National Geographic Traveler - USA (2019-12 & 2020-01)

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DAY-TRIPS

FROM ROTTERDAM

Four Easy

Escapes

With Rotterdam as your
base, exploring other
Dutch sites is a cinch

IF YOU LIKE

Charming Villages

THEN TRY W

Giethoorn

A tiny town in the north of

the country, Giethoorn has

enviable claims to fame. It’s

not only a property in the

international edition of the

board game Monopoly, but

it was also meeting climate

goals before they existed.

You won’t find cars or

roads in this quiet hamlet,

where waterways meander

past peat islands dotted

with farmhouses and

connected by 177 wooden

bridges. How to get from A

to B? By boat or footpath.

IF YOU LIKE

Feats of Engineering

THEN TRY W

Delta Works

After the North Sea flooded

regions of the Netherlands

in 1953, the nation built a

network of megastructures

to protect it from future

floods. Called the Delta

Works, the collection of

dams, dikes, bridges, and

barriers has been named

a Wonder of the Modern

World. Learn about the

massive project at Delta-

park Neeltje Jans, a theme

park south of Rotterdam

where attractions include a

storm-surge barrier.

IF YOU LIKE

Iconic Views

THEN TRY W

Kinderdijk

For most people, the

Netherlands means wind-

mills. You’ll see 19 photo-

genic examples at the

Kinderdijk UNESCO World

Heritage site. Built in the

1700s to regulate the water

level of the surrounding

lowlands, the windmills

line Middelkade dike. The

best way to reach them is

via a scenic Waterbus ride

from Rotterdam. When

you arrive, rent a bike to

explore the area’s mills,

dikes, and dairy farms.

Skaters and cyclists

take to the ice near

one of the windmills

at the Kinderdijk

World Heritage site.

IF YOU LIKE

Animal Sightings

THEN TRY W

Hoge Veluwe

Twenty-one square miles

of heaths, woodlands,

and dunes, Hoge Veluwe

National Park was a hunt-

ing estate until 1935, when

its owners ceded it to the

state. Within its border

you’ll find boars, red deer,

mouflon (a breed of wild

sheep), foxes, and badgers.

Trails invite exploration on

foot or by bike. Also here:

the Kröller-Müller art

museum, home to the

second largest van Gogh

collection in the world.