Yellow Bike, Amsterdam

Bikes that move!

If you really want a taste of the every day swing of Dutch life, a Yellow bike tour through Amsterdam is the way to go! The tour starts at an easy to find location close to the Central Station. From there on you don’t have to think about finding your way anymore as you will be guided by a friendly, well informed tourguide. Just follow him or her and the trail of yellow bikes in front of you and you will see things that no tourist could find on his own. And before you know it, you will have made a three hour bike tour through the city while discovering Amsterdam with all it’s little alleys, hidden courtyards, and other intimate spots a normal tourist does not have access to.

The tour will show you beautiful harbour views and interesting historical places such as the Anne-Frank House. The highlights of the city like the Vondelpark and the Museumsquare will not be forgotten. Like a real Dutch habit, they will find an excuse to drink a coffee as often as possible. So after one hour and a half there will be a little pitstop in the park to have a drink. With a maximum of 12 people and a minimum of 4, you will have a unique Dutch experience that keeps you fit at the same time.

And if it rains, no worries! You can choose to cancel your tour free of charge or you can go for the real hard core Dutch experience and borrow a big yellow rain poncho. I can guarantee you that that will definitely give you an ultimate reallife Dutch experience. There is one point to remember though, don’t become so Dutch that you disregard the traffic laws, like the rest of the Amsterdammers just love to do. Notice that the Dutch cyclists don’t stop for a red light, they make up their own rules. They will cross a street or a bridge when they feel like doing it, paying no attention to trafficsignals. That is why staying alert and a little bit of biking experience can help you to navigate through the small city streets.

Once a tourguide myself, I remembered one woman very well. She constantly bumped into the bike of the person in front of her. I asked her what the problem was. She yelled to me while she was trying to get back on her yellow bike: ‘You know what, I have been on a bike before, in the gym, but then, it did not move!’

More information on Yellow bike tours : www.yellowbike.nl

By Monica De Ruiter