The Netherlands is home to a vast assortment of different attractions, including amusement parks, water parks, ski resorts, museums, zoos, and even miniature cities, among others. Needless to say, there is a lot to be done in the Netherlands during your trip. The question is which attractions should you spend your time at?
While geographical location will play a part in your answer, another important factor to take into consideration is how enjoyable the attraction will be. While everyone’s opinion is different, clues to how much fun an attraction will be can usually be uncovered by discovering how popular the attraction is. The number of visits a particular attraction has each year is typically a good indicator of how enjoyable it is.
With that being said, what I have done below is list out the 50 most visited attractions in the Netherlands (based on data from NBTC). They are listed from the most visits to the least visits and include a brief summary describing what each are. I think it’s safe to say that choosing any of the 50 attractions
on this list will definitely enhance your chances of enjoying both the attraction and your entire trip in the Netherlands. Without further ado, I give to you the top 50 most visited attractions in the Netherlands.
1. De Efteling
De Efteling is by far the most popular attraction in the Netherlands. It is also one of the oldest theme parks in the world. It is a fantasy themed park that features over 30 attractions spread throughout four different fantastical realms: Fairy, Adventure, Travel, and Alternative.
2. Rijksmuseum Amsterdam
The Rijksmuseum Amsterdam is a Dutch national art and history museum that features over 8,000 exhibitions of works of art and historical artifacts highlighting the rich and storied culture of the Dutch. It showcases the works of famed artists, Frans Hals, Vermeer and Rembrandt, just to name a few.
3. Zaanse Schans
Zaanse Schans is famous worldwide for its eight historic windmills, which were built in the mid-to-late 16th century, and its 35 historical houses. Located adjacent to the windmills is the Zaans Museum, an open-air museum the showcases exhibits highlighting the history of Zaan.
4. Burgers Zoo
Royal Burgers’ Zoo is one of the Netherlands’ largest and most popular zoos. It contains eight different themed sites that feature their own unique and diverse selection of plant and animal wildlife: Dierenpark (the original zoo), Safari, Bush, Mangrove, Desert, Ocean, Avonturenland (the playgrounds), and Rimba (rainforest).
5. Diergaarde Blijdorp
Diergaarde Blijdorp is one of the oldest zoos in the Netherlands, and also one of the most popular. Among its many attractions are the Oceanium (voyage through the bottom of the sea), African Gorilla Island, Crocodile River, Taman Indah (elephants and rhinos), and Ice Cave (polar bears).
6. Attractiepark Slagharen
Attractiepark Slagharen is an adventure theme park located in Slagharen. It features six geographic-inspired themed sites: Indian, Yellowstone, New Orleans, Mexican, Wild West, and Jules Adventureland (after Jules Verne). It features over 40 different attractions and has its own monorail.
7. Van Gogh Museum
The Van Gogh Museum is dedicated to preserving and showcasing the collected works of famous artist Vincent Van Gogh and his contemporaries. It houses the largest collection of Van Gogh work in the world.
8. Natura Artis Magistra
Natura Artis Magistra is the oldest zoo in the Netherlands. Along with its vast display of animals, it also has a planetarium, an aquarium, an arboretum, several historic cultural buildings, and its own art collection.
9. Attractiepark Duinrell
Attractiepark Duinrell (or, Duinrell) is an all-in-one amusement park, water park, and indoor playground. It features roller coasters, one kilometer of water slides, and even its own camping site. The roller coasters, Falcon and Mad Mill, are must-ride attractions.
10. Anne Frank Huis
The Anne Frank House is the former location of the annex (hiding place) that housed famed World War II diarist, Anne Frank, and her family during German occupation of the Netherlands. It has since been turned into an amazing historical museum showcasing Anne Frank’s life, the secret annex, and an exhibition on discrimination and persecution.
11. De Uithof
De Uithof is the most visited snow park in the Netherlands. It features a 225 meter slope, a 400 meter professional ice skating rink, a “fun” rink for recreational skating, go-karts, and various games like Bungee Soccer, Quasar, and Sumo Wrestling. De Uithof also offers beginners skiing and skating classes at affordable prices.
