Alex was an excellent... - Alex was an excellent tour guide, Giethoorn village was a dream to live. Degrachtof restaurant for lunch was splendid!

Geithoorn and Afsluit Dyke Day Trip - Great day and very interesting. Bus was on time. Tour guide excellent and the boat trip a great experience. Lunch was fantastic and there were plenty of choices for food, drinks and souvenirs.

I recommend - Very complete the excursion. Each place to which more picturesque. Our guide, Leticia, very good with your explanations and with all the historical information of each place. He made it very enjoyable. It's worth this excursion.

It’s a good one, but we... - It’s a good one, but we missed the international courts for criminals, which is the most important, I have to make another trip for that that was very disappointing

Giethoorn was great,... - Giethoorn was great, although we probably would not have needed as much free time there. There was little narration during the long bus ride to Giethoorn or the dike.

Nice village, but….. - Long bus trip - 2 hours each way in a very Crowded bus. Guide was quite unprofessional- very little information given

Too much free time. The... - Too much free time. The village was worth seeing. The boat ride was nice. We then had over two hours with nothing to do. We had almost no time for the dike which I was most interested in learning about

If you want to see the dyke watch it on TV - Completely trap for tourist. The experience of the dyke it is just a bus drive, there was not even a picture stop, just a bathroom stop. Giethoorn is cute, but very much a place for tourist. The explanations of the guide are pretty basic and a random collection of pieces of information without a clear story of the actual place you are visiting.

Rude and unprofessional driver ruined the start of the trip - On June 6th, I joined a tour to Giethoorn. When I arrived at the coach in the morning, I had brought a pancake with me. A staff member from Tours & Tickets politely told me that food wasn’t allowed on the coach, which was completely fine. So I stepped aside and enjoyed the pancake outside the coach. While I was eating, the driver suddenly came over and started yelling at me, saying I couldn’t bring the pancake on board. I was confused, because I was clearly not on the coach. So I told him to be nice. He then replied, “This is my coach. I can say it.” I found this behavior completely unacceptable. I was following the rules and not causing any disturbance. There was absolutely no reason for the driver to speak to me in such a disrespectful and aggressive tone. This kind of attitude is not okay, especially in a customer-facing role. It left a very bad impression at the start of what should have been a pleasant trip.

Giethoorn is a truly... - Giethoorn is a truly beautiful and unique village—definitely worth visiting. We’re glad we discovered this destination, as it offers a peaceful charm, especially if you venture away from the main tourist paths. The tranquil canals, quaint cottages, and natural surroundings create a picturesque and memorable experience. That said, we were very disappointed with the tour organized through Viator, primarily due to the poor quality of the tour guide. Unfortunately, the guide added no value to the trip. He barely spoke, and when he did, he addressed the group more in Spanish than in English—even though we had booked the English-language tour. He spent more time chatting with the bus driver than interacting with the passengers, and we received almost no information about the places we were visiting. For example, when we stopped at the Afsluitdijk, we were simply told to return to the bus in 15 minutes. No historical context or explanation about the dam was provided. We later had to research it ourselves to appreciate its significance. We also encountered a long traffic delay en route, which cut into our time in Giethoorn. This further highlighted how much more efficient and cost-effective it might be to visit Giethoorn independently—taking the train and planning your own day at your own pace. Upon arrival in Giethoorn, the guide handed out yellow bracelets to about half the group, allowing those people to board the boat immediately. The rest had to wait an hour. Fortunately, we were among the first group, giving us time to enjoy lunch, explore the village, and shops after the boat tour. However, those in the second group were at a significant disadvantage, as they had less time to enjoy Giethoorn after their boat ride. It was surprising and disappointing that the tour was so poorly organized—80 people on a bus, but only 40 spots available per boat trip. If this limitation is known in advance, it should be clearly communicated or better managed by scheduling two boats or adjusting the itinerary. Tour guide said you can rent your own boat if you would like or want to wait ( and it is after the tour itself had an hour boat ride included and prepaid in the tour price). The boat ride itself was a highlight. Our boat captain, a university student working a summer job, was friendly, informative, and funny. He provided interesting insights about the village, canals and made the experience enjoyable. He, not the official Viator tour guide, was the one who deserved a tip. The return journey to Amsterdam was again in silence, except for a short thank-you from the guide (and again Spanish version of his talk was much longer than English). Guide asked us for a tip to him while he planned to stand on the platform and say individual Thanks to people exiting the bus. We ended up tipping the only the driver directly, as he did a good job despite the long day. In summary: • Pros: Giethoorn is beautiful and well worth the visit. The boat ride (especially with a guide) is memorable. • Cons: The Viator tour was poorly executed, lacked meaningful guidance, and involved inefficient logistics. • Recommendation: Visit Giethoorn on your own if you can. Take the train, rent a boat, and enjoy the village at your own pace. Can have a picnic on one of the village islands if you plan for it. If you prefer a tour, consider another company that possibly offers better organization and knowledgeable guides. Also, a tip for fellow travelers: the canals are much quieter earlier in the day. By afternoon, boat traffic becomes dense and chaotic—though watching the occasional boat bumper-to-bumper action is entertaining in its own way!