A Holland-touring newbie seeks wisdom...
Posted: 4 Sep 2018, 10:31pm
In three weeks from now, I'll ride 60 miles from home to the DFDS ferry terminal at North Tyne, and take the overnight ferry to Ijmuiden. I'm grabbing the opportunity for a short five-day circular tour in Holland before sailing/riding home again. I'm looking forward to my first tour 'abroad' in many years!
My plan is to ride north from Ijmuiden to Alkmaar, then east to pick up the Zuiderzee route, which I'll broadly follow for my tour. I'm not fanatical about staying 'on route' and am confident (from what I've read) that route-finding will be relatively straightforward. But I've resisted buying maps or guidebooks, mainly because I keep reading that the LF route network is under major review - and specifically that the Zuiderzee route 'will undergo major revision in 2018'. However, I can find no information about what that revision entails, or how it is progressing, or whether I can expect to follow it now that we are three quarters of the way through 2018! The routeplanner.fietsersbond.nl site seems to show the route without any significant revisions. Maps and gpx planning might be a waste of money and time, if I find the route on the ground has changed... So I'm intending to 'wing it' and will hope to follow some signage!
So after waffling on about my 'plan', I have a few questions which I'm hoping to garner some wisdom about:
1. Does anyone know whether the Zuiderzee route is a) revised yet, and b) easy to follow right now?! Is winging it re route-finding likely to cause me any significant problems?
2. Are there any Holland-experts who would advocate a different/better/quieter route for a 400-500km 5-day circular tour? (I need to start and finish at the ferry terminal in Ijmuiden!) I'm riding midweek, and I'm hoping for a quiet ride, not dodging other bikes all day long...
3. I've registered with the vriendenopdefiets.nl organisation, and plan to use it for accommodation along my route. It looks interesting, intriguing even - does it have a 'good reputation'? I can find very little information other than on their own site... I have the book listing all the available accommodation, but it's 'pot luck' whether you pick a beauty! And of course Tripadvisor has ruined the thrill of potluck accommodation, in the modern age
4. I'm surprised to read the same message on many sites, that bike theft seems to be a significant problem, even in such a bike-friendly culture. That has me just a little worried. Is this something to worry about - everywhere? I hope to explore some of the towns I will pass through, on foot for an hour or two perhaps. Is it safe to leave the bike, locked up? What do tourists in the Netherlands do about bike baggage? Lugging it around town will be a pain... (I know what you're thinking; but yes, I'll have a large saddlebag, and a bar bag.)
5. Can anyone advise which towns along the Zuiderzee route are 'must-visit', even if it means diverting from the LF route in order to do so?
Perhaps I will stop now, as I'm probably asking too many questions in one post already! Thanks for your patience. And any wisdom.
My plan is to ride north from Ijmuiden to Alkmaar, then east to pick up the Zuiderzee route, which I'll broadly follow for my tour. I'm not fanatical about staying 'on route' and am confident (from what I've read) that route-finding will be relatively straightforward. But I've resisted buying maps or guidebooks, mainly because I keep reading that the LF route network is under major review - and specifically that the Zuiderzee route 'will undergo major revision in 2018'. However, I can find no information about what that revision entails, or how it is progressing, or whether I can expect to follow it now that we are three quarters of the way through 2018! The routeplanner.fietsersbond.nl site seems to show the route without any significant revisions. Maps and gpx planning might be a waste of money and time, if I find the route on the ground has changed... So I'm intending to 'wing it' and will hope to follow some signage!
So after waffling on about my 'plan', I have a few questions which I'm hoping to garner some wisdom about:
1. Does anyone know whether the Zuiderzee route is a) revised yet, and b) easy to follow right now?! Is winging it re route-finding likely to cause me any significant problems?
2. Are there any Holland-experts who would advocate a different/better/quieter route for a 400-500km 5-day circular tour? (I need to start and finish at the ferry terminal in Ijmuiden!) I'm riding midweek, and I'm hoping for a quiet ride, not dodging other bikes all day long...
3. I've registered with the vriendenopdefiets.nl organisation, and plan to use it for accommodation along my route. It looks interesting, intriguing even - does it have a 'good reputation'? I can find very little information other than on their own site... I have the book listing all the available accommodation, but it's 'pot luck' whether you pick a beauty! And of course Tripadvisor has ruined the thrill of potluck accommodation, in the modern age
4. I'm surprised to read the same message on many sites, that bike theft seems to be a significant problem, even in such a bike-friendly culture. That has me just a little worried. Is this something to worry about - everywhere? I hope to explore some of the towns I will pass through, on foot for an hour or two perhaps. Is it safe to leave the bike, locked up? What do tourists in the Netherlands do about bike baggage? Lugging it around town will be a pain... (I know what you're thinking; but yes, I'll have a large saddlebag, and a bar bag.)
5. Can anyone advise which towns along the Zuiderzee route are 'must-visit', even if it means diverting from the LF route in order to do so?
Perhaps I will stop now, as I'm probably asking too many questions in one post already! Thanks for your patience. And any wisdom.