This Bike & Boat holiday passes through a mainly rural landscape only reclaimed from the sea in the 17th century. You can get a feel for the 'Old Dutch' atmosphere in Enkhuizen, Hoorn, Edam and Volendam with the traditional costumes and sailing ships. On Texel, an island with thousands of sheep, there is a magnificent nature reserve easily explored by bike. Return to the mainland and cycle along narrow dykes and country roads, through vast polders and the most beautiful dune area of the Netherlands, Schoorl to Bergen. Alkmaar is the capital of Dutch cheese making with its own cheese market and weigh-house. At Zaanse Schans many of the windmills are still in working order and the mills and houses bring the past to life. Make the journey in April and May, the tulip months, when you can cycle through colourful tulip fields' hectares wide.