Western Netherlands

Many visitors to the Western Netherlands (and the Netherlands in general) arrive at Schiphol Airport. It is not in Amsterdam, but is in the adjacent municipality of Haarlemmermeer on reclaimed land below sea level.

Rotterdam The Hague Airport is a much smaller airport that been functioning as a base for low-cost carriers to other European destinations. More information about the airport can be found in the Rotterdam article. In the future Lelystad Airport in Lelystad will be further expanded to allow low-cost carriers to land there.

There are a plethora of train services running to all other provinces of the country. Also, there are international connections with Antwerp, Brussels, Berlin, Frankfurt and Milan. Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, Utrecht and Leiden are the major train hubs.

Many roads connect the western region with other regions of the Netherlands. If you're coming from the south, the A2 connects Amsterdam and Utrecht with 's-Hertogenbosch, Eindhoven and Maastricht, while the A27 is the principal connection from Breda and the Flemish Diamond metropolitan region. If you're coming from the east, the A12 connects the region with the Hoge Veluwe National Park, Arnhem and the Ruhr in Germany, and the A1 is leading to the region from Twente and Apeldoorn. From northern provinces like Friesland or Groningen, the A6 or A7 (over the Afsluitdijk) is the fastest route.

Most foreign visitors use the train to get around. The Netherlands Railways serves nearly every large town, and you can use the website to plan your journey ahead of time.

The major cities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Utrecht all have local urban rail services as well. Trams serve all these 4 cities, with metro subway services available in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Line E of the Rotterdam Metro extends to serve The Hague's central station.

The bus is mostly used as a way of transport within towns or between towns in the same area. Bus travel is time-consuming, confusing and slow, so avoid it if there's rail transport available. There's a plethora of bus companies available that all serve a different set of regions and provinces. You can plan your journey at 9292.nl.

The Randstad has various motorways. Traffic jams can occur at any time of the day; however rush hour lasts during 06:00–10.00 and 15:00–19:00. Major bottlenecks can create traffic jams up to 20 kilometres in length. Most motorways are no wider than 2x2 or 2x3 lanes. Some hard shoulders are in use as peak hour lanes - traffic is allowed to use the hard shoulder as a third lane during periods of congestion, when signs indicate. Because of the lack of sufficient minor roads, local traffic also uses the motorways for short distances.

Cycling is a popular activity among the Dutch and a great way to see more of the landscape. There are bicycle paths between all towns, some of which traverse through picturesque villages, green polders and forests. Some scenic bicycle paths are numbered and sign-posted throughout the region; maps for them are provided at local tourist information offices. Cycling is especially appealing in the Zaanstreek-Waterland, Gooi en Vechtstreek and the Green Heart.

There are dozens of historic towns in the Netherlands that deserve a visit. The most well-known obviously is the historic 17th-century city center of Amsterdam. Its historic architecture can be explored by a boat tour which goes through its lovely canals (known as grachten). The center became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2010.

Many visitors include a day-trip to one of the West's other historic cities. North Holland is filled with them — Haarlem, Alkmaar, Hoorn and Enkhuizen are less than one hour away as a day-trip from the capital. South Holland also has a few interesting historic towns. Delft is a tourist-favorite with its traditional architecture, canals, bikes, and the world famous blue and white ceramics. Gouda is known from the world famous Gouda cheese — but besides the cheese market, its historic town center is a really fun walk. Leiden, while historical, has much of a student-feel due the presence of the oldest university of the Netherlands there.

The traditionally Catholic city of Utrecht is not visited a lot by foreigners, but it’s hard to understand why — it has the amenities of a big city, but its canals feel even more calm and relaxed than those in average medium-sized cities. Its an excellent destination to visit some antique stores or grab a beer while seeing the boats pass by. Amersfoort is a lot smaller, but again, its ancient center makes for a nice day out.

The Holland of cheese, windmills, clogs and polders can best be seen in the countryside. Most foreigners at least incorporate a visit to the Zaanstreek-Waterland — a traditional region of small villages where a traditional folk culture is still present. The most visited attraction of the area is the Zaanse Schans, which is only 10 km north of Amsterdam. It's a cute display of typical Dutch windmills. Volendam is a well-known traditional fishing village, often visited for its magnificent waterfront boulevard and its people wearing old Dutch costumes. More authentic nearby communities include Monnickendam and Marken, the latter with its characteristic wooden houses.

