https://www.borrel.ca/travel daily 0.75 2025-11-07 https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-1 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/7ac5734d-93d0-4642-baf8-d9f9753a6043/unnamed.png Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 1: Amsterdam to Purmerend - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/c2ad723c-270d-4f82-ba56-45e1ddebc3bd/06aeada1-7d68-8833-0311-1469f93a8272.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 1: Amsterdam to Purmerend - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/19bb4164-29fb-4f7d-b869-7fe01b991096/6f0484c1-37ce-263f-2ab7-fec25d15a4ce.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 1: Amsterdam to Purmerend - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/9ef2aaa6-0a7c-49e4-b710-5849ef4d35b2/878d43a8-28d3-01a6-3991-816546efa837.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 1: Amsterdam to Purmerend - Make it stand out Gerookte paling from Smit-Bokkum in Monnickendam https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/a2fd7e01-d701-4805-857e-9bd74edd2143/2321d3a1-108c-9a7f-9522-b3e327036904.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 1: Amsterdam to Purmerend - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/6e636777-edf2-4fe1-97c4-b435d559618f/51998aa1-b013-9834-9207-cc549bf52048.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 1: Amsterdam to Purmerend - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-2 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1c1cb708-8a54-4ba9-9d0a-e84ae6b3d764/0a275cbe-055a-2520-1445-f515c0e7c17d.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 2: From Purmerend to Alkmaar - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/807f988f-73be-40b9-8714-bc71ebf8830a/0446c280-ad37-7b87-02af-5eda41c96ea2.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 2: From Purmerend to Alkmaar After a good night’s sleep in Justin’s cousin Maarten’s old bedroom, we have a quick coffee and say goodbye to Aunt Frances and Uncle Harry (and their pet turtle, Arthur, who is closing in on 100 years and will probably outlive us all). Our first stop on Day 2 is the historic tiny town of Middenbeemster, a quick easy ride from Justin’s aunt and uncle’s house. We stop at the elegant local café/bakery/gift shop Bij Moeders for coffee and a saucijzenbroodje (Dutch sausage roll) for breakfast. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/b6035721-3cc0-42e3-a947-ea4ea5dfe643/031bc218-3053-c93d-2b6b-2352a9b84882.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 2: From Purmerend to Alkmaar - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/b7525358-925d-408b-bcc4-c0610e1b49da/f25a1ecf-6c58-0c97-01eb-793906728530.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 2: From Purmerend to Alkmaar - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/e4e3d11c-6e70-480d-b4c2-64bed84a1e8c/e764084f-b060-1a9c-aa92-fbc0eace17c0.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 2: From Purmerend to Alkmaar - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/afa760c4-15d8-4da9-b6a3-289f673b8006/be481323-4591-d89d-b58f-a1e26b2fceb3.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 2: From Purmerend to Alkmaar - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/fd42c12f-24fd-4498-921a-9fce275779f9/1690b74a-dc66-c8c7-c43a-fedeeee6f23d.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 2: From Purmerend to Alkmaar - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/6e18c916-c000-45cf-8f22-9443d189ab78/18c1964a-0f73-634e-3e68-27158238b070.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 2: From Purmerend to Alkmaar - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/9aa17ab6-41e8-466e-8eb1-714593456565/f045f24e-d5fc-1ead-30bd-bac01eca49d2.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 2: From Purmerend to Alkmaar - Make it stand out CAFÉ OF THE DAY: Proeflokaal de Boom Proeflokaal de Boom has been running strong for more than three decades and is somewhat of an institution in Alkmaar. Situated alongside a canal with seating both outside by the water and inside in a spacious yet super cozy room, it’s easy to see why. They have a library of beers and a variety of vintage beer advertisements and paraphernalia adorning the walls and shelves. It even has its own beer museum upstairs! (Unfortunately not open on Wednesday, the day we’re here.) We enjoyed a beverage both inside (for the atmosphere) and outside on the packed floating terrace (to join in on a lively borrel and for some prime people-watching). https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-3 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/a00249c6-9ac6-48e7-9c80-89d16eb7fee8/ff03b73e-18c8-3bc5-6ca4-01c600427ad4.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/2b8ab54b-e57d-460c-8335-d82d9cd8fde8/5996862a-f60d-e855-f71a-a9be0fbc731e+%281%29.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/12377a8a-662f-4408-9dd1-17c34eb31814/194edf75-4c5c-bd93-7ff1-272b0fb63efb.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/ec1a427c-4fee-4be7-b4bc-a0236c7c58ba/fd6857c5-8de3-6448-7075-9397f2dc2ed6.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/b4dcb6c3-444e-4926-a06f-eb703161de3c/31d6a535-4eb9-ad3f-d013-90e5dab79e67.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out After a longer stay in Den Burg than we intended, we have to zip through many of the towns on the island to get to the top. But we slow down to appreciate the highlight of our ride to De Vriendschap: the incredible bike-only route on a raised dyke between Oosterend and De Cocksdorp with a spectacular view of the Waddenzee. (As beautiful as it is, some of the ride is a tough grind with some of the toughest tegenwind we’ve faced so far!) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/84109777-74d3-4d19-a400-8d636b379db1/4886a0d2-6c22-0b7a-34e3-7be21f6f274e.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out Arriving at De Vriendschap is another highlight. Hand painted wooden arrows pointing the way, we are led to a somewhat rickety-looking but kinda magical wooden bridge that takes us and our bikes over the beach and onto the boat. After nearly 70 km of cycling, we are so happy and relieved to be on a boat and kick back for what should be a blissful 90 minutes of sailing to our destination in Vlieland … right? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/a1b63eac-8895-4e4a-97a5-ab9397344e57/01c2a40f-90bb-a586-f5a9-c3d0eb03fc7e.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out Not quite. We thought De Vriendschap would take us to the ferry dock just steps away from our hotel in Vlieland, but this was not the case at all. At first, the boat ride is even better than we imagined (the captain even has shots of genever available!) as the ship pulls up to a beach on the south end of Vlieland, which is populated by dozens of seals! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/e9e43af2-e8fa-468e-a169-65a279fcbf9a/dc4438e5-b938-1bbd-3e96-04631f3db3e9.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out We’re treated to a bit of a show as seals slide into the water and pop their heads up right beside the ship. We’re so delighted by all of this that we completely fail to notice that everyone else is disembarking the boat already. Turns out this is the end of our ferry ride and we are the last to awkwardly hoist our bikes over yet another makeshift bridge and onto the vast beach. We follow our fellow passengers toward a huge yellow vehicle with massive wheels that looks like something out of a Mad Max film. (We were too gobsmacked and confused at what was happening to take a photo of any of this. But here’s a photo of the Vliehors Expres we found online.) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/07977c5e-2148-4350-93e4-5333f48f348c/a378f656-1a81-201b-f601-15f13162bba3.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/02e89475-6202-4682-a84c-5d54abe403a9/32317d14-bd0c-4be6-a300-612b8d346002.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/dd4c53fc-308a-43b7-b53b-39fff22eca19/df83d8c4-4da9-317b-c530-745a253808fa.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 3: Alkmaar to Vlieland - Make it stand out We’re exhausted but the cycling path through Vlieland is one of the most spectacular we’ve ever seen, curling through vast swaths of hilly grassland and sand dunes under dramatic evening clouds. And then it leads into a forest! This island has a stunning variety of landscapes. (Unfortunately Justin’s phone is dead and with Alison’s phone now in use for directions, we just have the one photo.) Although it’s a magnificent ride, we speed through it and are relieved to finally arrive at our hotel and enjoy a glass of Prosecco on the terrace looking out at the Waddenzee. We’ve also worked up quite an appetite for a big seafood dinner: a local fish soup (Vlielander Vissoep) followed by a huge pot of mussels and a paella to share. Here’s to the completion of an epic total day trip of 77.6 km! By far our most ambitious day of cycling! … Not to be repeated anytime soon! https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-4 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/949f1dbd-6407-4460-b969-36b83342413b/56bde2f4-ea08-3697-796b-f3028c60fe92.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 4: Vlieland to Leeuwarden - Make it stand out We wake up early in Oost Vlieland to enjoy a morning stroll by the Waddenzee before coffee and breakfast at our hotel. