Vibrant historic cities
It’s practically impossible to avoid the country’s biggest city Amsterdam, and neither would you want to. The illustrious past of the Dutch capital is palpable all around Dam Square, on the west side of which stands the former royal palace that dates from the 17th century. Additional sights include the home of Rembrandt, the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum where masterpieces galore await, the Vondelpark, the city’s green lung, or the city’s postcard-worthy canalside districts which invite you to come and get happily lost. Above and beyond its superb architectural and cultural heritage, Amsterdam has a special atmosphere that it’s hard to beat. From its bustling harbour and seemingly infinite canal network to the gabled houses and brown coffee shops, the Dutch capital has a distinctive charm unlike any other city in Europe.
Yet there’s a lot more to the Netherlands than Amsterdam, so be sure to factor in time to explore further afield. There’s Rotterdam, a laboratory for architectural experimentation where they are designing the city of the future; Delft, a city that flourished during the Dutch Golden Age, and The Hague, home to the Mauritshuis, regarded as one of the world’s most beautiful museums, where visitors are treated to iconic pieces such as Vermeer’s Young Girl with a Pearl Earring. Make the most of your tour, too, to discover the local specialities: herrings up by the North Sea, mussels in Zeeland, cheeses from Gouda and stroopwaffels – waffle cookies filled with syrup, which you can devour during your stay or take home with you!
A garden reclaimed from the sea
From centuries of dike-building and other clever techniques developed through the ages, the Dutch have managed to reclaim almost one-fifth of their land from the sea. The impressive Eastern Schedlt storm surge barrier and the dikes running along the North Sea coast will give you an idea of this marvellous feat of engineering. Exploring the Netherlands is akin to passing through a patiently landscaped garden. A garden where the bicycle is the preferred mode of transport! Covered in around 22,000 miles of cycle paths, the Netherlands is the most bike-friendly country in the world. The perfect opportunity to practice your backpedaling!
Whether you’re travelling by bike or by car, the sights of the Dutch countryside will go scrolling by: quaint villages, windmills dating back hundreds of years, innumerable canals and polders occasionally interspersed with glorious fields of tulips. If you really want to recharge your batteries, pay a visit to De Hoge Veluwe, the largest nature reserve in the Netherlands. And to end your trip on a holiday note, the sandy beaches hugging the North Sea make for an excellent spot to truly unwind.
