Summer Family Holland Trip

[NoraEast]

Hi, I am looking for reccommendations for campsites/areas of Holland to visit in the summer with 2 teenage boys and 2 dogs! We all like quiet, in nature style campsites (lots of Scottish trips) but the boys are now at an age where they need some entertainment - a pool or warm sea to swim in is ideal. We will be getting the Newcastle-Amsterdam ferry and hope to do some city/town touring alongside a longer chilled camp. It will be our first visit abroad in the Cali, Holland seems ideal but I don't know the Netherlands at all. Thank you

 

[Azteccamper]

Hi, I am looking for reccommendations for campsites/areas of Holland to visit in the summer with 2 teenage boys and 2 dogs! We all like quiet, in nature style campsites (lots of Scottish trips) but the boys are now at an age where they need some entertainment - a pool or warm sea to swim in is ideal. We will be getting the Newcastle-Amsterdam ferry and hope to do some city/town touring alongside a longer chilled camp. It will be our first visit abroad in the Cali, Holland seems ideal but I don't know the Netherlands at all. Thank you

We visited The Netherlands at Easter 3 years ago. Loved it.
Many parts of the coastline is golden sandy beaches with beach bars and restaurants, but also great expanses of wide, quiet beach.
We travelled from Hook of Holland up the coastline and then back through the rural centre to return home. It was a tou4 with 2/3 nights along the way.
People lovely, food good, campsites good and cycling was bliss.
I’ll dig out our route and sites and post later.
First few nights in Camping Duinhorst - www.duinhorst.nl

 

[ThomasHJ]

Hi, I am looking for reccommendations for campsites/areas of Holland to visit in the summer with 2 teenage boys and 2 dogs! We all like quiet, in nature style campsites (lots of Scottish trips) but the boys are now at an age where they need some entertainment - a pool or warm sea to swim in is ideal. We will be getting the Newcastle-Amsterdam ferry and hope to do some city/town touring alongside a longer chilled camp. It will be our first visit abroad in the Cali, Holland seems ideal but I don't know the Netherlands at all. Thank you

A warm sea to swim in? Haha, you do know we're just on the other side of the same body of water, right? Our sea is surely as cold as yours, seeing how it's the same one.

But, now a more serious answer.

Regions:
The Wadden Islands spring to mind. They are a very special part of the country. You've got the sea, opportunities for water sports and beautiful nature. There's quite a lot to do for visitors. Just keep in mind that not all islands allow cars.

The south of the Country, (Province of Zuid-Limburg) is completely different from the rest of the country. We got some hills here, beautiful landscapes, the best food-/dining culture. It feels like you're in Belgium or France. There's quiet a lot of campings on farms with good views. Mountainbiking, roadbiking, caves and of course the lovely city of Maastricht.

In the center of the country we've got National Parks like 'Utrechtse Heuvelrug' and 'Hoge Veluwe'.
Good for walking, biking. Utrecht is in the centre of the country and worth a visit (canals, old buildings, lots of history).

Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Den Haag are all withing an hour drive from Utrecht. These are our bigger cities. The area is called Randstad. Leiden en Delft are lovely, smaller towns.

We have quite a long coastline. Scheveningen is the most touristy/busy. If you prefer a quieter beach you can try Kijkduin in Den Haag. Bloemendaal is famous for it's beach bars. There's Katwijk aan Zee and many, many more when you drive north.

Camping:
Always hard to recommend camp sites, because it's such a subjective thing and also depends on which time of year you stay.

If small green sites are your thing then try https://www.natuurkampeerterreinen.nl/?lang=en They have an English version of their website. They focus on small, green sites. Most other sites you'll find will be bigger and have more entertainment, but we do not have many large holiday-village style sites. Sites in the North and south of the country will generally be more beautiful/in nature, but it will differ per site.

If you have any other questions or want details, just ask.

 

[NoraEast]

A warm sea to swim in? Haha, you do know we're just on the other side of the same body of water, right? Our sea is surely as cold as yours, seeing how it's the same one.

But, now a more serious answer.

Regions:
The Wadden Islands spring to mind. They are a very special part of the country. You've got the sea, opportunities for water sports and beautiful nature. There's quite a lot to do for visitors. Just keep in mind that not all islands allow cars.

The south of the Country, (Province of Zuid-Limburg) is completely different from the rest of the country. We got some hills here, beautiful landscapes, the best food-/dining culture. It feels like you're in Belgium or France. There's quiet a lot of campings on farms with good views. Mountainbiking, roadbiking, caves and of course the lovely city of Maastricht.

In the center of the country we've got National Parks like 'Utrechtse Heuvelrug' and 'Hoge Veluwe'.
Good for walking, biking. Utrecht is in the centre of the country and worth a visit (canals, old buildings, lots of history).

Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Den Haag are all withing an hour drive from Utrecht. These are our bigger cities. The area is called Randstad. Leiden en Delft are lovely, smaller towns.

We have quite a long coastline. Scheveningen is the most touristy/busy. If you prefer a quieter beach you can try Kijkduin in Den Haag. Bloemendaal is famous for it's beach bars. There's Katwijk aan Zee and many, many more when you drive north.

Camping:
Always hard to recommend camp sites, because it's such a subjective thing and also depends on which time of year you stay.

If small green sites are your thing then try https://www.natuurkampeerterreinen.nl/?lang=en They have an English version of their website. They focus on small, green sites. Most other sites you'll find will be bigger and have more entertainment, but we do not have many large holiday-village style sites. Sites in the North and south of the country will generally be more beautiful/in nature, but it will differ per site.

If you have any other questions or want details, just ask.

I am from Newcastle so I was hoping that further South the sea might be a few degrees warmer! Thank you lots of things to check out!

 

[Aubisque]

My eyes just popped looking at Hull-Rotterdam ferry prices. A ticket that cost me £335 early 2020 is now £1100

 

[Azteccamper]

My eyes just popped looking at Hull-Rotterdam ferry prices. A ticket that cost me £335 early 2020 is now £1100

 

[Multi1100]

Hi, I am looking for reccommendations for campsites/areas of Holland to visit in the summer with 2 teenage boys and 2 dogs! We all like quiet, in nature style campsites (lots of Scottish trips) but the boys are now at an age where they need some entertainment - a pool or warm sea to swim in is ideal. We will be getting the Newcastle-Amsterdam ferry and hope to do some city/town touring alongside a longer chilled camp. It will be our first visit abroad in the Cali, Holland seems ideal but I don't know the Netherlands at all. Thank you

Maybe handy to download the Campercontact app (in English). This app from the NKC (Dutch Camper Club) is famous for it's database and search options. https://www.campercontact.com/en
My advice would be to visit the famous windmill site near Zaandam (Zaanse schans), some beach and Dutch dune sites in the province Noord Holland, cross the famous Afsluitdijk and visit the somewhat more quieter provinces like Friesland (known for it's watersport possibilities) move on to Drenthe with it's famous heather fields, and dolmens. The aforementioned Waddeneilanden are World Heritage area's and crossing from Den Helder to the island Texel is only 20 minutes and not too expensive.

City visit's to the bigger cities is at the most an hour/hour and a half drive. Amsterdam is nice ofcourse, but the Netherlands have much more to offer.
Enjoy your stay in The Netherlands!
kind regards

 

[marchugo]

Agree, but the famous Afsluitdijk (a great dam) is now under reconstruction, and traffic jam extends to more than an hour.

Regards from Amsterdam,

Marc.