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/dcd533fb-7eb7-4cad-96a0-91f60230f95e/eef06370-054e-1411-bb58-b0f80d2261a8.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 4: Vlieland to Leeuwarden - Make it stand out We still have a bit of time before we have to catch the ferry to Harlingen, so we hop on our bikes for a more leisurely exploration (and to get a few more photos) of the scenery we had to rush through the night before. It’s still beautiful, of course, but the bright morning sky doesn’t quite offer the same dramatic backdrop we had last night. As stressful and exhausting as it was to go from boat to bus to bike, our introduction to Vlieland was certainly memorable! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/cd09be1b-2e3c-4971-9e5f-e80a52e05df8/51019f1f-156a-be4b-2c34-525889a7c729.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 4: Vlieland to Leeuwarden - Make it stand out At 11:50 a.m., it’s time to take the ferry back to the mainland. Unlike the casual and personable Vriendschap from yesterday, the Vlieland-Harlingen ferry is massive and packed with families and screaming children begging for overpriced snacks and sodas. Next time we’ll opt for the express ferry. (We kid, we kid.) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/85132fb9-9f06-41f6-8c9f-17196518fc71/08c8e70e-ff4a-5cd3-3798-28d52edc363d.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 4: Vlieland to Leeuwarden - Make it stand out We arrive in Harlingen and enjoy a ’t Twaalf Uurtje lunch (which translates roughly to the 12 o’clockie? It’s a soup, salad and two small sandwiches all for 15 euros! Perhaps a special at Borrel for Stroopwafel Sundays?) on the deck at the Café ’t Noorderke & Restaurant Noorderpoort. We’re right by a canal leading into the harbour and enjoy watching the bridge get raised for passing boats. We spy a cute book and music store across the street and realize how strange it is that we haven’t visited one on this trip so far. A record for us (no pun intended)! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/8b669f15-972c-4177-ac4c-5dceb1120bf1/c5e3ade5-ca2a-a994-a0ee-98be14f04086.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 4: Vlieland to Leeuwarden - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/614ed40a-3406-4473-b5e1-cff11145231e/e0f444b2-2180-8ad7-e140-20cb2764f063.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 4: Vlieland to Leeuwarden - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/42a74e35-aae9-46a7-8685-92b2d3035012/fe07d25d-7915-4c1f-0d17-7bd7789993dd.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 4: Vlieland to Leeuwarden - LEARN FROM THE AMATEURS: The Dutch eat early. Considering you can get food at any hour in Amsterdam (but even that’s changing post-COVID), we just assumed the same would be true in most Dutch cities. Because people definitely like to stay out really late. For Justin, post-meal time is wind-down time and the last thing he wants on a full stomach is another beer. But maybe he’s just weird and getting old. If you’re like Alison and have no problem with a perfectly normal dinnertime of 7:30 p.m., you’ll be fine. Thankfully, Grand-Café De Walrus’s kitchen is open late with a menu option that seems to strangely cater to weirdos like Justin by offering all three of their soups in snack-size bowls (see left). Plus their patio is packed and this seems like this is the place to be on a Friday night! https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-5 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/fb9f88e9-89a6-438a-870a-1fe3f4ca5185/fc810630-426a-47b1-ec90-3202b90941cb.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 5: Leeuwarden to Groningen - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/5d3389c6-cb1a-4ba8-a4ee-69e78ecc0200/a8b96b5a-84da-d2b3-f458-d14d116ce5f1.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 5: Leeuwarden to Groningen - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/2c853a5b-7243-4055-ae1e-50d299a140f4/015f0732-fe87-8de1-b8c0-5fea421414c7.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 5: Leeuwarden to Groningen We’d be feeling a little ashamed about this, but our decision is clearly the right one. We have a fantastic first half day in Leeuwarden, with a nice quiet coffee and light breakfast by a canal at the Bakery Café on Nieuwestad, a visit to the medieval part of the city where we see the unfinished leaning church tower the Oldehove (Leeuwarden’s Tower of Pisa, if you will), a good browse through all kinds of treasures at Boekenpassage De Rode Loper (a covered passageway filled with second-hand books, old prints and postcards and a room dedicated to chess matches), and a stroll along Nieuwestraat (this seems to have been the place to be with lots of appealing restaurants all lined up together along the canal. Don’t know how we missed this street last night!), where we have a terrific canal-side lunch at Het Broodhuys. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/a55b62b1-dfaf-4958-bcaf-7f2756e6a757/924d6677-e170-aaf7-4069-a47cfdbc0dbd.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 5: Leeuwarden to Groningen - Make it stand out But the highlight and biggest surprise is thanks to the staff at the very excellent hobby store De Treinenpassage, where we are tipped off on a local art project called Miniature People. Artist Michel Tilma has placed tiny figurines (about 1 cm tall) around the city, each with its own story behind it. With our trusty map, we spend the morning looking for them. Even more fun than Pokémon Go! As the staff at De Treinenpassage said, "The map takes you places in the city you wouldn't otherwise go." He was absolutely right, it’s a truly unique way to explore Leeuwarden. (But you might draw a bit of attention to yourself as you're bent over searching intently in all the nooks and crannies of the walls of the city!) We only have time to look up seven of the 71 miniatures, but we’re already making plans to come back to find the remaining 64! We are so engrossed with our miniature hunt that we’re almost in danger of not making the 1:20 p.m. train to Groningen. So we quickly bike to the station and, with the help of friendly ticket staff, we load up our OV chip card (a contactless card for transport over all of the Netherlands) with an extra fare for our bikes and we’re off. (That is, after a bit of intense maneuvering of our bikes into the train car. While they are allowed on board and you pay for them, there’s not always a lot of space.) It’s amazing how a few days of biking will make a train ride feel like a luxury cruise as what would’ve been nearly three hours on the bike is covered in about half an hour’s time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/edb0c027-e716-4a51-82d8-a6527135fbde/11fc2f15-f880-a7c4-d208-a43f775c85f3.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 5: Leeuwarden to Groningen - Make it stand out The Hotel Miss Blanche is a beautiful if not luxurious (it wasn’t cheap!) hotel in the heart of Groningen situated along the Hoge Der A canal. But even fuller disclosure: we’ve been guests at this hotel before. On our first trip to Groningen three years ago, we embraced the city’s party culture with a bit too much fervour and woke up the next morning with one of the worst hangovers we can remember. It felt like a huge waste of this beautiful hotel room to wake up feeling so terrible so we booked a night here determined not to repeat this mistake! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/071812f1-9f72-49de-be94-d434ea7210d4/4957c6f4-e285-b0ba-da84-31ce4dbf58ca.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 5: Leeuwarden to Groningen - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/d1da6033-06a0-4e72-8f5d-3c41f79bb588/8484629e-b767-b5e1-4128-775ad3f1d012.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 5: Leeuwarden to Groningen - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/33d5ef7c-d535-4502-9f42-ff882740b486/e28137e5-0515-c3e9-bb20-6fbe712674cd.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 5: Leeuwarden to Groningen - Make it stand out If it sounds like a bit much on a hot and humid day, it is! Our waiter patiently advises against it but Justin is determined. Our waiter is equally perplexed by Alison’s choice of stamppot (we can’t blame him. It reminds us of the boerenkool orders that will continue to come in at Borrel even when Toronto is going through a heatwave). But our wish is his command! Indeed, Weeva prides itself on a kind of service not often seen these days, with the waiters dressed in shirt, tie and apron and the dining room is like something out of, well, the late 19th century! https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-6 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/b50929fe-3c70-4658-a3bb-88f9346cf27a/c08dd2f6-d2ec-ad0f-7ddf-3d1c3c7c6449.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 6: Groningen to Assen - Make it stand out Redemption morning in Groningen – no hangover! We did it! (Although man, still feeling that Captain’s Dinner.) Breakfast at the hotel, then some reading and writing and sober appreciation of our beautiful room at Hotel Miss Blanche until checkout. A word on this hotel, who offered us a free upgrade and breakfast for our stay – they’ve converted 11 historic townhouses in central Groningen into amazing rooms and suites for an elegant boutique hotel experience that still feels very homey and cozy. Plus our room this time is on the top floor, so we have a great view of the city as well (and it’s high up enough to escape Groningen’s noisy all-night party scene). