Ver Berkmoes - Netherlands Travel Guide

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Discover the many secrets of this gently beautiful country and its masterpieces, canal towns and windmills. Revel in the welcoming yet wry culture at a cafe, then bike past fields of tulips.

Windmills, Kinderdijk, near Rotterdam ()
WOUTER VAN DEN HEUVEL PHOTOGRAPHY/GETTY IMAGES

In the world of art the Netherlands has given us Rembrandt and Van Gogh. Sure, theres also Frans Hals, Hieronymus Bosch and Piet Mondrian but when youve got the first two, why mention the rest? (OK that Vermeer guy, hes big). Then there are icons: classic windmills, the ultimate green machines that are back in vogue a century after the Dutch used these twirling beasties to pump the country dry. Clogs? Renewable. Affordable. Floatable (if the dykes break). Tulips? The Dutch have made a fortune from little bulbs that go in the ground, then burst forth with beauty that is universally loved.

The Dutch themselves seem oversized (actually they are statistically the tallest nationality on the planet.) Gregariousness, thrift, good sense and wry humour are all national traits, as is no-holds-barred honesty. This is not the country for the neurotic to ask: Do you think I look fat in this? (Not that this can be much of a worry in the best place to ride a bike on the planet.)

For Amsterdam the entire city is also a Dutch icon current upheavals will merely create more ripples in a city used to waves of change. Misunderstood by many, the virtual heart of the Netherlands is not what many people expect on their first visit. The sex and drugs are mostly kept to one hood (convenient to the train station) while the rest of the city keeps to its own beauty along the murky canals.

Other places as old as Amsterdam have evocative beauty and come in a variety of sizes: Edam, Haarlem, Delft and Deventer to name just some of the smaller delights. Moving up the league tables in size, theres the canal towns of Leiden, Haarlem and Utrecht. And Rotterdam is a modernist feast all of its own.

Perhaps the best way to get to the heart of the Netherlands is to do as the Dutch do. Join them in the city centres of classic towns as far flung as Groningen, Maastricht and Den Bosch, lively places filled with cafes that heave with happy Dutch socialising on a sunny day. Or join them on the thousands of kilometres of bike routes as they add not a molecule of carbon to the atmosphere while riding through the lush countryside and past sweeping watery vistas at sea (or is it see?) level. You dont have to travel far to find a lot.

Tulips, Bloemenmarkt, Amsterdam ()
KIMBERLEY COOLE/GETTY IMAGES

Amsterdam has more canals than Venice, and getting on the water is one of the best ways to feel the pulse of the city. You could catch the vibe by sitting canalside and watching boats glide by: myriad cafes seem purpose-built for this sport. Or you could stroll along the canals and check out some of the citys 3300 houseboats. Better yet, hop on a tour boat and cruise the curved passages. From this angle, youll understand why Unesco named the 400-year-old waterways a World Heritage site.

Keizersgracht canal
JORG GREUEL/GETTY IMAGES

Admiring Dutch Masterpieces

The Netherlands has produced a helluva lot of famous artists. In Amsterdam, the Van Gogh Museum () unfurls a whos who of Dutch masters in Den Haag.

Rijksmuseum
KEVIN STEELE/GETTY IMAGES

Day Tripping to Delft

The Netherlands has no shortage of evocative old towns. Haarlem, Leiden and Utrecht are just some of the more well known. With their old canals lined with buildings whose human-scaled architecture is nothing but characterful, these towns bring the beauty of the Golden Age into the modern age. But one old canal town shines above the rest: Delft (). Even if youre not staying here, an afternoon spent along its canals, churches, museums and just sitting in a cafe soaking it all in is essential time spent.

Canal, Delft
COPYRIGHTS BY SIGFRID LPEZ/GETTY IMAGES

Cycling Between Villages

Grab a bike and go. You can rent them anywhere and no nation on earth is better suited for cycling. Not only is it flat but there are thousands of kilometres of bike lanes and paths linking virtually every part of the country, no matter how small. From a bike road atop a dyke, you can see polders (areas of drained land) below the water in the canal, hear cows mooing in the fields and enjoy the view of old windmills. Soon youre at another cute little village ready to explore.

Tulip field, North Holland
FRANS LEMMENS/GETTY IMAGES

Enjoying Cheesy Delights

Whether it is cubed or melted, sliced on a sandwich or shaved onto a salad, you cannot escape Dutch cheese. Names like Gouda and Edam inspire more notions of curdled milk than images of the municipalities that spawned them. And forget the bland stuff you find in the supermarket, Dutch cheese comes in a vast range of styles and flavours. Start with the caraway-seed-infused variety. Next consider one of the aged goudas that is crystallised like a fine parmesan and is best had with a touch of mustard and beer.

Cheese at De Kaaskamer ()
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Best Park in the Netherlands

A vast swathe of beautiful land that was once private hunting ground, Hoge Veluwe National Park () combines forests, sand dunes, marshes and ponds. Its a bucolic escape from the densely packed cities and you can easily spend a day here just luxuriating in nature. But wait, theres more! At the parks centre, the Krller-Mller Museum is one of the nations best. Its Van Gogh collection rivals that of the namesake museum in Amsterdam, plus there is a stunning sculpture garden.