Walking tour of Amsterdam; 3-4 miles, easy city walking

This springtime sojourn in the Netherlands begins in its capital and largest city, Amsterdam. After meeting the guides, you set out on a morning walking tour of its vibrant and historic neighborhoods, including the Old South area, considered to be the city’s “Latin Quarter,” frequented by art lovers and known for the early 20th-century Dutch School of Architecture. Also on the route is the house where Anne Frank lived before she and her family went into hiding. Lunch is at Café de Jaren, overlooking the canals.

After lunch you can rest on the short drive to the city of Haarlem. Your hotel is located in the historic center and upon check in, time permitting, you can begin exploring this fascinating city directly from the hotel’s central location; museums, medieval churches, monuments, and enticing shops are all a short stroll away. You gather in the evening for a short transfer to a highly acclaimed lakeside restaurant surrounded by wooded dunes. This modern venue is an ideal location to toast your new friends over a welcome dinner of delicately prepared local specialties.

Keukenhof Tulip Show and Tulip Fields; 3-5 miles, easy

Today is devoted to basking in the Netherlands’ incomparable flowers and gardens. A short ride this morning brings you to neighboring Lisse, just south of Haarlem. Lisse is the center of the annual Keukenhof Tulip Show, where the vast displays of tulips and other bulb flowers may be blooming at their colorful peak. Here, you stroll through Keukenhof’s stunning landscaped gardens and view exhibitions showcasing Holland’s flower industry (accounting for $12 billion worth of Holland’s exports). Along the way you are presented with ample opportunities to photograph the glorious fields of flowers including hyacinths and tulips which begin to blossom from April to mid-May, depending on the weather. The idea of creating the world’s largest flower garden was conceived by the town’s mayor in 1949 and designed on the Keukenhof Estate, which literally means “kitchen garden,” as it was placed on the site of the herb and vegetable garden of the 15th-century Countess of Holland, Jacoba van Beieren. You have lunch in one of the many cafés within the gardens, before strolling farther through the tulip fields, where you may find more photo opportunities.

Later you return to Haarlem, where you might have time to stroll the square or enjoy a quiet drink. Tonight you dine at the hotel’s restaurant, where Dutch bank notes and international stamps were once pressed. Highlights of the menu include beautifully served fish and seafood, a reminder of Holland’s centuries of seafaring and exploration.

Haarlem to Kennemerduinen National Park; 6 miles, easy. Haarlem city tour, 2 miles, easy

Beer brewing was a very important industry in Haarlem, and as a result of this history you are able to walk directly from the hotel this morning along the old brewers’ canal, called the Brouwersgracht. Following this trail to the Kennermerduinen National Park on the North Sea Coast, you arrive at the most extensive and unspoiled dunes in Holland. Here, trails pass into quiet mixed deciduous and coniferous forest, over fields of wild-growing shrubs, and undulating sand dunes. Lunch is served at a beachfront restaurant, where seabirds dive into the open sea.

On arrival back in Haarlem in the afternoon, you follow your guide(s) on an easy walking tour of the city. This is an opportunity to explore Haarlem in detail, including the famed main square (Gröte Markt) with its 14th-century City Hall and St. Bavokerk Church. You discover not only its historical highlights, but also absorb the city’s charm and daily life. Time permitting, you may visit the Frans Hals Museum, which houses a large selection of works by this painter, as well as other famous Dutch artists from the 15th century to the present. Another special Haarlem museum is the Teyler Museum—Holland’s oldest—which is housed in the former home of a wealthy 18th-century merchant and banker and offers a fascinating collection of paintings and artifacts. Spicy and exotic, this evening’s dinner takes place at one of the city center’s many Indonesian restaurants, popular in Holland since the colonial period.

De Hoge Veluwe National Park; 4-5 miles, easy

Rested and packed, you set off promptly this morning for one of Holland’s oldest and largest national parks, De Hoge Veluwe, a vast landscape with a variety of ecosystems. Here, heath land dating from the Middle Ages evolved into large expanses of drifting sand as inhabitants cut peat to fertilize fields. Eventually trees were planted to stop the drifting, but the drift sand is now being partially restored. Almost 4,000 acres of cultivated woodland—chiefly pine and red oak—remain. An extensive trail network throughout the park provides access to fascinating living ecology lessons with beautiful and rare plant species. You may even spot some of the animals who make their home in this nature reserve, species such as red deer, roe deer, a wild sheep called “Moufflon” (originally native to Corsica and Sardinia), and even wild boar.

The park is also the location of the Kröller-Müller Museum, which houses an excellent collection of nearly 300 of Van Gogh’s paintings (including “The Potato Eaters”) as well as works by other modern European painters. Outside the museum is Europe’s largest sculpture garden, which includes works by Rodin, Moore, Lupchitz, and others. The De Hoge Veluwe Park provides a harmonious blend of nature, art, and architecture.

Late in the afternoon continue on to your second home of the week—a splendid hotel that used to be the Utrecht courthouse, right in the heart of this vibrant city. After settling in, stroll from your hotel to dinner at a nearby restaurant.

Historic Utrecht; 2-3 miles, easy. Visit to Amelisweerd Estate. Free afternoon

This morning you explore historic Utrecht on foot, leaving directly from the hotel. You follow a path into the green Wilhemina Park and the landmark modernist classic Rietveld-Schröder House, designed by the architect Rietveld. You continue your lovely stroll along the winding Kromme Rijn River. An exclusive lunch of local organic fare is served at the Amelisweerd Estate’s charming carriage house with its wood stove and open kitchen.

After lunch, you take a short walk through the grounds of this 17th-century estate preserved as a regional park and board your van to return to Utrecht. The afternoon and evening are yours to design: you may spend the afternoon in the fascinating Centraal Museum, Holland’s oldest municipal museum. The Centraal is located in a renovated medieval cloister and houses a wide collection divided into five categories: old masters, modern art, design, fashion, and local history. With shops open until late in the evening, there is ample time to find unique souvenirs. Due to the city’s central location, dining options in Utrecht are very representative of Dutch cuisine as a whole. You might sample specialties from various provinces such as dried sausages, cheeses, or mustards.

Kinderdijk windmills; 4-6 miles, easy to moderate

Today is a fun immersion into Dutch history and culture during which you visit and experience what Holland is best known for—windmills, picturesque villages, and tidy farmhouses. Set off for the southwest and the famed and highly picturesque windmills east of Rotterdam at Kinderdijk. The 19 windmills at Kinderdijk, built during the 18th century, were the “high-tech” development of the day, harnessing the power of the coastal winds to pump water away and build up land. Learn first-hand about this crucial part of Holland’s history while you walk on trails along the canals and directly beneath the windmills. Along the way you are immersed in quintessential Dutch countryside—grazing sheep and abundant wildflowers as well as a wetland nature reserve with rare birds such as black tern and marsh harrier. Finally, you cross the Rek River by ferry and pass characteristically quaint Dutch villages.

Lunch time finds you at a typical Dutch pancake restaurant, before exploring the medieval village of Oudewater (“old waterway”). Burned by the Spanish and rebuilt in the 17th century, this protected historic village was famed for weighing witches and making ropes. The final dinner is a festive celebration of your exploration of the Netherlands’ natural places and cultural treasures.

Departure

After breakfast your guides provide two group transfers to Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport for early morning and mid-morning departures.