Check into your hotel and then get out to explore Europe’s most cycle friendly capital. The city is of course famous for its gorgeous 400-year-old canal district but we also recommend taking in the street artists and performers on Dam, Leidseplein and Rembrandtplein. The Canal Museum is a great new attraction and the renovated Rijks and Maritime Museums are also worth visiting.

You’re not cycling all that far today so there is plenty of time to visit any of Amsterdam’s sights that you missed yesterday. When you are finally ready, leave the city via a lovely cycle path and head out into rural Kennemerland past polders and vast country estates. The going is easy and as you would expect very flat. Before long you will find yourself arriving in Haarlem where you will stop for the night. Check-in to your centrally located hotel and then take a wander through the historic old town. Art galleries, cafes, bars, restaurants and specialty shops live cheek-by-jowl in the narrow winding streets making this city a delight to explore.

There’s plenty of time for further exploration of Haarlem this morning before setting off on the bikes. Today’s route leads you south on idyllic cycle paths through the quiet and peaceful dune and bulb region. If you are cycling this route during April and early May then you can expect to be treated to a riot of colour as this is where the majority of Holland’s famous tulip fields are located. Whatever time of year you make the trip the polder landscape, complete with traditional windmills and ancient dykes is the perfect backdrop to your cycle ride. You’ll spend the night in Leiden, an old university town, again with a lovely old, cobble-stoned centre to explore on foot.

A reasonably short cycle ride today so take your time and enjoy the unique polder landscapes that accompany you on your journey. Polders are reclaimed plots of land, bisected by small canals and contained by a clever system of Dykes. In the old days, traditional windmills were used to pump these polders dry and keep the waters at bay but today more modern technology is used. Your cycle path eventually delivers you to Delft – a town famous for its famous blue and white pottery. There are a number of potteries around the town that you can visit during your stay, including the oldest, Royal Delft where the products are still hand-painted following a centuries old tradition. We also recommend a visit to The Vermeer Centrum where you can admire the work of world famous Delft painter Johannes Vermeer.

Today’s cycle ride leads you eastwards, through the Green Heart of Holland to Gouda. You’ll be pedalling along cycle paths that follow raised dykes through the vibrant green polders past tiny villages and canals. Your destination is Gouda – famous of course for its cheese but also a lovely old town with a beautiful central square. Stroll along the romantic inner-city canals, perhaps stopping in a cafe for a delicious stroopwafel – a local speciality. The town’s cheese market takes place every Thursday morning (last Thursday in June until last Thursday in August) in the main square in front of the gorgeous old City Hall and is definitely worth a visit at the start of day 6. The old weigh house is also a cheese museum and is a fun and interesting place to visit and learn more about Gouda cheese.

Today you embark on the longest ride of the tour but by now your legs are ‘in the groove’ and up for the challenge. The route leads you through gorgeous rural countryside characterised by rivers, canals, polders and lakes. Top tip! The apple tart sold in the small villages in these parts is really quite something and is a great excuse for a break. After a while you join the Amstel River and enjoy a pleasant ride along its banks back into the hustle and bustle of Amsterdam.

Please note that it is possible to split this day in two, spending an extra night in the town of Woerden – in this case you would cover 38 kms in one day and 49 kms the next.

After breakfast it’s time to check out and head for home for home or your next adventure.