10 places to visit in Zeeland, The Netherlands
Zeeland, the Dutch province in the south-western side of the Netherlands, is one of the most popular places in the Netherlands to go on holidays. The province offers beach, nature and atmospheric towns/cities. In this post, I’ll show you 10 places to visit when traveling to Zeeland. Enjoy!
1. Vlissingen
Vlissingen is a lively seaside resort and a popular tourist destination. In addition to its fantastic location by the sea, Vlissingen’s attractions include its many beach pavilions, museums, and a wide variety of cafés and nightclubs. Vlissingen is sometimes called ‘Flushing’ in English. In fact, Flushing (New York) was named after Vlissingen. You can stroll along the longest beach promenade in the Netherlands, learn about water at the Maritime muZEEum, explore ships at Het Arsenaal and much more.
2. Sluis
This place probably is my favorite town of Zeeuws-Vlaanderen. It’s a very lively town, rich of shops & eateries, but also of history. It’s a perfect place to stroll around, explore some history, go for some shopping and take place on one of the terraces for a nice drink or something to eat. Sluis also has (just as Hulst) city walls which are perfect for a beautiful walk.
3. Groese Polders
Are you a fan of nature? If yes, than the Groese Polders is the place to be. It’s a beautiful nature reserve where you can have a nice walk or where you can go biking. On your way, you can come across a diversity of animals, like sheep, horses and cows.
The visit to the Groese Polders can be combined with a visit to Groede Podium, which is a former World War II military site turned into a woodland recreation area. Here you can check out the bunkers and call in at the visitor center, while there’s a hands-on playground and a farm park for children.
4. Veerse Lake
Veerse Lake is a large lake an nature reserve located in the center of the Dutch province Zeeland. It’s the place to be when it comes to watersports. People go to Veerse Lake for surfing, canoeing, sailing, water skiing, diving and fishing. You can also rent a boat to go sailing on the lake with good weather.
By the lake, you can find nice towns, like Veere, Kortgene and Kamperland. These towns are worth a visit. Besides watersports, the Veerse Lake is the perfect place for biking and hiking.
5. Zierikzee
Zierikzee may be the most picturesque town of Zeeland with its 500+ historical monuments. The town features many beautiful buildings, churches, mills, city walls, defenses and other beautiful historical sights, all within the former city walls of Zierikzee. From the cobbled streets to the boats floating in the canals, you will find that it is as Dutch as Dutch gets. Meet the prehistoric and medieval history, famous fishery, delicious specialities and today’s coziness of Zierikzee!
6. Breskens
The charming harbor town Breskens has its own fishing port, a marina with 850 moorings, many beach pavilions, a variety of shops, and fantastic terraces. In addition to the beach and the sea, there is plenty to see and to do in Breskens and its surrounding area. Since the 20th century the fishing industry has declined, but its memory lives on in a fishery museum in the harbour. The town is well known for the Visserijfeesten (Fishery Festival), the largest festival in Zeeland and is the perfect place to enjoy a beautiful view of the sea as you stroll along the beach.
7. Hulst
Hulst is a fortified city with a diversity of history, shops and cozy eateries. In the past, Hulst was an important fortress and harbour town. You can still see this in the town walls and the gates which lead you to the center of Hulst. These town walls are perfect for a beautiful walk, during which you come along the city mill. The city hall and H. Willibrordus Basilica are also sights which are worth a visit.
8. The Manteling
Nature reserve de Manteling, located in Walcheren, is one of my favorite places to go hiking. It’s a beautiful and serene place where you can find forest and beach (dunes) combined in one area. In the middle of the Manteling, you can also find the impressive castle Westhove, which is currently an accommodation (Stayokay). De Manteling also is a nice place to have a picknick, which we did when visiting the nature reserve.
9. Verdronken Zwarte Polder
Nature reserve the “Verdronken Zwarte Polder” literally means “drowned black polder”. It thanks its name as a result of a situation which has happened in the past: the Black Polder was built in 1623, but in 1802 it flooded, or ‘it drowned’.
Nowadays, it’s a beautiful nature reserve with beach, dune and thicket. The Verdronken Zwarte Polder is the habitat of many bird- and plant species. It’s nice to have a short walk here or to pay a visit to the beach.
10. Oranjezon
Next to nature reserve the Manteling, you can find nature reserve Oranjezon. It’s a diverse area with lots of flora and fauna. A perfect place for hiking: in the dune area you can find four marked hiking trails. Along the way, you can enjoy some magnificent views. The nature reserve also has, just as the Manteling, a beautiful combination of dunes and forest.
Would you like to read more about Zeeland? We’ve written several posts about the Dutch province which you can find by clicking here. Of course there are many more places worth the visit in Zeeland, but in this article I’ve marked some of my favorites.
Author: Tamara
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