Amsterdam Independent Sightseeing By Pedal Boat

We rented a pedal boat for one hour to tour the Amsterdam canals. It's very easy, the weather was amazing, and we had lots of fun! Definitely an activity to do with friends, and possibly with family too but you can only have 4 people on 1 boat. There are several locations that you can hire one from, and very easy to do. The guy who gave us instructions was clear and fun. We found that in order to follow the map directions, we had to also use google maps to tell us where abouts we were as the map they provide is static.

Started out well, the employee provided a map loaded to our phone, we paid and were off. The self guided tour was fun and we got lots of good photos. The problem arrived when we got back to the dock. There was not an employee to be found. We were able to back the boat up to the dock, I got off and got it tied up and helped my family off. From there however, the gate to get off the dock was locked and there are ZERO options off the dock short of jumping in the canal. Eventually, we yelled enough a lady went over and banged on the store window and the employee came out and unlocked the gate. Bonus, he said it was pour fault and we didn’t follow directions “but it’s fine”. He claims he told us we had a one hour limit, he did not. There were four of us present, not a single one of us heard any reference of a time limit, or when to be back. How do you lock up shop, lock the gate and call it a day while you still have guest out on the water or otherwise unaccounted for?

Pedal boat is a great experience to view Amsterdam in your own pace and also keep your teens busy with pedalling instead of sitting in the boat with their phones in hands:) You will have to upload the map to your phone (staff helps you to get it right) and have a bit of instructions. So, in 1 hour you have to complete the tour, but safety first - you’ll not be penalised if you do not make it in time (e.g., you were waiting for ships to pass by). Take some water to drink during the ride. Photos are marvelous and teens were very proud of themselves when they managed to drive it properly.

Never choose a taxi from TRAVELTAXI from Schiphol site, choose a normal taxi in your arrival or Uber Service! We had to wait for their service for an hour at STA desk place. They are taxi contractors. They have their own conditions. Prices same with normal taxi in front of arrival.

pleased we did this fun thing we got to see a lot more than expected and enjoyed the canals we traveled a lot further than planned as well the distance you travel will depend on how good your legs are at peddling

This was a fun way to see Amsterdam and enjoy the water without the busy-ness of an organised canal boat tour. The location was easy to find and we were given (brief) instructions on how to navigate the waterways and the "rules of the road". Also received a paper map, but honestly this was far less detailed than the map on the app - worth ensuring you have data available and use the app for confidence in your route Slightly disappointing that only 2 people could pedal - this made it hard work for those 2, and we didn't want to risk a switch over mid-canal! We had booked for 90 minutes so followed the longer route, weren't sure how long it would truly take and were back in about 65 minutes so we could have taken a little longer to take photos and just enjoy being on the water

Its a very nice experience but its tiring a bit so if your not a sporty couple it will be tiring other than that its very cool to try it out!

<p>Review for Pedal Boat Rental only- It's a good activity, but be prepared to have to receive absolutely no instructions when you get there. We were provided with a map that did not include canal numbers or route names, so we had to figure that out ourselves with our phone GPS and told to grab the boat and have fun. No clear instructions on how to use the boat, safety instructions or tips, how to undock it or anything. On our own but we winged it, it was all pretty straight forward. I expected at least some type of oversight by the dock to let me know I wasn't doing anything crazy. All in all it was a good time, it was just a bit stressful realizing that I would get charged if i got lost and ended up in the wrong dock turns out it would've been pretty easy if i hadn't had brought my phone with me.</p>

We picked up a boat in the singelgracht canal for 90 minutes giving the young lad running the kiosk 50€ and nothing else(30€ rental and €20 deposit, no id). They included a map that was unintelligible to any non sea faring society. Bravely, we proceeded to leave the busy singelgracht canal towards central amsterdam. The boat was a complete pos, and steered worse than a pallet jack on cobblestone. But we made due. We continued up the busy canal system, getting stuck in a few spots on the way, nearly being sunk by dozens of 60ft canal cruise boats who dont care about your little pedal boat, and being entertained by lovely amsterdam with its garbage filled canals and snooty dutch people. The sun sure was beating down hard that day, and we were working our butts off on this little pos boat. By the third bottle of wine and fifth blunt in the sun we were 90 minutes in, completely lost, and nowhere near any rental location. Being drunk and blunted, we decided to park the boat in the red light district... or so we thought. We gathered our stuff and went off for more green. 60 minutes later we couldnt find the friggin boat. Thank god they dont ask for id cuz we had no idea where we left that stupid pedal boat. So in summation, dont drink and smoke too much on the pedal boats, but if you do, they know you wont get far so the deposit is reasonable enough you dont reallly need to return the boat.

<p>Good tour , we did this at 9am and no one was there. It is quite hard work so I wouldnt recommend it for unfit people</p>

<p>Nice way to spend little time and look at the city from a different angle.</p>

<p>Paddle boats were fun, but we still had to wait in the big line twice. Once to get the boat and again to get the 20 Euro deposit back. Having the ticket to Heineken did speed that up.</p>

<p>Got a dodgy boat which kept filling up with water and the people running it werent helpful.</p>

<p>Bad weather so we didn't end up using. I give it a three though because the advertisement states that the boats have covers. When I asked the counter person laughed at me, in a polite way.</p>

<p>Over charged, no deal with Heinikan experience as advertise</p>

Nos encantó la experiencia. Nos lo pasamos muy bien, con la emoción de no chocar con ningún barco (en las intersecciones podia ocurrir), viendo los canales y las calles desde esa perspectiva, pasando por debajo del sauce llorón y pedaleando a tope. Te dan acceso a un plano para seguir una ruta y ver alguno lugares emblemáticos. Le pongo 4 estrellas porque el patin estaba bastante sucio y habia hasta una araña en su telaraña.

Une autre façon de visiter Amsterdam, très bon moment ! Accueil parfait 👌 En plus le gars parler français c’était impeccable parce qu’au début on croyait que l’on allez pas pouvoir ouvrir une petite binouze et finalement Amsterdam est la ville de la défonce donc que du bénéf Vive Amsterdam BINBINKSS

Activité à ne surtout pas manquer ! Visite à son rythme le long des canaux et personnel super accueillant 👍

We were considering renting it or not. We saw several couples and families in it and the truth, we got the idea out of our minds and took a standard tour of the canals. The hydropedals are very slow, you barely advance and you end up exhausted. The people who were in them came to just over half a canal glad they hadn't rented it.

We took a pedalo at Stromma Westerkerk. The landlord was friendly and thoughtful and helped us well with the route. The pedal boat was technically fine. We made a nice trip, cycled for over an hour, which was long enough for us (1 adult, 1 child). Nice to view Amsterdam from the canal and be active at the same time. Nice side effect: they are also open early on Sundays, nice with children who are up early! Highly recommended!