My 5 Day Trip Around The Netherlands

The Netherlands has always been a country that I wanted to visit. The pandemic had unfortunately delayed my trip there for 3 years but as soon as I was able to, I took a cheap EasyJet flight to the capital Amsterdam. 

Lots of my friends had been to Amsterdam and raved about the city, some calling it the best in Europe and others explaining how it is everything they could have imagined. I knew it had become one of Europe's most popular destinations before the pandemic, and this intrigued me to find out why.

As I exited Schiphol Airport I got in a Dutch taxi and headed for my Hotel; the Holiday Inn Express on Hoogoorddreef 66B. Just over the road from the famous Johan Cruyff Arena. It was the first place I wanted to tick off my list when I reached the country. Being this far out for the two days we were here did become a bit of problem for my friend and I, as it took us roughly 2 hours of walking to get into the city centre, as we were too nervous about getting the tram. Looking back, we probably should have but I have always been a big advocate of walking abroad as it allows you to really take in your surroundings.

Once in the city centre, we were really able to explore and get to know what Amsterdam was like. We also tried Dutch pancakes (which were to die for), took a ride down the Herengracht canal and visited a few museums. My one regret being that I wish I had booked tickets for the Anne Frank House in advance as we unfortunately had to miss it! However, I cannot regret anything too much as I am 100% sure I will be coming back to the city and spending more time there.

Me and my friend decided before the trip that we would each choose a place to visit for one day. I had heard and read about a small village called Giethoorn that was being called "The Venice of the Netherlands". I saw some stunning photos of the village and said to my friend "that's where I want to go". We then looked where it was and it said it was just over an hour from our hotel. We then hired a Mini Cooper from the nearby Europcar and began our drive. We left at 10am and arrived at 12pm having had a bite to eat along the way.

We finally arrived at Parkeerplaats Giethoorn and parked up the car. We then walked just under an hour to get into the village, as cars are not allowed in the city centre. Our miles and miles of walking were already beginning to tire us out but the place was truly stunning and I am so glad we went even if it was just for a few hours. The trip there may have been out of the way but it was so worth it. We spent some Euros eating delicious sandwiches in a nearby shop and took a small canal boat straight through the centre. It was then time for our next roadtrip as we couldn't find anywhere to stay and there wasn't much else left to do in the village.

Luckily, the country isn't very large and you can travel pretty much across the country in only a few hours. We agreed that I would drive us to my friend's pick Rotterdam as I had chosen somewhere which took us quite a far way out. The drive took about 2 hours as we didn't need to stop for food, having already eaten.

The city is actually a lot different to Amsterdam, which shocked us both. The city has its own aura, much different to the capital, and consists of a more-modern feel. To be completely honest, as large as Amsterdam is, you feel like you are in a town not a city, but in Rotterdam that wasn't the case.

We hadn't planned our next city and we both decided that at Rotterdam is where we felt at home so we decided to stay here and get the next train back into London. We gave back the car and booked into the H2OTEL for 2 days. It ended up being in a really good location and this time we didn't have to spend hours walking around the city.

In the couple of days we were there we walked around the Harbour and visited the Market Hall and bought some souvenirs. We spent our last remaining Euros on tickets to go up the famous Euromast Tower, which allowed us to experience spectacular views of the city.

A very pleasant country is The Netherlands. The people were very friendly and very helpful with English and we had a great experience. This sort of road trip is something I am planning to do again - possibly in Belgium or Denmark next!