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South Holland

Travel Guide Europe Netherlands South Holland

Introduction

Gouda cheese for sale

South Holland is a coastal province in the Netherlands. It the most densely populated province of the country with more than 3,5 million people living here, mainly in big or midsized cities like The Hague, Rotterdam, Leiden and Delft. It is home to one of the two mainports in the Netherlands, the international port of Rotterdam (the other one is Schiphol international airport). The province of South Holland has existed since 1840 when the larger province Holland was split up into a northern and southern part.

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Geography

Apart from the urban landscapes, there are other more peaceful landscapes to find as well, like a long coastline covered with dunes, and there are polders, rivers and lakes to find as well. Part of South Holland is called the Green Hart, which is in between the four major cities (The Hague, Rotterdam, Utrecht and Amsterdam) and offers a quiet alternative for city residents to recreate. Unfortunately, this green hart is getting smaller and smaller and several highways run through it. The most southern parts of the province is quiet as well and several lakes and islands make up for a good holiday, as it is comparable to the province of Zeeland with which it shares borders. Especially Goeree-Overvlakke is very peaceful and quiet.

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Cities

The Hague, the third largest city in the country and home to both domestic politics and international law and justice courts.
Rotterdam, the second largest city in the country, was almost totally destroyed during World War II but has been rebuilt. It is a lively city with fine architecture and museums.
Leiden
Delft
Dordrecht
Gouda is a small city between Rotterdam and Utrecht best known for cheese and for manufacturing candles.
More cities and villages in South Holland at the Zuid Holland tourism website.

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Sights and Activities

Keukenhof

Underneath the tulips

The Keukenhof gardens are the world's largest flower garden and if you are visiting the Netherlands between late March and mid-May and enjoy flowers, then this is an attraction you won't want to miss. Around 7 million bulbs are planted on an area of some 32 hectares. The gardens are located near the town of Lisse in South Holland. Although the history of the gardens goes back several hundred years, its current incarnation goes back to 1949 when it was set up to provide a place for Dutch flower growers to showcase their blooms to the world.

Madurodam

If you are only in the Netherlands for a few days and aren't sure whether to visit the countryside, other cities, islands or anything else, a visit to
Madurodam will enable you to see it all in one day! Madurodam is the Netherlands on a 1:25 scale. You can enjoy most major cities and important buildings in the country by visiting this park in The Hague. For detailed information about prices, getting there and things to see, visit the Madurodam website.

Kinderdijk Mills

Mill Network at Kinderdijk-Elshout

A UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997, the Mill Network at Kinderdijk-Elshout consists of 19 windmills, built in 1740. If you want to appreciate the windmills, it is best to go on foot or better; rent a bicycle and take a ride along all of the windmills. Sometimes, it is possible to visit one inside. For more detailed information visit the Kinderdijk website.

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Events and Festivals

Prinsjesdag

On every 3rd tuesday in September the Queen reads out her Speech of the throne (Troonrede) in the Ridderzaal. The speech itself is a dry piece of information written by politicians and not that interesting for visitors. What is interesting is the rituals surrounding the day. At 13.00h the Queen gets into the Golden Coach, that will take her through the streets of The Hague to the Ridderzaal. Along the route many people gather to grasp a glimpse of the Queen and the other members of the royal family. The route starts at the Palace Noordeinde and the goes to the Lange Voorhout and the Korte Vijverberg to the Binnenhof. It's only a short route and it takes about 15 minutes in total. After the speech, the Queen heads back to the palace, where she will appear on the balcony to say goodbye.

Parkpop

On the last Sunday of June, the biggest music festival in the Netherlands takes place in the Zuiderpark in The Hague. On several stages in the park several bands are playing from young and local talents to big names of the international music business. On a good day it is possible that 350.000 to 400.000 people come to visit the festival. The line-up every year consist of a mix of Dutch bands and International bands, with a good mix of genres, so that everybody can find a band he or she likes. Besides the music, there are markets and of course food and drink stalls. If you plan to visit and you need to get out of The Hague by public transport, have some patience as the transport is somewhat overloaded, especially when the weather is good. And the best part of the festival is, that the entrance is for free.

Koningsdag (King's Day)

In 2013, the Dutch throne was passed on to King Willem-Alexander and what used to be Koninginnedag (Queen's Day) will from 2014 become Koningsdag (King's Day). The date will be changed to the 27th of April, which is the king's birthday. In 2014 however it will be on the 26th of April because the 27th falls on a Sunday. On this day the streets of almost every sizable town in the country come alive with activity.

Other Events

Every year in July, there is the Summer Carnival in Rotterdam, one of the biggest summercarnivals in Europe.
North Sea Jazz Festival. Also held every year in July, this is one of the biggest jazz festivals in Europe. It used to be in The Hague but the last couple of years Rotterdam was the city of action. Have a look at the North Sea Jazz Website for more information about dates and who is playing.

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Weather

Als South Holland has at least some influence of the sea, this means that summers are slightly cooler and winters slightly milder on average compared with most other parts of the Netherlands.

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Getting There

By Plane

Rotterdam has a small airport called Rotterdam The Hague Airport, formerly Zestienhoven. It's mostly used by Transavia, Correndon and VLM airlines. The first two are specialised in holiday destinations, and the last services a lot of the smaller airports in the Netherlands and Begium, and connects from Rotterdam to for example London City Airport, Manchester Airport, the Isle of Man, Hamburg Airport and Jersey. Skywork Airlines has a weekly flight to Bern in Switzerland (winter only).

By Train

As Rotterdamand The Hague are centrally located in the most populated part of the country, there are good connections with many major cities, like Utrecht, Amsterdam and Breda. Most cities are within a one hour travel distance. Check the National Railways website for trainschedules to and from cities like Rotterdam and The Hague.

By Car

There are many highways leading to and from the province. The most important one is the A4 from Schiphol southwards. Other highways are the A12 from The Hague to Utrecht and the A15 from the Rotterdam area to Nijmegen in the east of the Netherlands. Note that parking in central parts of the bigger cities can be expensive, mostly around 3 or 4 euros an hour on the street, less in parking garages.

By Boat

There are possibilities to travel by sea straight to South Holland, for example from Hull in the United Kingdom to Hoek van Holland, provided by Stenaline.

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