We can’t wait to welcome you to our NEW Walk for 2024 – and it’s one very close to our hearts…
The Best of the Netherlands takes us to some of the loveliest areas of this small, but fascinating (and famously flat!) country.
The shrewd merchant-adventurers of old created great cities and prosperous towns here. And we will see how, across the centuries, the Dutch have tamed and befriended the water that surrounds them, with dikes, canals and those famous windmills.
No wonder the Dutch masters’ works still enthral us with their evocative paintings using that special play of light on water.
And we are delighted that our long-time friend and garden design expert Alessandro will be leading this Walk, while Wayfaring Walks’ Operations Director Ron van Dijk will be welcoming you to his beloved homeland.
If you love gardens and rivers, lakeside strolls and grand estates, art and culture this is THE Walk for you!
Book now and make sure of your place on what is sure to be a very popular destination.
Sunday – After we meet up in Amsterdam, the lively capital, we head straight for the wonderful Keukenhof, also known as the Garden of Europe. Only open to the public for a couple of months each spring, be prepared to be amazed… Some 7 million flower bulbs are planted here each year and the 80 acres of tulips, hyacinths, daffodils, lilies, and irises are a living rainbow!
Monday – We’ll make an early start to walk in the Achterhoek, an area known for bucolic open spaces, forests, farms, manor houses and estates. One of the grandest, the moated manor house of De Wiersse, will open its historic gardens especially for us.
Later we take a guided walk in Deventer and gather for a guided walk of the historic town center with gabled houses, old signboards and hidden courtyards, dating from when it flourished as part of the powerful Hanseatic League, which shaped trade, economics and politics in northern Europe for more than 400 years.
Tuesday – One for the art-lovers. Set in the marvelous Hoge Veluwe National Park, and surrounded by a sculpture park, the renowned Kröller-Müller Museum houses a vast Van Gogh collection and works by modern masters. Afterwards, a walk into the National Park with its beech and pine trees, heaths, and dunes. By the way, cycling in the park is a national pastime. Perhaps we’ll give it a try!
Wednesday – From the town of Velp we set off on a countryside walk through glorious woods and moors – and even find a hill or two! A must-visit are the gardens of the 17th century Kasteel Middachten, one of the top 100 Dutch Heritage sites.
Inspired by the gardens of the Palace of Versailles, as well as lovely pathways, majestic trees and waving lawns there are green “rooms’’, stunning rose gardens and a blaze of colour in the flower borders.
Thursday – Today we explore Holland’s WWII history, in Oosterbeek, which saw fierce fighting during Operation Market Garden, portrayed in the film, “A Bridge Too Far”. Our day begins at Kasteel Doorwerth, a medieval castle situated on the Rhine River. Our forest walk affords great views over the river and the plain. Insight into the battle of Arnhem can be gained at Hartenstein Villa, which now houses the Airborne Museum. After lunch we board our private boat and follow the beautiful and winding Vecht to our hotel in Vreeland where we’ll dine in a Michelin-starred restaurant overlooking the river.
Friday – As we explore the wildness and calm beauty of Loosdrecht Lakes and its extraordinary unique waterscape, today’s unforgettably picturesque trail is edged by canals, spanned by bridges and lakes which arose from old peat bogs. Admire the 17th and 18th century summer residences built by wealthy Amsterdam merchants. In Loenen, a small town with flowered houses, we will visit the working windmill De Hoop.
Saturday – Time to say farewell, but we won’t blame you if you take some extra time to explore wonderful Amsterdam!