12. Amsterdamse Waterleidingduinen
The Amsterdamse Waterleidingduinen is a beautiful 3,400-hectare protected dune reserve that produces a whopping fifty million cubic meters of drinking water each year. The reserve features picturesque walking trails and fun activities for the whole family to enjoy, like guided tours, bird watching, carriage rides, and more.
13. Ouwehands Dierenpark
Ouwehands Dierenpark (Ouwehand Zoo) is a zoo located in the province of Utrecht. It houses and cares for tigers, warthogs, mandrills, bongos, sea lions, yaks, and more. It’s popularly known for its white lions and Bear Forest; a 20,000 square meter natural forest where brown bears and wolves reside.
14. Sportiom
The Sportiom is Hertogenbosch’s premier entertainment complex. Among its attractions are:
AquaFun: A water park that has its own wave pool, lazy river, water slides, and snack bar.
IceFun: A themed ice skating rink complex featuring two rinks with their own hills, caves, and ramps. Also, there is Scott’s Cabin, a snack bar offering hot chocolate, warm biscuits, and more.
Fitness Club Sportiom: A large fitness center featuring advanced cardio machines, free and machine weights, and other performance equipment. It also offers Pilates, Zumba, and Body Pump classes.
Laser Sportiom: An indoor laser tag arena complete with its own courses and obstacles that change periodically.
15. Safaripark Beekse Bergen
Safaripark Beekse Bergen is a unique wildlife zoo that houses around 1,250 animals. Its most popular attraction is its car safari – where you can drive your own car through the park and encounter animals like cheetahs and giraffes without being blocked by a fence. It also features bus safaris, walking safaris, and boat safaris.
16. Keukenhof
Keukenhof in Lisse
Keukenhof can be found in Lisse and is the world’s second largest flower garden. Approximately 7 million flower bulbs are planted each year inside the park. The park is open each year from mid-March to mid-May. It hosts a vide variety of events, shows, tours, exhibits, and more during this period.
17. Walibi Holland
Walibi Holland (Six Flags Holland) is a theme park in Biddinghuizen that features various attractions for the entire family. Among its most notable attractions are its exhilarating roller coasters: Speed of Sound, Xpress, Goliath, Robin Hood, and El Condor.
18. Nationaal Zwemcentrum de Tongelreep
The Nationaal Zwemcentrum de Tongelreep is a swimming pool complex that features both a recreational pool and competition pool. The recreational pool has a wave pool, water slides, rapids, and whirlpools. The competition pool, Pieter van den Hoogenband Swimming Stadium, features a 50-meter competition pool, a 25-meter diving pool, and a four lane training pool.
19. Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam
The Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam is a museum of modern and contemporary art located in Amsterdam. Its collection is comprised of works from the 20th and 21st centuries and features famed artists, Andy Warhol, Henri Matisse, Marc Chagall, and Jackson Pollock, among others.
20. Madurodam
Madurodam is a unique miniature park located in Scheveningen that houses several 1:25 scale replicas of famous Dutch buildings, landmarks, and monuments. It even features its own miniature cars that are driven throughout the park.
21. DierenPark Amersfoort
DierenPark Amersfoort is a zoo located in Birkhoven that houses over 100 different species of animals in an area of 14 hectares. It features such attractions as Dino World and a miniature railway that can be ridden throughout the park.
22. Dierenpark Emmen
Dierenpark Emmen is a zoo in Emmen that is well known throughout the conservation society for its Asian elephants. In addition to its elephants, the Emmen Zoo also has unique animals like withandgibbons, glasses bears, lemon sharks, naked mole rats, saki’s, and more.
23. Madame Tussauds Amsterdam
Madam Tussauds Amsterdam is a branch of the famed London wax museum located in the heart of Amsterdam. Its displayed wax figures include various sports stars, A-list celebrities, famous historical figures, infamous criminals, and royal figureheads.
24. Toverland
Toverland is an amusement park in Sevenum that boasts over thirty different attractions in four different themed areas – the Land of Toos, Magic Forest, Troy Area, and Magic Valley. Toverland also hosts a wide variety of shows, including live magic performances.
25. Heineken Experience
The Heineken Experience is a brewery and visitor center located in Amsterdam that allows guests to see first hand the history and technology of one of the world’s top beer brands. The experience includes, product samplings, historical exhibitions, and interactive multimedia exhibits.
