discover the city by scooter or bicycle, with a handy app (review)

I was recently in Brussels and became acquainted with Dott, a service that allows you to maneuver through the cities by scooter or bicycle. This way you get to know cities throughout Europe in a cool, fast way.

Dott scooter and bike via app

If you’ve been to cities outside the Netherlands, you’ve probably seen them; scooters or bicycles that you can grab on every street corner. Spread over many cities, there are several companies that offer their services here. Think of Tier, Lime, Bolt, Voi and also Dott. During a weekend trip to Brussels, I became acquainted with Dott. That’s where I found most of the scooters in the city. The Dott scooters were also the only ones equipped with a phone holder, which is very handy for navigating. Just invited my travel companion, and hoppa, two free rides there. A few discount codes further, and some more free rides.

Dott in Europe

It gives you a good impression to get to know a city better; but also to quickly get from A to B in a short time. It can be an excellent alternative to public transport. Dott has a few scooters in Amsterdam that require helmets, because they are still not officially allowed in the Netherlands. In addition, we find Dott (among others) spread across Europe in various German cities, Belgium, Italy, Poland and the cities of Oslo, Stockholm, Paris, London and Madrid, among others.

dott app

In the Dott app you can filter by displaying bicycles, steps or both. It differs per city what is present. It is useful that in the application you can see exactly where a scooter is parked, in this case, at what distance, what it costs to unlock, what the price is per minute and moreover; how full the battery is. This way you know in advance whether there is enough battery life to make your ride. About the prices; see it as traveling with the OV chip card. Unlocking, so-called unlocking, is your starting rate, on top of that comes the rate per minute. The price per varies by city. In Brussels this is 0.22 euro cents, while in Namur, where we have also rented a Dott, you unlock for 50 euro cents and you pay 0.20 euro cents per minute.

If you use the scooter more often on a day or during a certain time, it can be useful to buy a discount pass. The costs of this differ per city, but make riding a scooter a lot cheaper; which could certainly be interesting.

If you are not sure which scooter is right next to you, you can ring a bell when you are nearby. The headlight of the scooter will also start blinking. That way you know right away that you’re getting the right one. Then you can get started. By helping the scooter get going, you push off with one foot and the ride can begin. I have to say; in the beginning it all feels a bit awkward when you do it for the first time, but you soon feel familiar with the e-step. The maximum range with a fully charged battery is 35 kilometers.

When you’re done scootering, put it in a designated parking space, or on the sidewalk. Make sure that it does not get in the way of other users, as you could be fined. In the Dott app you can immediately see where you can and cannot park your scooter; this is indicated by zones. The app also indicates whether there are any speed limits in place. If the scooter recognizes that it is entering that zone, the maximum speed is automatically reduced. Once parked, take a picture of your parked scooter with the Dott app and it’s ready. When you stop your ride, you will see the total amount that will be charged.

Dott indicates that it is not (yet) possible to reserve a scooter remotely. This feature is being worked on. In addition, some platforms offer the option to activate multiple steps on one account; that is not possible with Dott. Furthermore, it is a very user-friendly app that also lets you have fun with the scooter.

To download

The Dott app can be downloaded for free via the button below. On first use you need to link your credit card, or you can connect the account with PayPal. Do you want to use the service; download the app via this link, or enter the discount code 9AWBV5Z after installation from the Google Play Store. You then get the first two rides of 20 minutes each completely free.