I have taken a lot of guided tours. Walking tours, bus tours, boat tours, etc. But bike tours are, well, my jam. Nothing beats seeing the sights on a bike. And the tour my daughter and I did this past weekend of Brooklyn with Brooklyn Giro was extraordinary.
The owner of the company, John, was a veritable treasure trove of NYC facts. (Did you know you can’t grill outside on the entire Island of Manhattan? Who knew?) Architecture, history, public transit, Robert Moses, Cher’s house in Moonstruck, you name it. We loved biking around Brooklyn, taking in its many sights and learning about this hip, fast-growing and historic borough.
John was responsive, solicitous, and above all interesting. He deftly catered the trip to our interests and hobbies (ending with a beer!) But what really differentiated John was his service. We mistimed when we needed to leave Brooklyn to make it to our 8 pm Broadway show. John then DROVE US INTO MANHATTAN to make sure we got to the show on time. For those of you not familiar with driving in NYC – this is a major deal, a huge pain, a time suck, getting across NYC bridges into Manhattan at 7 pm on a Saturday night is Not Easy. Related point – this is why seeing an area by bike is so amazing – it's fast, easy, and scenic! John’s generosity and ”can-do attitude” was simply unparalleled.
Best Bike Tour Ever. Scratch that. Best Tour Ever. Bar None.