6 places in the Netherlands I liked better than Amsterdam

Before I spent a month in the Netherlands by myself for work, the country was not on my radar as a destination for my bucket list. I am filled with gratitude that I got to explore this gem that I’d overlooked as a vacation spot.

But what surprised me the most?

My least favorite locale was Amsterdam!

That’s right–the one place people outside the country hear about the most in the Netherlands was the place I was most eager to leave.

While Amsterdam is an incredible city that should be visited on your trip, I was overwhelmed by the crowds, the prices, and the touristy vibe in certain areas. You shouldn’t skip this Dutch powerhouse, but I wanted a chance to highlight the other destinations that, in my opinion, you should also say YES to when visiting the Netherlands.

Read on to hear about some hidden gems you might not know about!

Delft

Delft, Netherlands, is located between the two larger cities of Rotterdam and The Hague. It is less than an hour from Amsterdam and only twenty minutes from the University city of Leiden by train.

With its picturesque canals, stone bridges, ancient cathedrals, and old city gates, Delft is aesthetically similar to Amsterdam. You’ll get a quintessentially Dutch experience without the crowds and high prices of Amsterdam.

My favorite things to see and do in Delft:

• Climb the tower of the New Church and get a panoramic, aerial view of the city.
• Explore the pottery shops, famous for “Delft Blue” style ceramics.
• Tour the Museum Prinsenhof Delft and learn about William of Orange, the Dutch Golden Age, and artist Johannes Vermeer (who lived in Delft).
• Attend a Market Day (Thursday mid-day) in the Market Square at the center of town. Go for lunch and try the traditional fresh (raw) herring if you’re brave, or the delicious fried fish.
• Have a beer at the Delfts Brouwhuis, where you can relax in a Medieval cellar that looks like a cave.

Rotterdam

Rotterdam is the single most modern city I’ve ever visited. The history behind Rotterdam’s hyper-modern aesthetic is crushing, since it stems from the city’s almost complete destruction during World War II. Even though it was first settled in the 13th Century, you’ll see little evidence of the city’s age.

Rotterdam encapsulates resilience, however, since every facet of the rebuilt city feels deliberate and cool. Its architecture is world-famous, including the quirky and angular central train station and the famous “cube houses.” It also has a worldly and expansive cultural scene to match the trendy architecture and a rich maritime history and role in modern commerce.

My favorite things to see and do in Rotterdam:

• Try some weird foods (like the smoking liquid nitrogen-frozen corn puffs pictured above) at the food hall.
• Go gawk at the cube houses.
• Visit the Rotterdam Maritime Museum, and leave enough time to explore all the boats at the dock that you can climb aboard.

Maastricht

Maastricht is a city in southeastern Netherlands near the Belgium border and a culture that blends Dutch and Belgian elements. 

Maastricht’s history is so old that Neanderthal remains have been found there! Around the 1st Century AD, Maastricht was a Roman stronghold, and Roman archaeological sites like a road and some baths can still be seen today.

Due to its location (sandwiched between Belgium and Germany), Maastricht played a major role during World War II and harbored many refugees. 

The caves of Maastricht are a collection of underground limestone quarries originally dug to mine chalk but later used strategically during the war. Paintings and other valuables were hidden from the Nazis in the underground passages, and people were also smuggled over the border to Belgium. 

Over hundreds of years, various artists have added chalk drawings to the walls of the cave–something truly incredible to witness on a tour.

My favorite things to see and do in Maastricht:

• Tour the Maastricht Caves.
• See Hoensbroek Castle in nearby Hoensbroek.
• Walk across the Sint Servaasbrug arched stone bridge across the Meuse River.
• See the Roman ruins in the basement of the Hotel Derlon.
• Visit the Bookstore Dominicanen in an old cathedral.
• Eat Belgian frites (French fries served in a paper cone and dipped in mayonnaise–designed to eat while meandering down the street during/after a night out).
• Sample all the vlaai you can (little fruit pies that are a specialty in Maastricht)

Leiden

Leiden has been a university city since 1575 and was home to the famous painter Rembrandt. It is located at the confluence of the Old Rhine and New Rhine Rivers. Through the 19th Century, Leiden was known as the “City of Books,” and today, it boasts the highest number of museums within walking distance of each other in the Netherlands: thirteen in total.

