Tulip Season in the Netherlands Adventure for Women

Day 1

On this arrival day we have arranged for several airport transfers to the hotel based on your arrival time. If you choose to arrive pre-trip, then we’ll collect you from your hotel. You may have time to explore Amsterdam at leisure and grab a snack. This evening (7pm) we’ll have a welcome meet and greet with our local Trip Leader and get to know our road sisters for the week.  Our welcome dinner is delicious. Overnight Amsterdam.

Day 2

After breakfast, we’ll hop in our private van and drive 45 minutes to our first stop: Keukenhof Holland! Here we spend the morning hours exploring the many tulip varieties and displays. The history of Keukenhof dates back to the 15th century. Keukenhof Castle was built in 1641 and the estate grew to encompass an area of over 200 hectares. In 1949 a group of 20 leading flower bulb growers and exporters came up with the plan to use the estate to exhibit spring-flowering bulbs, signaling the birth of Keukenhof as a spring park. The morning visit is best with less crowding and great photographs.  Late morning, we collect our bicycles and start a 35 KM (22 miles) flower route, the area will be full of colorful tulip fields. We bike through villages and in the dunes and along the beach! We will have lunch at the Tulip Experience Amsterdam, which has a lovely exhibition on the history of tulip farming, and a huge tulip field where you can take photos wandering through the rows of flowers. A true bucket list experience, and one you will not soon forget. Early evening we drive back to Amsterdam and enjoy dinner. Overnight Amsterdam.

Day 3

After a leisurely breakfast, we’ll start our full day of exploration in Amsterdam with a guided walking tour through Amsterdam with a focus on the Jewish quarter. The guide will speak to the history around World War II including seeing the names monument, the shadow wall, the Portuguese synagogue, the “dokwerker”, the theater and the stumble blocks. In this two hour guided tour we’ll hear about how the Nazi’s implemented their anti-Jewish regulations, the role of the resistance and the life of the Netherland’s Jewish population in this period. “If we don’t learn from history, we are bound to repeat it.” We will then walk to the Albert Cuyp market where lunch will take the form of a delightful Food Tasting Tour! Dutch herring, smoked eel or fried cod, hot French fries with mayo, poffertjes (Dutch mini pancakes) and the famous stroopwafels (yum!) along with Dutch cheeses and dishes influenced by the former colonies of Suriname and Indonesia.  Late afternoon, we will visit the Anne Frank museum, seeing the artifacts and the hiding place where the family lived before they were discovered. We’ll have some time to relax before our dinner. Overnight Amsterdam.

Day 4

An early breakfast, check out of our hotel and we’re off to the ferry to spend the day at Texel Island!  We’ll hike in the nature reserve and on the beach, see the light house, historical sites and small villages. At low tide we walk on the bottom of the sea. The Wadden sea is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where the huge tidal mudflats are a true buffet for millions of migrating birds. We’ll also take a boat out on the Wadden Sea to go seal watching. These lovely creatures rest on the sandbanks so we can observe them up close…but not too close.. we’ll have binoculars for you to use. A picnic lunch by the sea seems like perfection. We’ll get checked into our hotel and have some free time to roam the town and mingle with the locals. Meet back up for dinner and tell tales of the day.  Overnight Texel Island.

Day 5

After an early breakfast, we’ll check out and take the 9am ferry back to the mainland. Back in our private van, we’ll drive approximately two hours to the De Hoge Veluwe National Park, in the east of the Netherlands. In the National Park we’ll start with lunch at their restaurant, followed by a 4 mile hike through beautiful landscapes, hoping to see some Dutch wildlife, best known for their ‘big four’: red deer, wild boars, mouflons, and roe deer. But the park is home to many more mammals such as foxes, badgers and pine martens. Keep your cameras/phones ready! After hiking we’ll visit the Kröller Möller museum, which has the second largest Van Gogh collection in the world consisting of 90 paintings and 180 drawings. Late afternoon, we’ll leave the park and check into our hotel for the next two nights in the Veluwe area. We’ll get cleaned up and enjoy dinner.  Overnight Veluwe.

Day 6

After breakfast, we start the day with a drive to the “Venice of the North” Giethoorn. Giethoorn is a mostly car-free village in the northeastern Dutch province of Overijssel. This charming village, known for its boat-filled waterways, footpaths, bicycle trails and centuries-old thatched-roof houses. It borders a section of the Weerribben-Wieden National Park, a marshy area once popular for peat and reed harvesting.  As this is best viewed from the water, we’ll get into our kayaks and explore both the village and the National Park. We’ll paddle through such picturesque scenery for a couple of hours. Then we’ll have lunch in a restaurant in Giethoorn. Save some room, because after lunch we will head to a local farm to participate in a cheese making workshop. The farmer will guide us through the process of cheesemaking in the Netherlands, and we’ll taste different kinds of the famous Dutch cheeses. We’ll head back to our hotel for some relaxation time before dinner. Overnight Veluwe.

Day 7

After breakfast, we’ll check out of our lovely hotel, hop back in our van and continue exploring. This morning, we drive to the province of Zeeland in the southwest of the Netherlands. This is a scenic three hour drive with stops. Upon arrival we’ll have lunch, then explore the picturesque towns of Middelburg and Veere. Middelburg, the capital of the Dutch province of Zeeland, possesses all the charms of a proud city steeped in tradition. With its historic canal side houses and twisty alleyways, the late Gothic town hall and the tower are fun to explore. Veere is a delightful historic town full of interesting sights and shops. Many of the houses, streets and buildings in Veere’s historic town center date from the 15th and 16th centuries. It seems only natural that this is followed by a beer tasting in the local brewery at the end of the afternoon! We transfer to our hotel to check in, and have dinner. Overnight Veere/Middelburg area.

Day 8

After breakfast we leave for a day trip to beautiful Bruges in Belgium. Here we start with a guided walking tour of a most photogenic medieval town. Bruges, the capital of West Flanders in northwest Belgium, is distinguished by its canals, cobbled streets and medieval buildings. Markt square features a 13th-century belfry with a 47-bell carillon and 83m tower with panoramic views. Bruges is popular for beer, Belgian fries, and chocolate. Bruges even has its own official city chocolate: the Bruges swan, or Brugsch Swaentje. So naturally, after lunch, it is time to dive into the art of Belgian chocolate making! Yes, we’ll see how they make these beautiful and delicious sweets, and of course taste them.  Late afternoon we transfer back to Amsterdam. Our Farewell Dinner will be a perfect time to share stories and review our amazing week together. Overnight Amsterdam.

Day 9

For those flying home today, we have several time slots for our airport shuttle after breakfast, or stay and play in beautiful Amsterdam or points beyond.

• 8 days/8 nights fully guided tour with an English-speaking Trip Leader and a US Canyon Calling Representative
• All transportation as outlined in this itinerary
• All lodging in double occupancy – or call for single room supplement and availability
• All meals from dinner on Day 1 through breakfast on Day 9
• All activities, excursions, and activity gear as outlined in this itinerary
• All activity guide gratuities
• All entrance fees and permits

• Transportation to and from Amsterdam, Netherlands (Schiphol airport code AMS)
• Alcoholic beverages and items of a personal nature, except for one beer-tasting
• Gratuity to your Trip Leader at the end of the tour