to Breukelen you continue today first by boat. Back on the bike you cycle along the river Vecht and reach Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands. Cycle past historic canals and famous art museums. Pay a visit to the Van Gogh Museum, for example, or take a look over the old town from the tower of the Oude Kerk, Amsterdam's oldest church.

After breakfast your journey by bike and boat along the Meuse comes to an end. After disembarkation, you will start your individual journey home.