As a giant museum nerd, Leiden ties as my favorite museum city in the world (along with Washington, D.C., USA). While I could write an entire post about just the museums in Leiden, I’ll give you a few of my highlights here.

At the Museum of Antiquities, I loved touring an Egyptian tomb and seeing the sarcophagi and mummies. The Museum Boerhaaeve had an excellent anatomical theater display, where you can experience a mock traditional surgical dissection (queasy folks should go in prepared). 

The De Valk Windmill Museum was my #1 most memorable experience in Leiden, where you can see how a family would have lived in a working windmill and learn about the role windmills play in the Netherlands and how they are operated.

My favorite things to see and do in Leiden:

• Visit the De Valk Windmill Museum.
• Visit the Museum of Antiquities.
• Visit the Boerhaeve Museum of Science.
• Go to the National Museum of Ethnology.

The Hague

The Hague is the political-administrative center of the Netherlands and is considered a de facto capital city (the official capital city is Amsterdam). It is also the home of the Dutch monarch. I took a fairly brief trip to the Hague that was noteworthy for two reasons: the elegant architecture and the Escher Museum.

I was not particularly moved by Escher until I went to the Escher Museum. I was entranced. The entire experience was joyful and playful. The Escher exhibits were in the Langue Voorhout Palace, a former royal residence dating back to the 18th Century. 

The architecture alone is stunning, but the woodcuts and optical illusions by Escher only add to the overall experience, mixing regal sophistication in the architecture and playful flexibility in the art.

My favorite things to see and do in The Hague:

• See the Binnenhof cluster of historic government buildings (the oldest Parliament buildings still in use).
• Visit the M.C. Escher Museum.
• Find a pub to try some Bitterballen (Dutch meatballs).
• Stroll along the Lange Voorhout (a beautiful and quiet street). 

Schoorl Dunes

At the very end of my month-long stay in the Netherlands, after already experiencing the full glory of Delft, Maastricht, Leiden, and The Hague, I planned a multi-day stay in Amsterdam, only to realize that Amsterdam didn’t enchant me in the same way the other cities had. 

This left me scampering to see what was accessible from my hotel in Amsterdam as a day trip. Where I landed was Schoorl Dunes–and I have no regrets.

Schoorlse Duinen (Schoorl Dunes) is a nature preserve about two hours from Amsterdam on the North Sea coast. It is a walking route with large hills of sand and heather, and there is a loop that will take you to a North Sea beach.

I will not lie–as an experienced traveler, I was still a little intimidated trying to make my way to this rural outpost by public transit–but it was worth it. It required a bus transfer in Alkmaar and a confusing walk from the bus stop in Idenslaan to the Visitor’s Center for the Nature Preserve. 

But in the end, my loop from the visitor’s center through the dunes to the North Sea and back was a life-changing and unforgettable beautiful trek. Be advised that much of the hike is through sand, and the adventure is strenuous. 

But in the end, I saw a landscape I may never see again, I dipped my toes in the North Sea, and I was filled with gratitude for my excursion from Amsterdam.

My favorite things to see and do in Schoorl Dunes:

• Visit the Schoorl Dunes visitor’s center (Buitencentrum Schoorlse Duinen, Oorsprongweg 1, 1871 HA Schoorl, Netherlands).
• Complete the Schoorlse Duinen hiking loop (4.8 miles, moderately strenuous–pack a lunch).
• Play in the North Sea at Schoorl aan Zee Beach.

***

I had no idea I wanted to go to the Netherlands until I went to the Netherlands, and the experience has changed me forever. However, the least impactful part of my trip, in the end, was Amsterdam.

If you’re heading to the Netherlands, I hope you don’t skip Amsterdam but that you do consider the six other places near and dear to my heart. The Netherlands is a diverse and complex country with so much to experience – don’t miss a thing!

Oh, and if you want even more ideas of where to go, see Amber’s guide to 25 worthwhile destinations in the Netherlands, next.