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/6549675a-f988-4566-8614-96a1877a00e5/89c81a20-35f5-c9a5-dadb-03eff5514912.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 6: Groningen to Assen - Make it stand out Then we’re back on the bikes for a quick ride down to Haren to meet up with Justin’s childhood friend Marc, who he hasn’t seen in 25 years! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/66fe60fc-3291-4a20-a4b7-057b45ebdee8/8c29059b-5e0f-d254-bed7-3e8ea53b9af0.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 6: Groningen to Assen - Make it stand out Justin met Marc at his opa en oma's vacation home in Breukelen back when he was just 9 years old. They would fish together and Marc spoke excellent English, so they became fast friends. Over the years, they would reconnect almost every summer in Breukelen and Justin credits him for turning him onto skateboarding, new music and thinking about life in a whole different way. Marc was definitely a huge inspiration in Justin’s life and he continues to inspire as he shows us around his residence at the Biotoop. Haren is known to be one of the more affluent towns in the province of Groningen (and of course infamous for the 16th birthday party gone wrong on Sept. 6, 2012), so it’s awesome to see this communal, anti-squatting living space home to more than 300 residents and workers as an established and thriving cultural and community centre here. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/7b04f5fd-b741-41a9-b2c4-48a668f36ca4/6f9a16f6-89cf-c1b8-2b77-f35cae2d16fb.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 6: Groningen to Assen - Make it stand out Marc also shows us his jaw-dropping collection and cataloging of skateboarding memorabilia, boards and videos. You could spend hours browsing through all of this old skateboarding stuff that could fill a museum and, indeed, Marc has exciting plans to do just that! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/7f46f6ca-664b-47bd-bd59-26ee6ff85aa0/490b838a-44eb-cc8d-3cc9-6941d0c3ba65.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 6: Groningen to Assen - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/b185d43d-80da-4431-a565-df45b40da229/48c403a5-a333-2ec5-99f3-28b61d071f00.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 6: Groningen to Assen - CAFÉ OF THE DAY: De Koppelpaarden While Assen was pretty quiet on the Sunday afternoon when we got in, the patio at historic bruin café De Koppelen was packed! Right in Assen’s centrum, we enjoyed a couple of drinks and some bitterballen on the patio in the afternoon and then returned later in the evening ahead of dinner. They recognized us immediately and welcomed us back (hopefully not thinking we were complete alcoholics!). As it cooled down in the evening and the rain clouds threatened above, we moved inside, which revealed a beautiful wood interior that rivals the gezelligste of bruin cafés. We’re in luck to make it to De Koppelpaarden when we do — as soon as we sit down inside it starts to pour! https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-7 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/da0f23f5-65b1-46e7-bec1-efe681f7a6af/1ff1a33b-4e98-e23a-7ec6-69c27081f8f5.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn - Make it stand out We’re up bright and early in Assen and enjoy a lovely complimentary breakfast buffet at the hotel. Less lovely is witnessing one shameless hotel guest load their plate with an enormous stack of bread and proceed to make sandwiches for at least three lunches. Way to keep that Dutch stereotype of being cheap alive and well! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/3de4dbe2-49e2-4572-9527-42aed8e41f1a/259ba670-72ce-c3c1-784d-c9641c6dddde.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn - Make it stand out If our experience of Assen was somewhat limited the previous day, our morning bike ride is a huge improvement – it actually feels like something out of a Disney movie! As we head south out of the city, we pass by De Hertenkamp, a park full of fallow deer with beautiful speckled coats. While it’s hard to tear ourselves away and hop back on our bikes, our route out of town reveals more natural splendor with a tour through the Asserbos, a gorgeous forest park full of hiking and cycling trails through the trees. Wish we could stop off here longer to explore as well, but it’s a good 60 km to today’s final destination: Giethoorn. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/ea0745c7-1f8c-456e-af14-b58cc5bef016/ad3bbda4-93b6-ee74-3abf-e3ba827275de.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn - Make it stand out Remember that big rainstorm the previous evening, when we were cozily ensconced at De Koppelpaarden? As we bike through Beilen, the next town south of Assen, we witness the dramatic aftermath: a number of trees violently struck down from lightning in a park. We actually see three huge trees in near proximity that have been split and fallen all close to one another. (They say lightning doesn’t strike twice but it appears as though it can strike three times in close proximity?) One fallen trunk is blocking the bike path and we have to dismount to get by. The town’s locals are all out surveying the damage and, while it thankfully doesn’t seem like anyone was hurt, the severity of the storm was certainly much more intense than we imagined when we were marvelling at the downpour the night before. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/715efa6d-2ff1-42ec-a345-e95b98dd652e/6b791963-dc09-aba0-89b9-d2fdd7acf64e.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn - Make it stand out It seems as though Beilen is the most affected by the storm as we don’t see any further damage along the way. The storm spared the beautiful dense forest of the lush (and hard to pronounce) Dwingelderveld National Park. It’s here that we have another unexpected Disney-like animal encounter: cows! OK, maybe it’s more Kelly Reichardt than Disney, but what’s exciting is how close they are – unfenced and coming right at us! It’s a bit unnerving, but also a really unique experience to see them up close in the middle of the woods! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/c2b19bac-ad00-40bc-a395-33339e17a930/f0975de3-b200-8824-dd3c-8465b13780d0.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/51f386db-5a2d-4a20-981f-52b7d9b94694/3e425586-5896-2339-d9ca-c666ff3246a0.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn The ride through Dwingelderveld National Park is one of Alison’s favourite parts of the trip so far. It’s shady, cool and breezy (but not tegenwind breezy, fortunately!). The trees smell amazing and it makes for much easier breathing than the heavy humid ride yesterday. And the lovely dedicated bike path takes us past meadows, fields and lakes. After Dwingelderveld, we cross the border from the province of Drenthe into Overijssel. The lovely routes continue on our way to Giethoorn as we bike through vast farmer’s fields under huge skies. And the Disney-like animals continue as well as we pass a little farm where we have to stop to snap a photo of these curious little goats. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/e2851fad-67b6-453d-aa33-cd6e1a6d210f/dcb6680f-327a-3228-1ca9-c036fa57ae45.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn - Make it stand out Giethoorn is a tremendously popular tourist attraction, sometimes called “the Venice of the Netherlands” (although there’s at least one other town we’ve visited that also makes this claim). And truthfully, it’s not normally the kind of place we would make a point of going to. But a community situated along canals with all the homes connected by bridges and boats that’s also apparently car-free? That’s a bit too hard to pass up. And given that it’s pretty on brand with our trip’s objectives (wait, what are those again?) and that it’s en route to tomorrow’s stop in Zwolle, we thought it was time to pay Giethoorn a visit. In fact, the day before we left Toronto to set out on this trip, a super-friendly customer buying fries from us at the Danny Loves Music festival told us that she’d just been to Giethoorn and it was beautiful, if very busy. (Her exact words were “I want to move there, and also never go again.” Wise words, as we’d learn!) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/c9ac8460-fe66-4d36-9814-68721de3924a/1f567eb3-81e2-df7b-a9a6-0f015296ddd8.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn - Make it stand out For a supposedly car-free place, our entrance into Giethoorn is a bit disappointing, traffic-wise. We’re biking on a shared road and a huge tractor bullies its way ahead of us, almost edging us off the road. Frustrated, we hang back and wait for a break in the traffic. Fortunately, a bike-only lane begins again shortly after, which takes us the rest of the way into Giethoorn proper. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/ecd2e01e-f14f-4e9d-976f-e9c509e7ed2f/8ad8dad2-0b6e-8018-48c2-cd10f2437bc2.