Category: Dutch Villages
-
The Dutch Harbour Town That Built an Empire — and Then Went Quiet
Hoorn was once one of the most powerful cities in the Dutch Golden Age. Today it sits quietly on the IJsselmeer — plus get weekly Netherlands stories free in our newsletter.
-
The Dutch Village That Refused to Change for Four Centuries
Marken sits 18 kilometres from Amsterdam, but it feels worlds apart. A peninsula village that kept its traditions alive through centuries of isolation — plus get weekly Netherlands stories free in our newsletter.
-
The Dutch Fishing Village That Was Once an Island — and Never Forgot It
Urk was a Dutch island for over 1,000 years — then the sea was drained and it became a field. The fishing community never moved on — plus get weekly Netherlands stories free in our newsletter.
-
The Dutch Town That Looks Exactly as It Did 700 Years Ago
Discover Elburg — a medieval Dutch town where the 1392 street grid still stands unchanged — plus Netherlands stories free in our newsletter.
-
Why This Remote Dutch Village Was Built in the Shape of a Perfect Star
Discover Bourtange, the remote Groningen fortress village built as a perfect star to stop Spanish armies — and why it still stands today. Get weekly Netherlands stories free in our newsletter.
-
The Dutch Village Where Every House Is White — and Nobody Agrees Why
Thorn in Limburg is one of the Netherlands’ strangest villages — every house painted white, and nobody can quite explain why. Discover the theories, the history, and the quiet magic of the Witte Stadje — plus get weekly Netherlands stories free in our newsletter.
-
The Dutch Village 15 Minutes From Amsterdam That Stopped in Time
Broek in Waterland is a 17th-century Dutch village 15 minutes from Amsterdam — still as quiet as ever. Get weekly Netherlands stories free in our newsletter.
-
Why This Dutch Town Once Ruled the Seas — and Tourists Never Visit
Enkhuizen helped fund the Dutch East India Company and once had the world’s largest herring fleet. Almost no tourists visit this perfectly preserved Golden Age harbour town — plus get weekly Netherlands stories free in our newsletter.
-
The Dutch Village That Looks Like a Star From Above — And Was Built That Way
Bourtange: the star-shaped Dutch fortress village built in 1593, still perfectly preserved in Groningen — plus get Netherlands stories free in our newsletter.
-
The Dutch Fishing Town That Seduced Europe’s Most Famous Painters
The Dutch fishing harbour of Volendam became Europe’s most painted village. Here is why — plus get weekly Netherlands stories free in our newsletter.
-
Giethoorn — The Dutch Village With No Roads
Image: Shutterstock There’s a village in the north of the Netherlands where nobody has ever driven to the shop for milk. Not because it’s remote, exactly — it’s only a two-hour drive from Amsterdam — but because Giethoorn was built on water, and most of its houses can only be reached by boat or by…