Cycling lessons for adults in Amsterdam

Being able to ride a bike is close to essential to living in the Netherlands

Amsterdam offers bicycle lessons for adults throughout the year. If you are interested, you have only days to apply before the nearest deadline expires and be included in a course as fast as possible.

Cycling in the Netherlands – a way of life

If you have ever visited Amsterdam, then you must know that cycling is absolutely vital to everyday living. Not only is it an extremely popular low-cost way to stay fit: riding a bike is an invaluable mobility solution, an alternative to public transport or the personal car. Same goes for any other city in the Netherlands, by the way.

Accordingly, for the most part of the Amsterdam-born residents, cycling is easy a child’s game – they master the habit at a young age in their family or friends’ environment. However, this is far from being the case with foreigners.

Bikes are not only for the poor

Some of them are coming from countries where cycling to school or work was not considered safe or prestigious enough or from environments lacking the infrastructure. Hence, they never learned how to do this and with age, it became even more difficult and unappealing to them.

Luckily the Dutch capital has a solution to this problem by offering cycling lessons for grown-ups throughout the city. There are all sorts of courses offered at low prices, including courses for women only and on-demand options.

Rita Gemerts has been giving cycling lessons to adults for more than 25 years. Photo by City of Amsterdam

For example, a crash course allows participants to learn cycling only in six days, all the way from balancing to making complex turns and fixing a tire. Furthermore, there are one-day long refresher sessions once a month. If you want to sign up for the closest date (24 February 2020), make sure to hurry up.

Alternatively, you may visit the website of the Cyclist Union of Amsterdam to learn what else is on offer and the upcoming courses with the respective contacts.