Groninger Museum
Those arriving by train can't help but notice the Groninger Museum. Occupying three islands in the ring canal in front of the station, the museum is, at…
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Northeastern Netherlands
Few travellers venture to this far corner of the Netherlands, but those who don't go are missing out on the country's rural heart, a place where traditions are kept alive and prehistoric relics dot the landscape. The Netherlands' best-known walking trail, the Pieterspad, legs it from here, from Pieterburen 490km south to Maastricht.
Provincial capital Groningen is a buzzing, youthful city. Museums, restaurants, bars, theatres, canals, festivals – it's the north's cultural point of reference and a fine base for exploring.
On the coast, try the strangely intriguing pastime of wadlopen (mudflat-walking). Or head to Bourtange, on the eastern border with Germany; its hefty defences are just as forbidding now as they were in the 16th century. South, Drenthe is a great garden with shifting tableaus of sheep pastures, stream-cut peat bogs, marshlands and fascinating hunebedden (neolithic burial chambers), often accessible only by bike or on foot.
Explore Northeastern Netherlands
- Groninger Museum
Those arriving by train can't help but notice the Groninger Museum. Occupying three islands in the ring canal in front of the station, the museum is, at…
- NNieuwe Markt
This dynamic city's most ambitious redevelopment project to date, the gleaming 'New Market' square is slated to become an A-lister hub for alfresco…
- NNoordelijk Scheepvaartmuseum
This engaging tour of the lives of seamen and the ships they sailed unfolds through the set of buildings that once made up a 16th-century distillery…
- Bourtange Fortress
One of the best-preserved fortifications in the country stands at tiny Bourtange near the German border. With its flooded moats, solid defences and quaint…
- MMartinitoren
A climb up 251 steep and spiralling stone steps to the summit of this elegant, 96m-tall medieval tower (1482) rewards with grand views – and worrisome…
- FForum Cultural Centre
Groningen's landmark cultural centre - home to the city's tourist office, library, five cinemas, exhibition spaces, the Nederlands Stripmuseum and a…
- KKamp Westerbork
Of the 107,000 Jews living in the Netherlands before WWII, all but 5000 were deported by the Nazis to concentration and death camps in central and eastern…
- MMuseum De Buitenplaats
In Eelde, 5km south of Groningen, this space is devoted to figurative art from around Europe. The main organic structure, which blends into its natural…
- HHunebedden Centrum
Excavated artefacts and information displays evoking the many stories behind Drenthe's remarkable collection of hunebedden (prehistoric burial chambers)…
Top attractions
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Northeastern Netherlands.
- See
Groninger Museum
Those arriving by train can't help but notice the Groninger Museum. Occupying three islands in the ring canal in front of the station, the museum is, at…
- See
Nieuwe Markt
This dynamic city's most ambitious redevelopment project to date, the gleaming 'New Market' square is slated to become an A-lister hub for alfresco…
- See
Noordelijk Scheepvaartmuseum
This engaging tour of the lives of seamen and the ships they sailed unfolds through the set of buildings that once made up a 16th-century distillery…
- See
Bourtange Fortress
One of the best-preserved fortifications in the country stands at tiny Bourtange near the German border. With its flooded moats, solid defences and quaint…
- See
Martinitoren
A climb up 251 steep and spiralling stone steps to the summit of this elegant, 96m-tall medieval tower (1482) rewards with grand views – and worrisome…
- See
Forum Cultural Centre
Groningen's landmark cultural centre - home to the city's tourist office, library, five cinemas, exhibition spaces, the Nederlands Stripmuseum and a…
- See
Kamp Westerbork
Of the 107,000 Jews living in the Netherlands before WWII, all but 5000 were deported by the Nazis to concentration and death camps in central and eastern…
- See
Museum De Buitenplaats
In Eelde, 5km south of Groningen, this space is devoted to figurative art from around Europe. The main organic structure, which blends into its natural…
- See
Hunebedden Centrum
Excavated artefacts and information displays evoking the many stories behind Drenthe's remarkable collection of hunebedden (prehistoric burial chambers)…
