Welcome to all cyclists
So you want to find out more about cycling (holidays) in Belgium? Great! Because there is a real cycling culture in Belgium. People don’t just cycle for leisure here, but also to get about and commute to work. You will see all kinds of cyclists on the road: office workers with briefcases slung over their shoulders, students with their school bags secured on the back of their bikes, mothers on carrier bikes with their children, dog owners with their pooches in dog trailers. And let’s not forget the many recreational cyclists.
Belgium is the perfect place to explore by bike. The country has many cycle paths and signposted cycle routes, the landscape is flat, distances are short and there is lots to see and do along the way. So come visit Belgium and get on a bike! This is how our tours work:
Information from A to Z
Arrival
Day 1 of your holiday is arrival day, the day you travel to the starting point of your tour. We haven’t planned any cycling on this day. A town selected by us as starting point for a tour is easy to reach by public transport unless otherwise specified. For those arriving by car, a parking place is not possible to reservate. Not all the hotels have free parking spots.
Alternative Starting Point
Should you wish to start your tour at a different town on the route from the one we have assigned as the starting point, this can usually be arranged. However, please keep in mind that it will not always be possible to rent our bikes at an alternative point of departure. Nor is free parking at the hotel guaranteed. Please contact us for further details.
Bank details
The name and address of our bank is:
ING Bank N.V.
Foppingadreef 7
1000 BV Amsterdam
Account number: 9679616
IBAN: NL45INGB0009679616
BIC (Swift code): INGBNL2AXXX
Bicycle Hire and Insurance
Do you wish to insure your bike against theft? The cost is € 3,- per day per bicycle.
For an electric bicycle: € 6,00 per day per bicycle. Please see the General Terms and Conditions for Bicycle Hire and Insurance.
Booking
The easiest way to book your bike holiday, is to fill out our online booking form. But feel free to use e-mail or phone if you prefer. The booking will be definitive and irrevocable as soon as the booking confirmation has been sent to you. Please also read our Conditions of Booking. Should you wish to make changes to your booking, this will be possible up to 14 days before the start of the holiday (if the hotels are still able to accept the changes). We charge €25, - per booking for processing the change irrespective of the number of participants.
Breakdown
We advise that you bring your own puncture kit in case you have to fix a flat tire. For minor repairs you can turn to a bicycle repairman. For anything bigger, call our service hotline.
Cancellation
- cancellation until the 21st day (exclusive) before the start of your bike trip: deposit
- cancellation from the 21st day (inclusive) until the 14th day (exclusive) before the start: 50% of the full amount
- cancellation from the 14th day (inclusive) until the 5th day (exclusive) before the start: 75% of the full amount
- cancellation from the 5th day (inclusive) to the start: 90% of the full amount
- cancellation on the starting day or later: the full amount
Children
Some of our bike tours are suitable for families with children. We rent out child bikes, child seats, trailers and trailer-bikes.
Cycle Hire
If you don’t bring your own, you can rent a bicycle from us. Our touring bikes are 24-speed gear.
For € 12, - a day you can hire a 24-speed gear bike.
An e-bike is € 25,- a day.
For photographs, see our website.
You will receive your rental bike at the start of your holiday and return it before you go home. All bikes are provided with chain locks. If a rental bike gets stolen or damaged, we will hold the client responsible. If your insurance does not cover this event, you will have to pay the costs yourself.
Departure Day
The last day of the holiday is departure day: the day you check out of the hotel and travel home. We have not planned any cycling on this day. Rental bikes will not be available to you on this day.
Discounts
Children
A child aged 0-4 sharing a room with its parents: free
For a child aged 4-11 sharing a room with its parents: 20% discount For an extra bed in a double room, the third person of 12 years or older gets 10% discount
Groups
For groups of Seven or more, who book a holiday together, Belgian Bike Tours offer group discounts:
• Seven or eight people: 7% off per person
• Nine or more people: 10% off per person.
Extra Nights
It is possible to stay extra nights at any of the hotels on your route at the cost of € 70,- per extra night per person (based on a double room).
Full Payment
The total amount due must be in our possession 6 weeks before the start of your cycling holiday. The deposit is 15% of the total amount (minimum €100,-) and is due no later than ten days after receipt of our booking confirmation.
Hotels
After a wonderful day’s cycling, there’s nothing like a comfortable and pleasant hotel to top off the experience. We make a point of selecting hotels that have a good atmosphere and ample luxury and comfort. You will stay in hotel rooms with en-suite shower/toilet or bath/toilet. In the booking form you can opt for just bed and breakfast or choose to also have your evening meals at the hotels.
Insurance
For a holiday without a care, you need to set off well insured because in the event of unexpected incidents you’ll want help. Moreover, it is in your best interest to limit your financial risk as much as possible in case of cancellation or other unforeseen circumstance. We recommend to take out a travel insurance at home before your trip starts. We do offer the possibility to take out a cancellation insurance with us.