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn - Make it stand out Our enthusiastic fry customer didn’t lie – Giethoorn IS extremely picturesque. But it is also packed with tourists. The canals are so full of rental boats (seriously, every business in this town also doubles as a boat rental place) that there are traffic jams in the water. The narrow walkways alongside the canals are also jam-packed with people brandishing selfie sticks, trying to manoeuvre the angle of their photos so it looks like they have this fairy-tale-like town to themselves. After a few minutes of navigating the crowds we need a drink! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/d329dab7-3065-4595-a5a6-220a1c7bfb89/455228a5-7f99-4e7d-68fe-7d2f18ea9236.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn - Make it stand out This unique private boathouse is located a bit outside the main town and, given the crowds, we’re so glad it is! We’re thrilled to have a quiet cozy evening overlooking the harbour from our little deck. Not to mention the opportunity to cook our very own dinner for a night! (Is it weird that a night of home cooking is a major highlight of our trip so far? Eating out is of course a huge treat, but after a while, you’re thrilled at the prospect of making for yourself. Even if it is something as simple as a spaghetti bolognese.) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/b1796007-d476-46f2-9e4f-b43b8f9db525/a4137568-bcea-b51c-5405-11401746a36c.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 7: Assen to Giethoorn - Make it stand out We set ourselves up on the deck and tuck into some snacks and open a bottle of Prosecco and enjoy what is arguably our most relaxing night of the trip in what is arguably the least relaxing destination we visit (kidding. It’s hardly that hectic here once the tour buses head back). The sun starts to set and the water is at a beautiful calm. As we hear the boathouse very gently move to the gentle movements of the water, Justin is reminded of his childhood days at his opa and oma’s summerhouse in Breukelen and naturally talks Alison’s ear off about it. But it’s a beautiful night and one we’ll always treasure. A big thanks to Bed on a Boat hosts Marco and Marjolein for making us feel so welcome and sharing their Giethoorn stories with us. Little did we know, their generous hospitality would provide a very unique experience of this charming village the next morning. https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-8 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/dd3bb246-3016-4d58-bf86-08312fe7ba6e/565c4f5f-ceb6-cd53-9ad7-90fc77526151.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle - Make it stand out We wake up early for a quick but relaxing coffee on our dock before we head out to explore Giethoorn by boat. Our hosts, Marco and Marjolein, have generously allowed us to take their electric boat out before any of the town’s many boat rentals are even open for business. This is the equivalent to an exclusive private pass of Giethoorn as we sail through its canals with nary another boat in sight. In just a couple hours’ time, the canals will be packed with tourists on boats in what will resemble something like a bumper car (or bumper boat) ride. And they really do start bashing into one another and the docks! It’s kind of amazing that these boat rental companies trust tourists with little to no experience in driving boats to operate them through these narrow passageways. … Not that we should talk! Justin’s initial attempt to set sail leads to a good bash against the dock that makes Marco wince. But once cleared, Justin’s boating skills from his childhood days at his opa en oma’s vacation home in Breukelen kick in for a (mostly) smooth ride! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/e6e262df-75d3-4553-8204-d15547fb1693/d4faa334-6c9a-bff9-5be7-36f2a8c6c903.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle - Make it stand out If not entirely smooth, it is a very peaceful, inspiring and civilized way to take in this beautiful village. Even though it’s raining, it’s well worth getting a bit wet to have Giethoorn all to ourselves. There are hardly any tourists travelling by foot and we’re the only boat cruising slowly through the canals. It’s a serene experience passing under bridges and admiring all of the beautiful houses with their tranquil gardens. It’s a bit unsettling as well as we really don’t see a soul. Many of the Giethoorn’s residents have large backyards with guesthouses where they can stay to avoid the rush of tourists that will pack this place later in the day. Up until more recently, it was not uncommon for tourists to feel they had an all-access pass to peoples’ properties and they would step onto their lawns and even peek through their windows until more strict regulations were put in place. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/27e8ae3e-3356-4c72-9b4f-3c085f6db9f3/3a94d0c5-c53d-9b22-1df8-af5a98d51b37.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle - Make it stand out At Marco’s suggestion, we pull out into the lake Bovenwijde for a little boat tour through the Weerribben-Wieden National Park. We hope to spot some otters, but are happy to settle for a flock of cranes that take flight just metres ahead of us. It’s quite a startling and majestic feeling to see them so up close, although we also feel guilty for startling them with our boat. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/c2c3e93f-bce1-4baa-88b8-cb4b7c66ee1c/0d54d018-c176-8d03-ebd2-7fca859fabd1.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle - Make it stand out After 90 minutes in the boat, we return (with an unfortunate amateur parking job by Justin, probably making Marco wonder how we even made it back — but he did snap this nice shot of us). The rain really starts to kick in and Marco generously lets us stay past checkout to wait for it to clear up a bit before we head off to Zwolle. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/c48340a4-3445-43b1-a2e8-55152168495e/3e3d3f04-7c72-5594-f610-3c0000bc8e98.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle - Make it stand out En route, we’re treated to another beautiful bike lane stretch with wetlands to the left of us and the Zwarte Water river to the right (a river which also leads into Zwolle). But with dramatic dark clouds gathering, we just take a few photos and then power through to the Hanseatic city of Hasselt, convinced we’re going to get dumped on at any minute. A Hanseatic city or town denotes a municipality that was part of the Hanseatic League, a powerful trading organization of German origin in medieval times. Typically, they will be located along waterways for ease of trade and be enclosed by a wall for defensive purposes. … But we won’t pretend to know more about this by rephrasing facts we’re finding about this subject online. While fascinating, it’s also a little confusing to come to a clear consensus on just what makes a place part of the Hansa. However, it does seem to be generally agreed upon that there are nine recognized major Hanseatic cities in the Netherlands, and Hasselt is the first of three that we will visit on this trip. (Hope we can come back and visit all nine someday – sounds like a great future bike route!) We shouldn’t be surprised to find Hasselt to be another historically rich, charming and beautiful town. That really does seem to be the case with any place we spontaneously visit on this trip and it’s one of the main reasons we love the Netherlands and so many countries in Europe. It seems more often than not, any place you visit – no matter how small – will feel welcoming and full of character. It’s almost more surprising when a town does NOT have these qualities (and the places that did make this distinction for us we will refrain from identifying out of consideration – after all, everywhere is home for somebody). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/d624c4e4-b50f-47c8-b509-7c9d7972523f/71f95fee-99e4-477b-40dd-6f27ac099f65.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle - Make it stand out We have a quick walk around and then have lunch at the charming Ad'vundum (our new favourite ’t twaalfuurtje, consisting of a kroket, a sandwich and soup. Kind of like a traditional Dutch lunch combo). We’d like to stay longer but realizing that today is also a much needed laundry day, we need to press on to Zwolle (our fingers crossed that finding a wasserette there won’t be as much of an ordeal as it was in Leeuwarden). We enter Zwolle’s city limits by crossing a bridge back over the Zwarte Water river (and going past a little rabbit hutch in a park full of bunnies – a good omen!). We’re in by 2:30 p.m., but ahead of checking into our hotel, our priority is Het Wasmandje, a laundromat that closes at 4 p.m. With that oddly early closing time, we’re already bracing for the worst (and riding in stinky clothes the next day). But we have to give a big thank you to the folks at Het Wasmandje, who were able to wash, dry and fold our clothes and have it all ready for us to pick up at 3:45 p.m. (And all for a fraction of the cost of the self-service wasserette in Leeuwarden. How does that make any sense?) So we should also plug that they specialize in gifts and catering for baby showers! With our clothes taken care of, we cross another bridge into Zwolle’s centrum to find our hotel, De Pelsertoren. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/5eecbf10-6c9a-4de2-b0f0-3933934ff380/7fcfca0e-caa1-affb-bf25-5f292f5c2293.