Beautiful Giethoorn - as the season’s changes

Wednesday, 25 November 2020 11:34
Written by Portal Editor

Almost car-free, very idyllic, and incredibly romantic - this is the best way to describe the small village of Giethoorn in Holland. A network of canals meanders through the village for around eight kilometres, which is best explored from a boat.

It goes without saying that the streams of tourists are already brought in by boat. However, there are more than 180 bridges in Giethoorn, so the place can also be explored on foot. We have already visited Giethoorn several times and at different times of the year, and now we have finally found the time to write a little article.

Giethoorn - the most beautiful village in the Netherlands?

Giethoorn is a village with just around 2,600 inhabitants in the province of Overijssel in the Netherlands. The town is also called "Venice of the North" because of the many canals in the town. The approximately eight kilometres long village along the village canal network (Dorpsgracht) lies on the edge of the nature reserve "De Wieden".

And of course, Holland is the land of cycle paths and cyclists, so it is also a destination for us that we visited several times with our HNF XD 3 and UD 3 e-bikes. It does not always have to be Giethoorn, because when the streams of tourists here get too numerous, the fun turns into stress shortly before tipping over. So park your bikes securely on the parking lot, choose the boat, pay for it and off you go. It was not just ecological reasons that prompted us to do without the engine. After crossing a large expanse of water and turning into the canal system, the view of the first buildings opens up.

The houses stand on small hills and often still have the typical thatched roofs with a curved camel shape. Partly behind weeping willows and in the midst of beautiful gardens you will find beautiful old farmhouses from the 18th and 19th centuries, most of them have been extensively restored. Photos in newspaper articles more than 100 years old show that the canals were used for the transport of people and animals from an early age already. That when the name Giethoorn is mentioned one often speaks of Little Venice of the North or probably the most beautiful village in the Netherlands, it should become clear just by looking at the pictures, right?

The village is criss-crossed by numerous cross channels. The canals, which are now used for daily boat traffic, were dug many years ago to transport the peat from the swamp. The popular fuel could then be transported quickly and easily to households or even beyond the borders of the Overijssel province. The characteristic wooden bridges of this "water village" are built across the canals.

Giethoorn is located in the largest lowland moor area in Western Europe, which also includes the Weerribben-Wieden National Park, so the area around Giethoorn is worth a visit for nature lovers.

Large parking spaces indicate high visitor frequencies

The car-free Giethoorn is the absolute tourist attraction that is visited by more than 1 million tourists each year. So if you love a little fewer people around you, the cooler season is definitely recommended. And you don't have to fall into the water. And a little snow changes the view to a completely different Giethoorn, definitely worth seeing. The stream of visitors to this day is also thanks to an old film, because from 1958 the film “Fanfare” by director Bert Haanstra was shot in Giethoorn, which was visited by 2.6 million viewers in Dutch cinemas.