South Holland, Netherlands province of Windmills and Flowers

Are you coming to the Netherlands for the famous windmills and flower fields? Well, get out of Amsterdam and head for the province of South Holland!

Because here, in the southern part of Holland (which is just one region/land of The Netherlands) is where you will find these main characteristics of our beautiful country.

South Holland is only a half hour drive away from Amsterdam. And on here’s where you should go to:

The Flower fields and Flower industry

You probably have heard about the Keukenhof, and the flower fields you can find here. It must be the most famous tourist trap in The Netherlands, apart from Amsterdam of course.

Unfortunately, the Keukenhof is only open for two months in spring. and it is very crowded in that period.

Lucky for you, there are more flowers in the Netherlands than just the Keukenhof. In many villages in South Holland, flowers are grown. And there are different large flower auctions where they are traded.

A lot of the flower growing companies and auctions can be visited by tourists.

Windmills, meadows and lakes

The central part of South Holland is a green area, known as “the Green Heart”. The area mainly consists of meadows, lakes, and windmills.

Although the most famous Dutch windmills are found at the Kinderdijk near Rotterdam, there are many more you can admire. Just ride along in the countryside, and you’ll see plenty of them.

It is even better to take a boat trip over the lakes, though. From the water, you’ll have a completely different view of the countryside. And you can even enter and watch the city of Leiden from the water. Want to know more? Just contact us.

Great beaches and dunes

As in North Holland, the province of South Holland has plenty of beaches. The main seaside resorts are Noordwijk and Scheveningen. That last one lies next to the city of The Hague.

More to the South are the islands of South Holland. Very similar to the province of Zeeland, these islands have lots of beaches, dunes, and nature.

They are connected via bridges, so you do not have to take the boat to reach them.

Theme parks and other attractions

Are you into some action during your vacation in The Netherlands? South Holland has a few nice theme parks to choose from.

In the dunes of Wassenaar, between The Hague and Leiden, lies Duinrell. This is a nice family park, with an old style playground as well as some modern rollercoasters. And in addition to that, there is a large indoor aquapark, with many exciting water slides.

Also near The Hague, but on the other side, lies Drievliet. This theme park has many attractions on a small surface.

A theme park of a completely different kind, is Archeon. Instead of exciting rides, you will learn all about history here. See how the Romans used to live here, as well as people from the Stone age and other areas. Great fun are the big shows in summertime.

Do you want to know more about astronauts and the Universe? Go to Space Expo in Noordwijk.

Do you want to see The Netherlands in one birds' eye view? Come to Madurodam in The Hague. See all monuments and buildings in minuature. And enjoy the trains, boats and the airplanes moving around.

The cities of South Holland

And off course, there are very nice cities in South Holland:

• The Hague, here is where Dutch parliament is located, although it is not the capital of the Netherlands.
• Rotterdam, with the largest port of Europe. Other reasons to visit are the modern architecture and fun party scene.
• Delft, famous city for its blue pottery and graves of Dutch royalty.
• Leiden, birthplace of Dutch master painter Rembrandt van Rijn.

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