26. SnowWorld Landgraaf
SnowWorld Landgraaf is Europe’s largest indoor ski resort located in South Limburg Landgraaf. The resort contains five unique ski slopes – two measuring over 500 meters each, two practice slopes, and a fun park. In addition to the slopes, SnowWorld Landgraaf has its own four-star hotel, several restaurants, and seven lifts.
27. Sport- en Belevingscentrum De Scheg
The Sport- en Belevingscentrum De Scheg features over 20,000 square meters of fun, including swimming pools, water slides, ice rinks, squash courts, and sports halls. It also has its own catering facility and sunbathing areas.
28. Sexmuseum Amsterdam “Venustempel”
The Venustempel is located in the heart of Amsterdam, and is the world’s first and oldest sex museum. The museum boasts a vast and impressive collection of various historical erotic artifacts: paintings, pictures, media, and other works.
29. Dolfinarium
The Dolfinarium is the largest marine mammal park in Europe, and can be found in Harderwijk. The park features themed areas showcasing various aquatic animals, including bottlenose dolphins, walruses, sea lions, sharks, and various species of lobsters, crabs, stingrays, and more. The Dolfinarium also puts on its own shows, which star some of the parks’ own inhabitants.
30. Sportcentrum Kardinge
The Sportcentrum Kardinge is a large sports complex featuring a 400m ice-skating track, seven indoor tennis courts, a hockey rink with a curling court, and three swimming pools. Other features include a restaurant, sports shop, and three outdoor tennis courts.
31. Science Center NEMO
Science Center NEMO, located in Amsterdam, is the Netherlands largest science center featuring five levels of hands-on science exhibits. The first level features DNA and chain reaction exhibits. The second level features a hands-on ball factory. The third level features a science lab. The fourth level focuses on the human mind and inner workings of the brain. And the fifth level contains a restaurant and a children’s playground.
32. Het Nationale Park De Hoge Veluwe
The Hoge Veluwe National Park is located in Gelderland. It is a nature reserve covering 55 square kilometers of dunes, forests, and heathlands, and is the home to a healthy population of red deer and wild boar. There are also two museums located inside the park: the Kroller-Muller Museum, which houses works by Picasso, Van Gogh, and Roding, and the Museonder, which focuses on the biology and geology of the Veluwe.
33. Avonturenpark Hellendoorn
Avonturenpark Hellendoorn is a park in Hellendoorn, Overijssel that features a variety of thrill rides and family-oriented attractions. Some of the more popular roller coasters featured in Avonturenpark Hellendoorn are Tornado, Rioolrat, and Thunder Stone. The park also hosts several events throughout the year, such as Play Doorn, Thorn Witch Horror Nights, and Sweltering Summer Evening.
34. Nederlands Openluchtmuseum
The Nederlands Openluchtmuseum (or, Netherlands Open Air Museum) is an interactive park in Arnhem that features historical homes, farms, and workshops used in everyday life in the Netherlands. The museum has actors who reenact how certain products used to be made. It also has an exhibit displaying old tram lines from Amsterdam, Arnhem, Rotterdam, and The Hague.
35. Snowplanet
Snow Planet is an indoor ski complex that offers everything from two ski slopes (100 meter beginner slope and 230 meter slope for advanced skiers) to several restaurants, terraces, conference rooms, and more. In addition, Snow Planet also features its own specialized ski shop.
36. Koningin Juliana Toren
Koningin Juliana Toren is an amusement park with over sixty different attractions. Some of the more prominent attractions are the Jul’s Super Rollercoaster, the Dino Tour, with life-like animatronic dinosaurs, and the Magic Mouse Music Show.
37. Apenheul
apenheul
Apenheul is a zoo in Apeldoorn that specializes in primates (apes and monkeys). It is the first park in the world where primates are free to roam around the park amongst visitors. It’s home to almost 70 species of animals, and houses such primates as proboscis monkeys, gorillas, orangutans, bonobos, and lemurs.