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle De Pelsetoren isn’t just any hotel. And it takes us a moment to realize we’re in the right spot – hard to believe our room for the night is in this 15th-century medieval tower that’s part of the wall that used to surround the city! Apparently, 23 towers used to line the canal of the inner city of Zwolle. Of those 23, only three remain, with the Pelsetoren being the only one that was refurbished to keep both its features as a historical monument intact while providing a unique experience for visitors to lodge there. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/d77c4fdb-2319-464c-a85f-9e42a01dc295/9a3adf33-d90a-e223-62ae-d46732158a86.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle We ring the doorbell and pretty soon our friendly host Andries is coming up the street to let us in and lead us up the winding stairway to our room. While we do get the only suite of the four available that has no windows, the atmospheric ancient brick that encloses our room more than makes up for it. We unload our bags and follow Andries to lock up our bikes … at yet another amazingly unique hotel he operates, De Staatsman. Located in the heart of Zwolle’s shopping district, this historic provincial building that was once a meeting venue for government matters is now a luxury hotel sporting seven beautiful suites. Turns out the city was so pleased with the work Andries and his wife did with De Pelsertoren that they were then asked to restore what is now his new hotel. He gives us a short tour of the building, which is stunning and features walls covered in intricate painted detail. It kinda has us wishing we could spend a second night here after our medieval tower stay! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/44ce66dc-0720-4b26-8691-c3686d8430a0/ab26122e-1276-48ff-2557-b5d1cc06712a.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle - Make it stand out Zwolle is clearly a city that revels in its own history and architecture, and this isn’t only on display in our awesome hotel. Around the corner is De Broerenkerk, a massive and stunning 15th-century church that has been converted into a beautiful bookstore. (As far as Alison is concerned, this is the best possible use of a space like this.) Remnants of the past are all around us as we stroll through Zwolle, soaking up the medieval ruins aesthetic. There are parts of the ancient walls that no longer connect as they have crumbled to a halt, but the jagged bricks that remain create a sublime effect as the gaps in the wall reveal elements of modern life behind them. It’s a beautiful blend of past and present (that this description and our photo do not do justice to!). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/79503b97-8276-40d7-ba89-88efedd730bf/c961d30e-2399-22b2-5500-31d845953b2e.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle - Make it stand out We even have the opportunity to pop into a bar that’s built right into one of the ancient walls lining the city. But while it’s beautiful inside, and we have a great spot by a window overlooking the canal, the music and service leave something to be desired and it’s a short visit. Much more our speed is the next bar stop at De Tagrijn, a definite contender in our ongoing search for the best bruin cafés of the Netherlands (and which we discuss in further detail for our Café of the Day below). It’s a special place that reflects just how special a city Zwolle is. We’re able to enjoy a drink and reflect on the amazing things we’ve seen on yet another great day of biking around this country. And tomorrow, we’ll learn a bit more about a special connection Zwolle shares with our own home country. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/ff188592-98a0-4ebe-ba7a-14408215891c/fa57851a-2179-5d76-a3c2-20bb6cd286e1.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/4ee75a71-16e6-4792-b711-35bc25a3d12f/f7d0b97f-e445-d8d6-27fa-c461bdf7249c.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 8: Giethoorn to Zwolle - CAFE OF THE DAY: De Tagrijn is Zwolle’s oldest bruin café, situated in a historic building that has also been both a brothel and a Salvation Army office (so it really ran the gamut of morals throughout history!). The owner, Fedde, tells us that it has been fully restored after a devastating fire in July of 2020. Insurance covered most of the repairs, he says, but the local community rallied around him so strongly with a very successful GoFundMe campaign. Even after full restoration, Fedde had enough cash to commission a local artist to create unique stained glass panels that celebrate the history of the building. We’re also inspired by the traditional mini Persian rugs that adorn the tables – something to add to our shopping list for Borrel? https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-9 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/96830c8d-b513-4a2f-a78a-73664752b971/6c42f5c6-20cd-ff8c-577f-d09214e6c855.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 9: Zwolle to Harderwijk - Make it stand out We wake up to our alarms in our windowless medieval tower room with no windows (a bit disorienting to be without natural light!) and head out to enjoy a morning stroll around Zwolle to find some coffee and breakfast. But our main goal is to pay tribute to Zwolle’s Canadian war hero, Leo Major. Haven’t heard of him? Neither had we until we started researching Zwolle ahead of this trip. Leo Major was a soldier from Quebec, who is credited for being almost single-handedly responsible for liberating Zwolle from Nazi occupation at the end of the Second World War. He remains a celebrated household name in Zwolle, which also has a street named after him. This year marks the 80th anniversary of liberation, and there were many ceremonies and memorials in Zwolle earlier this year to mark the occasion and honour the Canadian soldiers who fought so valiantly. Leo Major in particular was honoured with a commemorative banner that was unveiled at the local PEC Zwolle professional football club’s stadium. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/bbd09c67-9c21-4b61-b86f-5be8b7dcb8db/a677c39a-698e-1b0b-5463-3b43140c9c0a.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 9: Zwolle to Harderwijk - Dutch children still grow up learning about Leo Major in school. Last night, we met a twentysomething bartender who was not only well-versed in his history but also advised us that making the trek out to visit the actual street he’s named after, “Leo Majorlaan,” isn’t that essential a visit. (The street is apparently in a quiet residential neighbourhood without too much else to see. But we’ve included a picture from Wikipedia of the sign above.) Instead, we decide to look elsewhere – and a good place to start is the ANNO Stadsmuseum, which has a free exhibit called Behind the Facade in honour of 80 years of liberation. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/107d799f-2376-497f-b37a-b4f7f5a083d6/4ed4543a-47b3-10b8-87d1-d2898a8f1e86.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 9: Zwolle to Harderwijk - Make it stand out There, we see an iconic photo of Canadian soldier Earl Olmsted – a compatriot of Leo Major who both served in the Régiment de la Chaudière – seen here on the telephone of a communications vehicle in the Grote Markt in Zwolle soon after it had been liberated. There are several other moving stories about the lives of local people living in Zwolle during the Second World War, including Nora Louise van Zanten, a young teacher who refused to comply with the regulations imposed on Jewish people by the Nazi regime. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/5332094d-6a6d-43db-94fa-0e8102a93329/e7608b90-dc04-2965-6318-a8af7595cf06.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 9: Zwolle to Harderwijk - Make it stand out Zwolle is also home to a stunning art gallery called the Museum de Fundatie, which also has an exhibit in recognition of 80 years of freedom from the Nazis. Fundatie Collectie: 80 Years of Freedom is an incredible display of art from the museum’s permanent collection by artists who were considered “degenerate” by the Nazis, including pieces by Chagall, Klee, Van Gogh, Kandinsky and Matisse. Some more chilling artifacts are also on display, such as the program from the 1930s “Degenerate Art Exhibition,” put on by the Nazis in 1937 to denigrate and humiliate these great artists. In addition to the wonderful art contained inside, the Museum de Fundatie is also known for being a work of art itself. It’s housed in the former Palace of Justice, originally built in the 19th century, with the traditional facade topped by a modern shimmery egg-like dome. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/29b5da24-4ffa-4dee-aad0-bba78902e18c/29326fdf-622d-7ec7-a31d-307f0664ec9a.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 9: Zwolle to Harderwijk - Make it stand out We’re so determined that we completely miss the fact that we’ve crossed the border from Overijssel to Gelderland (the sixth province we’ve hit on this trip). With strategic stops for a bizarre lunch experience in Oldebroek and a hydration break in Nunspeet, we avoid getting too wet and by the time we bike into Harderwijk it’s sunny (it’s incredible how quickly the weather can change here from hour to hour). There’s still a big thrill we get from biking into our final destinations. Not only have we reached the finish line for the day, but it’s magical how these historic villages, towns and cities reveal themselves after a long bike ride. Often minutes before arriving you’ll be biking through a field or on a dyke or alonside a river then suddenly you’re over a bridge and into a maze of cobblestone streets lined with quaint old stone buildings. It’s especially gratifying to experience these changes in the landscape by bike. