A week holiday cycling through the Netherlands and Belgium from the UK (on a ferry from Hook of Holland).
Day 1 - Hoek, Delft, Gouda and Harmelen. Very hot day, we hit 36C in the afternoon so a bit draining at times, but the most beautiful day and the breeze definitely helped at times. The safety and ease of the cycling infrastructure hit us immediately - I felt like a kid in a sweet shop! We were smitten with the friendliness of the locals too, who not only offered to top up our water bottles (with chilled water!) but spent time talking to us and making recommendations.
Day 2 - Harmelen, Utrecht, Leerdam and Biezenmortel. Much milder temperature, beautiful day. Utrecht is quite busy but navigating it was a breeze. We once again were saved by locals, this time a young teenager who navigated us to the ferry when my route took us through a dead-end road closed by works.
Day 3 - Biezenmortel, Oirschot, Eindhoven, Heike and Mol (Belgium). Eindhoven is where we cycled the Hovenring cycling roundabout, a genius infrastructure that puts the safety of cyclists at the very front. We crossed to Belgium without even knowing (I was a tad disappointed by that!) as it truly is a continent with no borders. Somehow we could tell we were in Belgium when the cycling infrastructure wasn't as impressive as we felt less safe than in the Netherlands - still great paths.
Day 4 - A loop around Limburg. Where this whole idea of touring the Netherlands and Belgium started - I saw pictures of Cycling Through Water and thought that was amazing and I wanted to experience that in person. Later on, I also found Cycling Through the Trees, another genius infrastructure that puts you in more contact with nature, without interfering with it. Then the route just grew around those 2 points of interest, and well, here we are! Loved them both, and I'm so happy that I planned and visited them. A unique experience.
You can find out more about both places (and more!) on www.visitlimburg.be/nl/unieke-fietsbelevingen-limburg
Day 5 - Mol, Herentals, Zendhoven and Antwerp. The days had started to get colder and overcast. Antwerp is very busy and not exactly a pleasure to cycle around, especially in the city centre, but we still found plenty of segregated lanes along busy roads, so I'm not complaining.
Day 6 - Antwerp, Heide, Essen and Zevenbergen. Back in the Netherlands. You really can tell the difference as you instantly feel so much safer on roads, and no matter where you end up, there's always a cycling lane!
Day 7 - Zevenbergen, Dordrecht, Rotterdam and Hoek. A very different day to the rest, with rain and wind. Rotterdam is rich in history and we met some lovely locals who spent some time telling us a bit of it. The last 5 miles along the coast were quite taxing for me, and I was glad to end and being able to sit down (not on a saddle!), but my God, did I love this experience! I definitely want to repeat it into new countries.