38. SPIDO Rotterdam Havenrondvaart
The SPIDO Rotterdam Havenrondvaart features the SS Rotterdam, the last great Dutch “ship of state”. After sailing for forty-one years, she was retired to Rotterdam and is now a combination hotel/museum. There are two tours you can take without a guide. And two other tours that can be taken with a guide – the Seabreeze Deluxe Tour, which takes you on the bridge and inside the wheelhouse, and the Rotterdam Complete Tour, which is the Seabreeze Deluxe Tour plus a tour into the engine room and belly of the ship.
39. Paleis Het Loo
The Paleis Het Loo is located in Apeldoorn. It’s a rijksmonument (national heritage site of the Netherlands) that greatly accentuates the unique Baroque architectural style of the 17th century. While the architecture is astounding enough, the palace also features its own exquisite botanical garden, called the “Great Garden”, and has everything that a Renaissance garden should have. It’s truly a beautiful site to behold.
40. GaiaZOO
GaiaZOO is located in Kerkrade. It’s only been opened since 2005 and has only grown in popularity with tourists and locals alike. It keeps around 100 different species of animals, and features particular animals that won’t be found in other Dutch zoos – the gray fox, wolverine, and musk ox. The zoo also includes the Dino Dome, a massive indoor playground for the kids.
41. SnowWorld Zoetermeer
SnowWorld Zoetermeer is an indoor ski complex that has three total ski runs – two that total 160 meters, and one slope for advanced skiers measuring 210 meters. The complex also houses a delicious fondue restaurant.
42. Hermitage Amsterdam
Hermitage Amsterdam is a satellite museum of the great Hermitage Museum located in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It’s currently housing two exuberant exhibitions, the Expedition Silk Road and Dining with the Tsars.
43. Gemeentemuseum Den Haag-GEM/Fotomuseum
The Gemeentemuseum Den Haag is an art museum in The Hague. It houses the largest collection of Mondrian art in the world. The Fotomuseum (The Hague Museum for Photography) and GEM (Museum for Contemporary Art) are also a part of the Gemeentemuseum Den Haag.
44. Het Spoorwegmuseum Utrecht
The Het Spoorwegmuseum Utrecht is a train museum in Utrecht that showcases a plethora of vintage engines, cars, and locomotives. It includes a children’s playground, a model railway, a model trains cellar, exhibition area, and a re-creation of an industrial age village.
45. Vogelpark Avifauna
Vogelpark Avifauna is the first park in the world to be dedicated solely to birds. It’s home to over 18,000 birds, including the white stork, bald eagle, macaw, cassowary, and great grey owl. In addition to the lovely variety of birds, the park also offers its visitors bird demonstrations, the Lori Landing, a Night Safari, guided tours, and more.
46. Zwem- en Recreatiecentrum De Boetzelaer
Zwem- en Recreatiecentrum De Boetzelaer is a swimming center located in Monster. The center has two recreational pools in addition to a 25-meter competition pool and a 25-meter disco slide. The center specializes in offering activities like Aqua Fitness, Aqua Insanity, Aqua Zumba, Aqua Aerobics, and more.
47. Kröller-Müller Museum
The Kröller-Müller Museum can be found in the Het Nationale Park De Hoge Veluwe. It houses the second largest collection of Vincent Van Gogh work in the world. Besides its beautiful artwork, the Kröller-Müller Museum is also well-known for its 75-acre sculpture garden, featuring sculptures by Jean Dubuffet, Mark di Suvero, and Fritz Wotruba, to name a few.
48. Het Scheepvaartmuseum
Het Scheepvaartmuseum (or, the National Maritime Museum) is located in Amsterdam and contains many historical artifacts related to boating and sailing. Such artifacts include historical world maps, weapons, paintings, and more. Outside of the museum rests a replica of an 18th-century ship named, Amsterdam.
49. Themapark Archeon
Archeon
Themapark Archeon is an archaeological museum that centers on artifacts from various periods in Dutch history. It is best known for its festivals that it hosts year round, including the Roman Festival, Midsummer Fair, and Midwinter Fair. It also houses the Proof Kids Museum.
50. Naturalis Biodiversity Center
The Naturalis Biodiversity Center is a museum of natural history and research facility located in Leiden. It is home to over 37 million zoological and geological specimens. The museum hosts temporary exhibitions throughout the year, but it also houses permanent exhibitions such as Nature Theater, Primeval Parade, Treasure Chamber, Earth Inside, and more.
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