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/75667839-b551-4981-a774-7c532559de33/889ff969-ba36-afdc-ccca-991c6572cc43.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 9: Zwolle to Harderwijk - Make it stand out We were warned that Harderwijk is a bit of a touristy town. And with the Dolfinarium, a waterpark and a beach bar, we should be a little terrified. But Harderwijk is another example of how the Dutch are good about incorporating these rather tacky elements while maintaining some class. The Dolfinarium and waterpark (which did look like a lot of fun! No judgment!) are separated across from the town. And the independent restaurants along the pier are tasteful (we enjoyed a great seafood spread at Johannes. Highly recommend their Fish Sharing Plate!) with seating that allows for an excellent view of the Wolderwijd Lake (part of the Zuiderzee) and many of the more than 600 wind turbines that inhabit the neighbouring province of Flevoland. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/ef351940-54ba-42b2-ae4f-328421585608/dc0a309b-92cc-dcd8-196f-8c2b08540ddf.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 9: Zwolle to Harderwijk - Make it stand out And you can easily find respite from waterfront activities when you step through one of the grand brick wall entrances to the old city where we find more beautiful ancient architecture, a charming public art display of a couple making out, a big market square with locals having a drink on the terrace and a cozy bruin cafe called Café de Belofte (that we sadly did not have time to get to because of our dinner reservation. But we’re going to call it an honorary Café of the Day anyway!). It all makes for a lovely relaxing evening as we enjoy a nightcap by the water and watch the stunning sunset over the Zuiderzee. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/d82b8c3e-aa4e-48ec-963a-02f3e7bb2352/0aa42c88-5e58-8012-232b-8045610f70de.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 9: Zwolle to Harderwijk - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-10 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/fd8e396f-32d3-4a43-8d6d-93f59f0ace24/ae121748-2efc-cc8b-da44-15c60c577003.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 10: Harderwijk to Amersfoort - Make it stand out We wake up early in Harderwijk and enjoy a quiet and tourist-free stroll through the town. There are more charming cobblestone streets to explore and beautiful old brick buildings to admire. It’s a beautiful town and we hope to visit again. But we decide to clear out at checkout time and make our way to Amersfoort. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/64e46974-437a-4ed7-9493-9ddf8cd7610b/b06a050f-2d92-16c1-811e-a1505cb450bb.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 10: Harderwijk to Amersfoort - Make it stand out About 15 km into our ride we link up with the Zuiderzee Route, which has us biking on an elevated dyke with beautiful wetlands to our left and the Nuldernauw lake and Flevoland to our right. (A quick word about Flevoland, which is a small province composed of reclaimed land dating back to the 1950s. Justin has always been fascinated by it. Possibly because it was “new” when he spent a year living in the Netherlands in 1987-88, one year after Flevoland was officially declared the 12th province of the Netherlands. We had contemplated charting a route that would take us through Flevoland today to satisfy Justin’s longtime urge to visit, but it would have added too much time to our trip. So instead we admire Flevoland’s modern wind farms from across the water and look forward to visiting another day.) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/188d1992-537c-4002-9db4-f73d985c1dc6/d6b06dfc-9801-b46d-ae4e-dd53c47b29db.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 10: Harderwijk to Amersfoort - Make it stand out This has to be one of the most stunning bike routes we take on this trip. Indeed, the Veluwe region is well-known for its beautiful trails. (The Zuiderzee Route we’ve linked to is a shorter 53 km distance than the LF Zuiderzee Route, a 440 km bike route that takes you all the way around the Ijsselmeer. … And goes through Flevoland! We’ll have to try it someday!) But this shortened version also seems popular as there are lots of tour groups on e-bikes all basking in the delight of this magical bike trail. We try to savour the experience ourselves by taking our time and soaking everything in. Sometimes you just don’t want to stop and take a photo and just experience life as it comes. … Of course, we kind of regret it now as the few photos we do take and the video below hardly do it justice. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/91990b08-831b-4338-a60e-de20768e668a/bb4d3940-90a2-42d4-b07e-30445e8eff49.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 10: Harderwijk to Amersfoort - Make it stand out The village of Spakenburg is a throwback to older times. Filled with beautiful wooden ships (called botters) in narrow canals, museums and shops selling the village’s unique traditional clothing, which are still worn by its residents on occasion. Unfortunately we miss “Spakenburg Days” (which are celebrated every Wednesday this year between July 23 and Aug. 13, where there is a market and live music and the community comes together dressed in traditional attire to dance and celebrate) by one day! Nuts! Maybe we should’ve researched this visit to Spakenberg a little better! No matter, with lively café terraces serving up lunch and drinks on this busy and festive Thursday afternoon, there’s still plenty for us to see and do. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/cff167d6-8387-43b8-9a14-3736e87480d6/5bf8b7fd-76ff-140e-968e-84574cc723a8.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 10: Harderwijk to Amersfoort - Make it stand out The highlight has to be the broodjes we get from a small fish stand for lunch – gerookte paling for Alison and maatjesharing for Justin. Spakenburg is known for its seafood, and this broodje haring has to be one of the best we’ve ever had, with two perfectly salted buttery herring filets topped with a pile of freshly chopped onions on a soft white bun. The paling (smoked eel) is also absolutely delicious. Another broodje we would’ve liked to try is the Bali Burger from the local Indonesian toko (the Indonesian word for “shop,” which the Dutch widely use to designate any Indonesian restaurant or takeout place) Podomoro. With a blend of Indonesian spices, the burger won gold for the Horecava NK Lekkerste Burger in 2023. And while Podomoro offers more traditional Indonesian fare, it seems their fusion burgers are all the rage with the lamb burger “LamsBurgerGini” winning again this year. … We made a Bali Burger at Borrel back in the day! And a lamb burger just before we left. Maybe we need to do some work on those! Sadly, Podomoro is closed for the day. We’ll have to go back to try it! After a refreshing bitter lemon drink (Alison’s new favourite. Also, the Netherlands has way better tonic water than North America), we get back on our bikes for a short 45-minute ride to Amersfoort. Biking into this medieval fortress town (it’s right there in the name!) offers a very impressive sight: as we ride up from an underpass, the city’s outer fortress rises up in view. Justin attempted a video of the ride in: https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/89a1edbb-716c-438f-95a0-2952550e3997/a7a186c6-9d92-374c-d998-a05b6a006a9c.jpeg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 10: Harderwijk to Amersfoort - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/30f2babc-29a4-4010-ba2b-8de7864e8664/1aa170f5-f7f7-f207-1231-c8e55747a4d2.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 10: Harderwijk to Amersfoort - To be honest, despite the invigorating bike ride and all the beautiful things we’ve seen today, we’re starting to feel all those days of biking and really need to take it easy. We’ve been to Amersfoort before so we don’t feel too guilty about not exploring too much. We just wander around through the picturesque streets along canals and are led back to a very cozy cafe called Marktzicht (see below). It’s a little too cozy as it’s getting late again and most restaurants are closing up their kitchens. Thankfully, an old staple family-run Italian restaurant Pizzeria Pompei is willing to stay open a bit later and we carb up on absolutely delicious pasta dishes: tortellini al pesto and a sensational lasagna bolognese. This place is truly old-school and highly recommended. Considering it’s known for its pizzas, if they’re anything like the pasta we have to come back! Thanks again to Pizzeria Pompei for accommodating us so late! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/72fd9c48-acce-4109-afa5-412b7b6da330/4f9618ad-8515-e823-adb4-93e4086066a4.