Discover Benelux | Top Places to Visit in the Netherlands in 2019 | The Ultimate Destination
Nieuwkoop’s historic heart, located right by the lakes. Photo: Ruben Griffioen
NIEUWKOOP
Get the full Dutch experience TEXT: EVA MENGER
Tourists in the Netherlands often try to get a flavour of the country by visiting the Keukenhof flower park or tourist attractions de Zaanse Schans and Kinderdijk. The problem? Queues and queues of people! Nieuwkoop, on the other hand, is an undiscovered gem where visitors can peacefully enjoy the full Dutch experience. Located right in between major cities Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Utrecht, this little Dutch town offers the perfect base for people wanting to make the most of their trip to the Netherlands. Need to do business in the capital? Not a problem. The Amsterdam business district is only a half hour drive away. It is also very easy to reach from Schiphol, making it a suitable spot for a quick visit. 42 | Issue 62 | February 2019
An undiscovered pearl “Nieuwkoop really is an undiscovered pearl,” Joke Pelser, marketing manager at Nieuwkoop Marketing, tells us. “The municipality is surrounded by green meadows and a very unique nature reserve called de Nieuwkoopse Plassen. It’s also the only place in the country where mill-courses are still being used for draining the surrounding polder – there’s a couple of them open for visitors just outside the village, where tours are given by the millers themselves. The typical image of windmills, tulips, cows, cheese, clogs and green meadows; that’s how we still live around here.” No less than 26 per cent of the Netherlands – pretty much the whole western part of the country – is located below sea level, and it is this experience of
living in such circumstances that is really tangible in Nieuwkoop. With mills, locks and dykes still actively doing their job, it is the best example of authentic Dutch country living out there. The Oudheidkundig- en Poldermuseum, a museum exploring various elements of the village’s history, is an excellent place to learn all about that.
Otters in the Nieuwkoopse Plassen. Photo: Luc Hoogenstein