Another famous export product of Holland is cheese, and you might want to catch a traditional cheese market. The largest cheese market of the Netherlands is held in Alkmaar. Gouda is world-famous for its Gouda cheese, and that town also has its own cheese market. The cheese market of Edam is another fair choice if you want to see (and taste) some. Beemster also has its own cheese, which is sold all over the world, but more interesting is the Beemster Polder. Because of its historical relevance, and because the original grid pattern of the area is still largely intact, it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999.

Beside the Gouda cheese market, South Holland has a lot more typical Hollandic scenery on offer. Every Spring, the Bulb Region becomes alive with miles and miles of enormous flower fields — including tulips. Hundreds of thousands of visitors go to the Keukenhof each year to see its beautifully arranged flowers. The windmills at Kinderdijk, about 20 km east from Rotterdam, are very authentic and make a great stroll through the countryside. Delft is also a must-see for its typical Dutch blue and white ceramics.

Flevoland is a new province reclaimed in the 20th century from the sea: it consists of the Noordoostpolder and the Flevopolder close to Amsterdam, the largest artificial island of the world. As these areas have been only populated after World War II, the cities here are not considered very attractive by most of the Dutch. You may be interested, for example, in the National Aviation Museum in Lelystad, the province's capital, or the Oostvaardersplassen nature reserve.

Oddly enough, there is one traditional community residing in the Noordoostpolder. The reason for that is that two former islands have been integrated into the Noordoostpolder. Urk is one of these former islands, and one of the most religiously Protestant communities of the country. You might still spot some traditional villagers in their old costumes or wooden shoes.

Another former island is Schokland, which used to be a similar community like Urk, but it had to be evacuated in 1859 due to destructive floods. Some old buildings still remain, and the area with its museum has the honor of being the first UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Netherlands in 1995.

The region is filled with history and there are plenty of castles and fortifications to be found. Surrounding Amsterdam in the province of North Holland is the Defence Line of Amsterdam (Stelling van Amsterdam), a 135 km long ring of fortifications around the capital city. In total, it consists of 42 forts about 10 to 15 kilometers from the city center. It's surrounded by low polder lands, which could easily be flooded in time of war. While the line was constructed from the 19th-century, many of its 42 forts are actually structures from the Middle Ages.

One of them is the Muiderslot, a 13th-century castle in Muiden that's definitely worth a visit. Nearby are the 17th-century fortifications of Naarden, which are among the best preserved in Europe. The town is an example of a Spanish star fort, in an exceptional quality and complete with fortified walls and a moat. Weesp is another fortified town near Amsterdam, and could be a nice daytrip.

Then there is Castle De Haar in Utrecht, which has a history since at least 1391. It did fell into ruins in the 17th-century and had to be largely rebuilt in 1892 by the Dutch architect P.J.H. Cuypers — he did a magnificent job at it.

Rotterdam is the only Dutch city that could be thought of as having a decent modern skyline. It was already a centre of modernist architecture in the early 1900s, but since its city centre was heavily bombed throughout World War II, it got a completely different feel than traditional Amsterdam. Rotterdam is a play garden of modern architects, which has led to the largest residential building (Montevideo Tower) and the largest office building (Maastoren) of the country. The Euromast and the Erasmus Bridge are must-visits as they are an integral part of the look and feel of Rotterdam's skyline. The city is also home to some quirky architecture, such as the cube houses. Though, Rotterdam has also some old parts like Delftshaven.

Utrecht has the Rietveld Schröder House, arguably the only true De Stijl building and another UNESCO-designated site. Other modern architecture nuts might want to spend some time in Hilversum, where architect Dudok designed a lot of buildings (and even whole neighborhoods) in the New Objectivity style. His most important creation there is the Hilversum Town Hall. Many other architects have also contributed to Hilversum as it is today, including Jan Duiker, MVRDV, Pierre Cuypers and Ben van Berkel.

Flevoland is a new province, its land has been reclaimed from the sea in the 20th century. This gave the province a completely different feel than the old provinces. Almere is like a suburb of Amsterdam, and while many Dutch claim it as the most boring city of the country, it does have a lot of modern architectural highlights. Some neighborhoods in Almere gave their inhabitants the freedom to design their own building. Others have been designed by famous architects, such as La Defense Offices by Ben van Berkel.