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 10: Harderwijk to Amersfoort - CAFE OF THE DAY: Marktzicht Marktzicht is not your typical bruin cafe. … Actually, it might not be bruin at all. While they have some traditional Dutch beers on tap, there are seven rotating taps and more than 80 specialty beers available in bottles. Our server is knowledgeable and helps Justin narrow down his search for a Dutch session IPA and Alison enjoys an organic wine, which they also specialize in. So while it’s a bit on the fancier side, it’s also super cozy and charming with wood floors and a beautiful bar. Of course, most people were enjoying their drinks outside on their busy terrace on the Lieve Vrouwekerkhof plein. Inside or outside, it’s a guaranteed good time! https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-11 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/a9f8641c-e009-415c-94ca-e57a614cb5c4/91db2ba3-11cf-b3ca-d41f-89e4d4004694.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht - Make it stand out It’s the last day of our 11-day bike tour through the Netherlands and we’re a little choked up as we push off to leave Amersfoort and head to our final destination of Utrecht. It’s a short ride — as we planned it for our last day — so we take our time. But we’re still on a bit of a mission today. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/ad870da2-8c4d-47e0-83aa-fb8b192ba0c8/87de35c4-8392-7e00-f654-179b66fb36a5.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/45bab795-0ed6-4aa8-a53c-95e0557ab197/91a94889-f8bc-4852-7ccf-fba050613ab8.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht - Make it stand out We could easily spend a couple more hours among the dunes but our bikes are due back at 4 p.m. in Utrecht and we have to keep moving. The rest of the trip is a breeze though, with a dedicated bike lane between the two cities that has been open since 2022. The doorfietsroute F28 is about 20 km long, with much of it running through forests and completely isolated from car traffic. It’s not only scenic, but it’s also a fast way to get between the two cities. And with little headwind against us, we’re making good time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/82a700d6-3e9f-4551-97a1-e04e65b20ce3/0319f6f4-6f36-f3e2-b04a-6acf48cba824.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht - Make it stand out (OK, just one more dramatic dune photo!) With this bike route we’re treated to another unique entry to the city that first takes us through the Utrecht Science Park, part of the Utrecht University campus. Our last visit to Utrecht two and a half years ago was a bit of a disappointment. We came in by train and really just limited ourselves to the city centre. With its maze of cobblestone streets all coming together to a canal lined with restaurants, the Oudegracht neighbourhood is definitely beautiful. But it’s also very busy and touristy. (Also, we’ll hear from many locals to avoid the restaurants in this area!) This time we enter the city via the northeast, through residential areas lined with mostly independent shops. For all the grandeur of the older inner cities, it’s often just as inspiring to visit the outer streets, where life seems a little more “normal.” There’s a nice buzz in the air with the busyness of post-work Friday afternoon rush hour. Justin challenges Alison to a race for the final 200 metres to the hotel/finish line to determine who will win the yellow jersey, but by the time we’ve argued about whether that’s stupid or not we’re already there. Finished! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1540e9af-6b9f-4561-98cd-cb9e46fc3b85/4a171d3b-1d01-89c7-a112-38069c46d284.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/43afdfbd-7bc9-4451-b7c6-96fb2a5ac42d/de25f249-daa8-4e91-a2ce-98acf912ecc1.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht - We check in and have an hour until our room is ready so we grab a quick bite to eat. An authentic-looking ramen restaurant is our immediate go-to and absolute heaven after 10 days of eating bread for lunch! By the time we’re done, we can head to our room, unpack and then we get a notification that our bike pickup is 15 minutes away. So we hit the bikes for one last time — light as a feather now with our empty pannier bags and no backpack — to meet with the folks from Cycle Classic Tours. While we did receive a generous discount on the bike rentals from them, we would go with them again at full price anytime. The bikes were superb, communication about pickup and drop-off was simple and clear, and they were just generally well-organized and great to deal with. If you’re inspired to try a Dutch cycling adventure of your own, we highly recommend them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1758214641277-GK54YJ5MVNJJX90RQZ4T/f2d98fd2-33a8-e103-3b68-38c7bb6a86bd.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1758214686503-2TK3SEP8THHT61EERAMJ/238db970-16f0-2763-edba-e2b40b8c256b.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1758214687356-50IJYIAQDI6RO1CHG6VD/748d8994-6c87-e4eb-2516-37796ce39235.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1758214691245-1SJSHE3X2S1SMSQ98LKB/f10c90d0-4913-c71b-59ba-764cacaaf62b.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/51c90750-17db-4db8-bf3f-211acf9334af/2dacaa10-80e6-b1ad-412c-c48f1321b0fc.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht - Make it stand out Utrecht is hopping on this Friday night with terraces completely packed and people spilling out of restaurants and bars with drinks in hand all in joyous spirits. It’s a scene we wish infrastructure (and unnecessarily restrictive laws) would allow for more back home. … But we also realize we’re far too old and tired to join in these festivities that will go on late into the night and are happy to be sheltered from the noise in our hotel room for a good night’s sleep. It’s been a long trip and we need the rest. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/dba07221-7b6a-46c7-b2ee-aa45d220f34e/8702965d-d6c2-eb4e-0393-03e9f892ea83.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/21ad5285-7cff-4599-b277-825caed9919c/6e301943-2173-5b19-2e55-17651884fe46.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 11: Amersfoort to Utrecht CAFE OF THE DAY: Café DeRat We mentioned the many great watering holes we visited in Utrecht (well, we had to celebrate our last day of biking! And Utrecht is the fourth largest city in the Netherlands so there are a lot to choose from!). But what made Café DeRat stand out for us was its simplicity, communal vibe and, of course, gezellig atmosphere. It’s all things a good bruin café should be. But it’s also uniquely tucked away from the busier streets in a downtown residential neighbourhood. So it’s home to a lot of locals, which is a nice respite from the many tourists that flock to Utrecht. We immediately felt at home in this tiny bar full of charm, character and a cute cat. https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-tour-de-pays-bas-day-12 monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/f6cea633-90bd-4d98-a041-08fdaf206def/49e673e4-0edb-4e6b-de38-17584f371d66.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12: Rotterdam Noord to Noord Brabant! - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/ca7c383e-d433-40db-9e11-76362279e54d/3ab7936e-7a64-2c2a-0b5a-02468a70ac36.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12: Rotterdam Noord to Noord Brabant! Our bike route for the most part is quite scenic getting out of Rotterdam. Interestingly, we join up with a major five-lane highway about 9 km into the trip … and it’s also kinda relaxing? With enough separation between the motorway and bike lane (and again, a pleasant lack of tegenwind for such an exposed area), we leisurely pedal alongside cars. It’s the kind of setup I wish that we had here. We also join our motorized friends crossing the Van Brienenoordbrug, a major motorway bridge crossing the Nieuwe Maas waterway. With our own bike path on such a major road, it’s another satisfying experience of feeling just a valued a commuter on two wheels. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/503d2d9b-2d06-45c3-a874-e34a5d82f99c/ec342ada-8b50-364a-4928-801fc4f673c4.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12: Rotterdam Noord to Noord Brabant! - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/c209730d-d217-4b2c-bc2e-8de8ad6225ea/50f05c92-0dd1-40ed-6c76-9b245dc64d1d.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12: Rotterdam Noord to Noord Brabant! - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/a6d4202a-965e-4789-8ffd-d9acadcf211f/d3428382-b192-cf68-c5c5-9dcc9b2cd143.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12: Rotterdam Noord to Noord Brabant! - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/95be021d-5e52-420e-96dd-dc21a8ebf580/d0eab853-e9fe-1841-3666-195919381dc5.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12: Rotterdam Noord to Noord Brabant! - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/2943282c-4a88-40b9-96fc-5fd927a2941c/9437abc9-b6e2-c4d6-9224-189e8f5e92b6.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12: Rotterdam Noord to Noord Brabant! Zevenbergen has surprisingly a lot to see and do for a city of less than 15,000 people. The town centre terraces are packed, there’s a charming walk along a canal (and a mermaid statue that Alison admires) and there’s some kind of festival they’re setting up for that night. Looks like fun, but we have to move on as we’re now technically running late! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/94d0dc0a-4f35-44df-8cbf-9e019105a90c/15dcec58-f832-0942-77fa-2c6f2d34eef4.