Knooppunt (=intersection) signs
For the most part, our tours follow the Knooppunten cycling routes. Belgium has an elaborate system of numbered crossroads / intersections with signs for cyclists indicating the way to connecting crossroads. On paper it will look something like this: knooppunt 61 - 70 - 71 - 72 - 73 - 47. When you arrive at intersection 61, another sign will point the way to the next intersection (70) where you will find another sign (71) pointing the way to the next intersection etc. It’s a very good system! Due to road works or temporary closure of a road it may not always be possible to follow the original routes. Where possible, we will provide you with an alternative route.
Luggage
Your luggage – one suitcase per person (max. 20 kilo) – will be transported by us from hotel to hotel. The luggage is picked up after 9 a.m. and usually delivered to your next hotel before 5 p.m.
If you wish to bring more luggage, please let us know in advance. This is possible for an extra fee of 5 euro per bag per day.
We will handle your luggage with care. With normal use scratches, dents and other minor damages of your suitcases can occur. For this, we are not responsible. For large damages you can file a claim with your travel and/or luggage insurance.
Level
We have cycle tours for cyclists of all ability levels, as our tours have varying degrees of difficulty.
Distances
We have listed explicitly all the daily cycling distances for each tour. Please study them carefully before you decide on a holiday. Moreover, you may want to take into consideration how much time you want to spend sightseeing in relation to the hours spent cycling. Remember, you can always book an extra night if you need more time to see the sights.
Terrain
A big part of Belgium is flat and only the wind will give you resistance. However, there are other parts of the country which may require more pedal power. The South Western area is on a low ridge; and in the east of Flanders (Flemish Brabant and Haspengouw you will find a rolling landscape. If you go to the French-speaking part of the country (Wallonie) you will find a hilly area with some steep climb in the Ardennes. We managed to design a few beatiful trips over relatively flat roads in this region but you will need a basic cycling conidition and/or en e-bike to cycle in this part of Belgium.
On the whole, it is hard to predict how cyclists will experience the level of difficulty of their tour. It depends on a range of factors, some of them subjective. To name but a few:
-Wind direction and speed on a certain day. Headwind or tailwind?
-Weather conditions. Thirty kilometres may feel like longer in the rain.
-The number of gears on the (rental) bicycle.
-The general level of fitness of the cyclist and how he is feeling on the day.
-The number of consecutive cycling days.
The classification below should be regarded as a global indication of cycling difficulty levels and is intended only to help compare the tours in this brochure.
Level 1 *
Easy cycling trip on relatively flat terrain, suitable for people with little or no cycling experience. Daily cycling distances span roughly 30-50 km.
Level 2 **
The terrain is slightly hilly. You will encounter a short incline from time to time. With some cycling experience you should easily be able to handle this level. Daily distances span 30-65 km.
Level 3 ***
You can expect a journey through hilly terrain with regular climbs, some of them strenuous even to the point of perhaps having to get off and push for a bit. Daily cycling distances span 30-75 km.
Level 4 ****
Hilly to mountainous terrain. Inclines are longer and steeper than in level 3. A good level of physical fitness is a must-have. Daily cycling distances can vary from 30 to 80 km.
Level 5 ****
Stages on mountainous terrain with long and heavy climbs. This level is only for really well-trained cyclists.
Payment
As soon as we can confirm your holiday, we will send you the travel agreement (contract) per e-mail. It will stipulate the sum of your down payment, to be paid immediately (15% of the total price of your holiday plus insurance premium if you want to buy travel insurance). The remaining sum is due no later than six weeks before the starting date of your holiday.
After the booking is confimed by us, you will receive the log in information for My BBT, your personal holiday page.
On My BBT you can see a lot of payment options to make it easier for you to transfer the money.
The name and address of our bank is:
ING Bank N.V.
Foppingadreef 7
1000 BV Amsterdam
Account Number: 9679616
IBAN: NL45INGB0009679616
BIC (Swift code): INGBNL2AXXX
Pets
Most hotels don’t accept pets. If you want to take your dog with you on your holiday, please contact us to discuss the options.
Points of departure
We have assigned an official point of departure to every tour. However, should you wish to start the tour at a different stop on the route, this can be arranged. Please note that rental bikes are not available at these alternative points of departure. Moreover, we only transfer luggage from and to hotels on the route.
Rental Bikes
We have a wide range of rental bikes. Click on Rental Bikes to check them out.
Round Tours
Most of our tours are round tours, i.e. the hotel where you start your holiday is also the hotel you return to at the end. Free parking is not standard for all our tours.
After full payment has been made, we will send you the hotel list per e-mail. The complete route package incl maps etc. you will find in the first hotel when you arrive.
