Four guests rented bikes from Frederic. Within an hour they returned because one of the bikes wasn’t working properly. Frederic’s either couldn’t or wouldn’t exchange the bike and then refused to return their money. And, they were exceptionally rude about it.

A few months later, four guests rented bikes from Mac Bikes. They returned within an hour because there was a problem with the wheel on one of the bikes. Mac Bike’s exchanged the bike for a better one, gave them all an extra half day, apologised for the hassle and off they went. They took a free ferry to the north and cycled in the country side.

My advice is to go with Mike’s Bikes, Mac Bikes, Yellow Bikes or Zwarte Fiets. They are used to working with tourists, have better customer service and are more likely to have a bike to exchange or return your money if you have any issues.

And, the Canal Bikes? Amusing and fun for about 20 minutes. Then, they become hard work. There is a reason the rental companies charge a hefty fee if you abandon the canal bike. If they didn’t charge the pick-up fee, most people would abandon the canal bike within 30 minutes, max.

Enjoy, and remember, everything approaching from the right has the right-of-way, be it auto, bike, pedestrian, dog, horse, wheelchair. Bikes DO NOT have the right of way in Amsterdam; that is a traveler’s myth. Everything on your right has the right-of-way.