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12: Rotterdam Noord to Noord Brabant! - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/9ae8cc2a-28a3-4d7a-88d4-eefd3e26d3e7/324fa948-5272-f3b9-87e3-a68532f00eaa.jpg Blog - Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12: Rotterdam Noord to Noord Brabant! - Make it stand out We’re beat from our long bike ride and ready for a good night’s sleep. We decide we’ll bike the 25 km to the city of Breda the next day and take the train back home from there. Rutger also has a tip for a pretty crazy sight to see en route. We go to sleep already looking forward to another half-day adventure on our bikes. https://www.borrel.ca/travel/borrels-bonus-tour-de-pays-bas-day-125-standdaarbuiten-breda monthly 0.5 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/4ba63066-cf2c-4ba0-aa9c-3a26ebff77de/oudenbosch+church+pic.jpg Blog - Borrel’s Bonus Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12.5: Standdaarbuiten - Breda - Make it stand out Rutger has recommended we go via Oudenbosch, a town just 5 km away. Its claim to fame? A replica of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome designed by legendary Dutch architect Pierre Cuypers! It is indeed a grand and imposing if somewhat puzzling monument in this otherwise sleepy town on a Sunday morning. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/946f273d-e265-478e-aba7-18a94b48889a/fun+frog+art.jpg Blog - Borrel’s Bonus Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12.5: Standdaarbuiten - Breda - Make it stand out But the town is also quite lovely and we enjoy a stroll through the streets, enjoying the whimsical public art and trying to distance ourselves from a British cycling group also making a stop there (and really talking far too loudly on this quiet morning … But we’re probably just as annoying!). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/baf85e97-42d3-42bd-9c68-12f39651818a/j+with+worstenbrood.jpg Blog - Borrel’s Bonus Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12.5: Standdaarbuiten - Breda “Warme worstenbrood!” The cheerful announcement comes from one of the young bakers in the back as she presents a massive fresh-from-the-oven tray of Bakkerij Nagelkerke’s – and the province of Brabant’s – finest: sausage bread (i.e. sausage meat encased in a roll)! The words were like music to our ears and she could tell as she eagerly asked us how many we’d like. “Twee, graag!” She was maybe a little puzzled that we only wanted one each, and in retrospect, we probably should’ve got a dozen. They were delicious! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/726f0505-4e43-4828-ad81-ae203b912fa7/20250817_150409.jpg Blog - Borrel’s Bonus Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12.5: Standdaarbuiten - Breda - Make it stand out Park Valkenberg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/33de53cf-854c-45b3-9623-a3268afcd34e/20250817_145623.jpg Blog - Borrel’s Bonus Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12.5: Standdaarbuiten - Breda - Make it stand out Breda’s beautiful city centre takes a little to get into as the train station is a bit of a ways from the city centre, somewhat uncommon in the Netherlands. But it’s a really nice way to walk into the city along a tree-lined street and then through the lovely Park Valkenberg (which used to be full of a very cute and hilarious band of wild chickens, who sadly had to be removed recently due to the risk of bird flu), and then through old architectural walls to reveal cobblestone streets … and a very happening city centre where the cafés are packed! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/0384db5c-11c9-4cc1-8577-c6eef4def9de/patat+speciaal.jpg Blog - Borrel’s Bonus Tour de Pays-Bas Day 12.5: Standdaarbuiten - Breda In town, we beeline it for a snack – a well-earned patat speciaal for Justin, and an appeltaart and warme Chocomel (met slagroom!) for Alison. https://www.borrel.ca/menu2 daily 0.75 2025-11-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/b1e10e27-70c7-417e-a6b7-5a0a45450f40/food3_400x400.png Menu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/5a02fb36-73f5-4c86-9910-b3a84f83c1db/drinks2_400x400.png Menu Click here to see our current COCKTAIL and DRINKS MENU https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/0c4234e9-0e96-47c4-a385-2ff329855994/rijsttafel3_400x400.png Menu https://www.borrel.ca/story daily 0.75 2025-10-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1590002741724-9GVPKSSD6T0W7CA1YRE2/1.+Holland+Day+in+Canada.jpg Our Story It all started with a cozy house party on a Sunday afternoon in the winter of 2008. A fortuitous visit to The Holland Store — one of Toronto’s few Dutch speciality shops — inspired us to cook boerenkool for our friends. Arguably the most traditional of Dutch dishes, we thought this hearty meal of mashed potatoes and stewed kale with smoked sausage and gravy would be a fun introduction to Justin’s culinary heritage for our friends. But to our surprise, not only did they love it, they demanded we do it again! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1596045924275-S74LN2S6BB9N1VTT5LKA/hollandday2.jpg Our Story So we cooked up boerenkool again the following year for an even larger group of friends, and “Holland Day in Canada” soon became an eagerly anticipated annual event. Over the years, we expanded on our Dutch repertoire with bitterballen and kroketten, and those deep-fried snacks went over great as well. That got us thinking, if our friends liked this food, wouldn’t other people? In February 2014, we decided to find out. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1590002835717-K2D3HV083FRDMV3BGBFZ/2a.+Ossington.jpg Our Story For almost a year, every Sunday afternoon we could be found serving up traditional Dutch foods at The Ossington bar for a weekly pop-up we called Borrel — a word used to describe an informal gathering for drinks and snacks. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1596046667751-ZG3ZKETL90CI90NUHDFL/poffertjes-beeracademy-2014.jpg Our Story We started with a small menu of boerenkool, bitterballen and poffertjes, and our 10 months at The Ossington were an eye-opening experience and a crash course introduction to the restaurant industry. After more than two years of expanding our pop-up to venues around town, including The Depanneur, Hitch, The Beer Academy, Hi-Lo, Handlebar and more, we finally had the confidence to take the next big step. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1596046911110-HLAFWYESSWQ9Q8ZUFDYT/borrel-bar-today.jpg Our Story Borrel opened its doors on the first day of November in 2017. Relaxed, cozy and family-friendly, we have done our best to recreate an authentic Dutch brown café aesthetic and experience as much as possible, without it feeling forced or pretentious. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/3b40ce22-2ad3-489e-9a85-5a52c909bf1a/borrel-busy-today.jpg Our Story We continue to expand on our menu with Dutch classics, some fun fusion experiments and Indonesian foods, including our popular monthly rijsttafel (a dinner of fried rice served with a variety of Indonesian dishes). We take just as much pride in reuniting customers of Dutch heritage with the foods they know and love as we do with introducing new customers to a cuisine they’ve never tried before. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1590003067577-9OHBC3TI59JVAJTNUXDC/4.%2BBorrel.jpg Our Story As it was in the pop-up days, Borrel continues to be just as much a learning experience as a labour of love. But one constant remains: to provide a sense of conviviality and comfort that we feel goes hand-in-hand with the food we serve. Our aim is that Borrel will continue to foster a relaxed and cozy atmosphere — to be a place the Dutch would call gezellig. Proost! https://www.borrel.ca/faqs daily 0.75 2024-11-08 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1595246541918-83A8TRD80TGATYSIGYZ0/Borrel_GiftCard_7x5.jpg FAQs - Absolutely! You can purchase them in person or you can email us and we can arrange payment online and send it over to you! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1595250317337-OBBSHD5TJA2OL4218OLN/nanna-bewerkt.jpg FAQs - The amazing Nanna Koekoek! Since the start of our pop-up days, our dear friend Nanna has been there to help promote us through her incredible artwork. She spent nearly a week in our basement working in isolation and subsisting on just bread and water (just kidding! … Sort of. Haha) to complete the incredible mural of the Netherlands and a who’s who of famous Dutch people in our washrooms. She has also designed a T-shirt for us, which you can purchase here. To see more of Nanna’s work and to get in touch with her, visit www.nannakoekoek.com. https://www.borrel.ca/contact-2 daily 0.75 2025-10-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/1588270632322-7WUAFW7NIYEAJT1ASXW1/Borrel_map_v1.png Visit Us https://www.borrel.ca/home-june daily 1.0 2026-03-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/f17333de-b84d-41ab-9791-55a3f5a12754/dope+shit.jpg https://www.borrel.ca/events-1 daily 0.75 2026-03-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/521d61ea-e635-4c16-a147-7c7ee72cc53c/Rijsttafel+Menu.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/fa9bd1c9-71d9-4238-850f-891ed740f846/Copy+of+The+Spit+Borrel+General+Poster+2025.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5e94dcd88dcb6c5cbc857020/846e81c5-2f47-450c-a802-a0611980a0fa/Borrel+MetalMonday+Poster.jpg