Boat cycling in Holland & Friesland

The trip begins in Enkhuizen, a beautiful old harbour town on the IJsselmeer. Boarding the MS Rigoletto takes place from 4:00 PM, and once you've settled into your cabin there's time to start getting acquainted with the town. Take a first stroll along the harbour and through the historic town centre with its canals, old houses and clear traces from the time when Enkhuizen was an important trading town. Afterwards, the trip's first dinner awaits on board. Unpack properly – the beauty of combining boat and bike is that your cabin travels with you throughout the whole trip.

Start the day by discovering Enkhuizen and its lovely location on the IJsselmeer. The town's rich history is evident in its grand old houses, canals, churches, city walls and harbours. Those interested in history can visit the Zuiderzee Museum before the day's cycling begins. Afterwards you pedal south towards Hoorn on the trip's first easy stage. Hoorn also has a rich maritime past and a well-preserved town centre with many buildings from the 1600s. Here you'll find old warehouses along the quays and the town's characteristic harbour tower, among other things. The ship joins you in Hoorn during the afternoon.

Early in the morning the ship leaves Hoorn and crosses the IJsselmeer to Lemmer in Friesland. When you arrive, a cycling tour awaits through an open landscape of lakes, canals and small villages. You cycle via Oosterzee Buren towards the lake Tjeukemeer and continue through Munnekeburen, Scherpenzeel and Schoterzijl back to Lemmer. If you choose the longer variant, you'll also experience the nature reserves Rottige Meenthe and Brandemeer. Lemmer itself is well worth some time, with its historic town centre and lovely gabled houses. An exciting excursion destination is Woudagemaal, the world's largest still-operational steam-powered pumping station.

Today you continue through the Frisian landscape from Lemmer towards Stavoren. The route leads to the lake Sondeler Leien and further through the forests of Rijsterbos. Along the way you pass Mokkebank, an important area for birdlife, before reaching Roode Klif and eventually Stavoren on the IJsselmeer. Here MS Rigoletto awaits, and after cycling the journey continues on the water. The ship travels via Stavoren towards Harlingen, where you arrive in the evening. Harlingen is one of Friesland's finest old harbour towns, with stately warehouses and patrician houses, canals, bridges and the atmospheric tidal harbour Noorderhaven.

Today's tour lets you discover the countryside around Harlingen and even more of Friesland from the saddle. Here the horizon is vast, the terrain flat and nature ever-present. This is exactly the kind of landscape where the Netherlands shows itself so well by bike: quiet roads and cycle paths, water everywhere and sweeping views over the green countryside. After around 44 kilometres of cycling, you return to Harlingen. During the afternoon the ship sets sail, leaving the mainland behind. Now the journey continues across the water towards Oudeschild on Texel, the largest of the Netherlands' Wadden Islands.

Time for one of the trip's highlights: a whole day of cycling on Texel. The island is the Netherlands' largest North Sea island and offers a fine contrast to Friesland's lake and canal landscape. Here await sea air, open fields, dunes and beaches. You choose between several alternative routes of around 28, 35 or 48 kilometres, so the day is easy to adapt to weather, energy and appetite for exploration. All the tours start and end in Oudeschild, allowing you to take the day at exactly the pace you wish. Towards the afternoon it's time to board again and sail on to Medemblik.

The last day of cycling begins in Medemblik, the smallest and oldest town in West Friesland. If you have plenty of time and fresh legs, a tour of around 23 kilometres around the town is recommended first. You can also stay and discover Medemblik on foot, visit the over 700-year-old Radboud Castle or one of the town's museums. If the weather is fine, the beach also beckons. After that awaits the trip's final cycling stretch, about 24 kilometres along the coast back towards Enkhuizen. Here the circle closes after a week filled with cycling, small towns, sea, lakes and Dutch boating life.

After the last night on board you wake up once again in Enkhuizen. Enjoy breakfast at a leisurely pace before it's time to leave MS Rigoletto. Check-out and disembarkation take place no later than 8:30 AM. Here the round trip ends at the same place where it began, making the journey home easy whether you continue by train, car or onward to the airport in Amsterdam. If you have the chance to stay a little longer, Enkhuizen is also well worth a few extra hours – especially if you missed the town's historic quarters or the Zuiderzee Museum at the beginning of the week.