A village of thatched farmhouses, 176 wooden bridges and canals where you would expect streets, about an hour and three-quarters from Amsterdam.
The old part of Giethoorn was built without roads. For centuries everything went by boat, from the hay to the cows, and the houses stand on small islands linked by footbridges. Today it is one of the most visited villages in the Netherlands, so the trick is to know when to go and how to get off the main canal.
Our advice: Long full day
Travel time from Amsterdam: about 1 hour 45 minutes each way.
Giethoorn is one of the longer day trips we offer. It is worth it if a quiet village of canals and thatched farmhouses is high on your list. If you only have one day outside Amsterdam, the villages north of the city are much closer.
Giethoorn is often called the Venice of the Netherlands. The comparison only goes so far: instead of palaces there are farmhouses with thick thatched roofs, and instead of crowds of gondolas there are small electric boats gliding past gardens. It became famous in 1958, when Bert Haanstra filmed his comedy Fanfare here, and in 2015 it was voted into a world edition of Monopoly.
Ready to go? Book our private Giethoorn day trip from Amsterdam with a local guide and your own boat.
Giethoorn was founded in the 13th century. According to local legend, the first settlers found the horns of wild goats that had drowned in an earlier flood, and named the place Geytenhoren, goat horns. The canals and lakes around the village were created by peat digging: the peat was cut, dried and shipped out as fuel, and the ditches left behind filled with water. Because every farm was reached by water, the village never needed roads.
The only way to really see Giethoorn is from a boat. Most visitors rent a small electric “whisper boat”, which is easy to steer and silent on the water. You can also take a punt or a canoe, or a stand-up paddleboard. The main canal gets very busy around midday in summer, so go early or late, and take the side channels and the open lakes beyond the village.
The Giethoorn Museum, in an old farmhouse, shows how people lived here when everything went by water: the tools of the peat cutters, the boats, and the rooms of a farming family.
Giethoorn is flat and surrounded by quiet cycle paths. You can rent bikes in the village and ride out along the water to neighbouring villages such as Dwarsgracht and Jonen, or into the national park.
The Weerribben-Wieden National Park surrounds Giethoorn, a landscape of reed beds, peat lakes and marsh woodland. It is one of the largest wetlands of its kind in Europe and home to otters, spoonbills and rare butterflies. Explore it by canoe or boat, on foot or by bike, and it quickly gets quieter than the village itself.
After a morning on the canals, stop for a pannenkoek, the Dutch pancake: thin, the size of a dinner plate, and served sweet with stroop, a thick syrup, or savoury with bacon and cheese. Several restaurants in Giethoorn have terraces right on the water.
An unexpected find in a village of farmhouses: De Oude Aarde has a large collection of minerals, gemstones and fossils from around the world. A good choice on a rainy day, and popular with children.
A local studio dresses visitors in traditional Dutch costume for a photo, which you can take home printed or digitally. It also runs painting workshops for groups.
These are the three day trips people most often weigh up, and they are quite different. Zaanse Schans is the closest to Amsterdam, around twenty minutes away, and it is all about working windmills, clogs and cheese, so it makes an easy half day. Volendam and Marken are old fishing villages on the water, pretty and quick to reach, and often combined with Zaanse Schans in a single trip. Giethoorn is further, about an hour and a quarter each way, and it is a full day, but it is the only one of the three with no roads through the old heart of the village, just thatched farmhouses, footbridges and quiet water. So if you want windmills and a classic half day, choose Zaanse Schans; if you want the car-free, storybook village, Giethoorn is worth the extra drive. Our private Giethoorn tour from Amsterdam takes care of the whole day, and if you would rather stay close to the city, see our private Zaanse Schans tour.
Yes, if you plan it well. The drive is long for a day trip and the main canal can be crowded, but once you are on the water on a quiet side channel, or out on the lakes of the national park, Giethoorn is unlike anywhere else in the country. Go early, get onto a boat, and leave the busy centre behind.
Around 120 kilometres. By car it takes about one and a half to two hours, which is why most people make a full day of it. By public transport it takes at least two and a half hours, with a train to Steenwijk and a bus from there.
It can be very busy in spring and summer, especially at weekends and in school holidays, and the main canal is the busiest part. Arrive early in the morning or later in the afternoon, and use the side channels and the lakes, which are much quieter.
April to early October has the mildest weather and the gardens are in flower. Autumn is quieter and the reed beds turn golden. Winter is calm and atmospheric, and boat trips still run on most days, weather permitting.
Yes. You can rent whisper boats, canoes and small electric boats all over the village. Prices vary by season and type of boat, and most rentals are by the hour. On our private tour a boat is arranged for you.
Yes. The calm water, the boat rides and the many little bridges make it a good day out for families with children of all ages.
