This is a throwback of ultimate throwbacks. Back in 2015, I went to the Venice of the Netherlands- Geithoorn. The town of no roads is a solid 2+ hours by public transport from Amsterdam each way, so prepare for a wild adventure. I’ve used the words wild adventure instead of “mild shittiness” for obvious reasons.
getting to geithoorn from amsterdam by public transport
Use Google maps or 9292.nl/en or NS Trains
Exit the train Steenwijk station and make your way to the bus station. Take bus 70 in the direction of Zwartsluis and get off at Giethoorn, Dominee Hylkemaweg.
The trip is about €30 each way if you use a public transport card. The actual price is given if you use 9292.nl/en. At the time, I had a discount on my public transport card so there were deals to be had. You can try Spoordeel or pop into Albert Heijn supermarkets or Hema- occasionally, they have cheap day cards for the train.
My first thought was this is the town of no roads and we just arrived on a road. Don’t panic, just follow the tourists or walk towards the side with the Spar supermarket. Here is where I suggest picking up a few snacks if you didn’t already pack a lunch before you left. If you don’t see any supermarket, you may have gotten off at the wrong stop and will need to walk. Or 11 years later maybe none of these directions are even valid. Make sure to check the return bus time in order to get back to the train station since it doesn’t run very frequently and the last bus leaves in the early evening.
geithoorn is mostly a car-free village
The inhabitants do obviously have to get to the area somehow and they aren’t taking a horse, so there are cars, but they are parked on the outer edge of Giethoorn. I say that so when you arrive and see a parked vehicle, you don’t think everyone has been lying to you.
To compare it to Venice is a bit of a stretch. There is water and it can’t be accessed by car in the inner part, but there are maybe 3 waterways at best.
what to do in Geithoorn
Don’t expect a massive town with tonnes of things to see. There are quaint shops and walkways, which I suggest you enjoy. You can easily walk the entire area in less than an hour. We just meandered, but there is a 4km walking route that looks dashing. If you see a friendly cat, feel free to pet it unless the owner comes out yelling at you to stop.
There are two museums, which we didn’t go into and boat tours are popular, but cost money so we didn’t go on one.
It would be ideal to visit in the summer since there is a lake where you can rent paddle boats and have a drink on a restaurant patio. The tradeoff would be a crazy amount of tourists, though.
Naturally, we went in the fall so we had hot chocolate instead of chocolate milk.
