Giethoorn Village — Attraction in Steenwijkerland

Edit: replying to 'why 1 star?' Because I cannot give a 0 star. I had reserved (one of the last few remaining slots) a 6 person boat for a 12:30pm slot and had arrived at the dock at 12:15pm (as the reservation mentioned not to be late and also to install a stupid navigation app to have a preference at being attended). It was a fairly busy day and the place was managed by an arrogant idiot(probably the owner or an employee) and two boys The guy was accepting people in without a reservation for cash payment (cash only which makes you think about tax evasion but that's not my business I guess). Anyway, I was asked to wait at the back of a very long line (with no priority for reservations) which was mostly people without reservation (believe me because I asked around). There was another group in front of me who also made a reservation and inquired with the guy when they can expect their boat (as it was an 8 person boat) to which he answered "I cannot say abracadabra and conjure up a boat. It'll come when it comes." But all of us waited in line for an hour and a half at which point I asked him what I should do and he said come back at a later time so that there wouldn't be so many people. I trusted this guy and came back at 3:15 pm and still there was a long queue (but relatively shorter). So I approached the guy again to which he again asked me to wait at the back of the line. By this time there were people in the queue with reservations at 3:30pm and 3:45 pm. With every incoming boat I asked whether I can have it but the others were allowed to board the boat. At this point he shouted from the other side of the dock saying "every time you complain you go one step back in the line". I asked him to refund my money which he happily obliged and said "give me a negative review man, I don't care". So here is your well earned review man, enjoy. I understand that it was a fairly busy day and that the guy was trying to make a few extra bucks (not just a few though) but reservations should have a priority or at least a preference. I was never angry at him nor was a complaining the whole time. I did inquire a few times (which I believe is not a crime) but never complained or never in an unfriendly tone. He could have easily given me a boat at the right time or even at the second time but he deliberately chose not to because he has a 1000 other customers. He had nothing to lose. On the other hand I lost a good vacation with my friends who visited from Finland and an additional 70euro since my car rental went beyond booking end time because of a cocky idiot whose ego I somehow hurt. I know my review doesn't matter and that's why I did not leave a comment at first but hey since you asked for it, here you go! Enjoy and have a beautiful day. Hope your business...

We used this rental company and had a mixed experience.

Positives: As it was a weekday, we were able to walk in and rent a large boat without a booking. The pricing also seemed reasonable however more on that later as there were tradeoffs. Giethoorn itself was great and definitely worth exploring by boat.

Negatives: During our experience, our boat lost power and we were stranded. After calling the owner, we were told that the weeds in the shallow water had jammed the propeller shaft and we had to manually pull the weeds out from rear of the boat to fix the issue.

We were never warned that this could happen unlike what other reviews mention so clearly there’s a lack of consistency in their explanation to diffrent groups. In fact, before the trip we were actually assured that the water level would be around 70cm so we were misled.

Another issue was the digital map which relies on a working phone through an app. This seemed fine, however as it was a hot summer day both of our phones with the app overheated and shut down for periods of time (a common issue with iPhones). Again, no warning about this and not even a backup hard copy map was provided. As tourists we had no idea either of these issues would occur.

Upon returning we were told we had to pay an extra cost for the half hour delay to our trip which we felt was unreasonable since the delay was due to a lack of information and provision.

Highly recommend exploring your options as there are many rentals available and do plenty of research as there are opportunities to take advantage of tourists in...

⚠️ Avoid this boat rental at all costs.

The owner has misrepresented his business by registering it as a parking zone in Giethoorn instead of a boat rental. This misleads visitors, who unknowingly end up on his private property and feel pressured into renting a boat.

The boats provided are often broken or poorly maintained, and the owner takes no accountability if you get stranded. This is extremely unsafe, especially for families with small children who could easily be left stuck in the middle of the large lake after leaving the canals.

After experiencing a broken boat, I personally emailed the owner to complain, and he acknowledged the issue. However, he refused to provide any refund or compensation, which clearly shows how little responsibility he takes for the poor service.

When confronted in person, the owner has displayed racist, aggressive, and even violent behavior toward customers. There have been multiple incidents of pushing, spitting and threatening reported to the police regarding his conduct.

The business shows no consistency in pricing. Different employees quote different prices to different people, making the whole setup unreliable and unfair.

This company is not a legitimate or safe rental provider. After 2 weeks of patience and civilized communication he ignores any reaponse. I shall be reporting to the authorities for misrepresentation, unsafe practices, and abusive behavior. Until then, I strongly urge visitors to stay away and rent from an established, reputable company...