Why the Netherlands Might Be Our Easiest Tour

"If you have ever looked at a cycling holiday and thought, that looks wonderful, but I could never manage it, this is the article we wrote for you. Because among all the beautiful places we ride, one stands out as the gentlest and most welcoming of all. The Netherlands may just be the easiest tour we offer, and one of the loveliest."

The Gentlest Terrain we ride

The Netherlands has a happy secret that makes it perfect for a nervous first-timer. It is famously, gloriously flat. There are no mountains to haul yourself over and no long climbs to dread.

Better still, it is arguably the most bicycle-friendly country on earth, laced with thousands of kilometres of smooth, dedicated cycle paths that are entirely separated from cars. You ride in your own calm world, with the traffic somewhere else entirely.

For a rider who feels anxious about safety or fitness, this changes everything. The flat cycling routes Netherlands is famous for remove the two things people worry about most: the hills and the cars. What is left is simply the joy of pedalling gently through a beautiful country, which is exactly what a holiday should be.

How it compares to Taiwan, Japan or Bhutan

It helps to see where this tour sits alongside our others. Bhutan is our grand expedition, with a climb towards a Himalayan pass at over 3,000 metres. Our tours in Japan and Taiwan are gentler, but they still serve up real hills, from the roads around Mt Fuji's lakes to the mountains behind Hualien. They reward a rider who enjoys a little effort.

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The Netherlands asks for almost none of that. If Bhutan is the summit of our range and Japan and Taiwan sit comfortably in the middle, the Netherlands tour is the gentle, sunlit foothills where anyone can begin. It is, without much competition, the lowest physical barrier to entry we offer, which makes it a natural first step for the cautious traveller.

Flat does not mean boring, not for a moment

Now, here is the mistake people make. They assume that easy riding means a dull day, as though the only thing worth having on a bike is a burning pair of legs. Nothing could be further from the truth. On a flat route, the effort simply moves out of your legs and into your senses. You spend the day looking, tasting and talking, rather than staring at the tarmac and gasping for breath.

And the Netherlands gives you so much to savour. We stop at a local vineyard, glass in hand among the vines, and at a traditional eel smokehouse where you meet the people who have been curing fish the same careful way for generations. You will roll past windmills and along glassy canals, through storybook villages and open green polders. This is the quiet luxury we build every tour around: access to real places and real people, meeting the owner rather than the cashier. The riding is easy so that the experiences can be rich.

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There is a gentle culture to Dutch cycling that adds to all of this. Here, riding a bicycle is simply how life is lived, by everyone, at every age, in ordinary clothes and without a hint of hurry. Falling into that easy rhythm for a few days is a pleasure in itself, and it is impossible not to feel welcome on two wheels in a country that so clearly adores them.

If you are worried you are not fit enough

Let us speak directly to the worry that holds so many people back. You do not need to be fit or fast or brave to ride here. If you can pedal a bicycle gently for a couple of hours, with breaks whenever you like, you can do this tour. The distances are kind, the surface is smooth, and the ground does not fight you at any point.

And as on every trip, our support vehicle is never far away. If you're tired, or simply fancy watching the world go by for a while, you fold up your Brompton and ride along in comfort. Nobody is left behind, and nobody has anything to prove. This is, quite genuinely, one of the best cycling holidays for beginners we can imagine, and an easy cycling holiday Europe has to offer at its most graceful.

Easy, but never lesser

We are proud that this tour is gentle, because gentle is not the same as small. A Netherlands cycling tour for beginners is full of colour, flavour and warmth, and it sends people home astonished at how much they saw and how far they rode without ever feeling stretched. Ease, done well, is a kind of luxury.

So if nerves have kept you from your first cycling adventure, let this be the one that changes your mind. Flat roads, safe paths, wonderful food, and a folding bike that makes all of it effortless.

Come and surprise yourself in the Netherlands. We think you are more ready than you know.

Read more about our Netherlands Amsterdam tour here