Canal towns two hours from anywhere, a rebuilt port of skyscrapers, cheese-market squares and northern capitals most visitors skip. Pick the one worth the train ticket.
1AmsterdamThe Dutch capital, built around a ring of 17th-century canals and home to the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum.1000pts
2NijmegenThe oldest city in the Netherlands, on the river Waal, and host of the annual Four Days Marches.832pts
3LeeuwardenThe historic capital of Friesland, a canal city two hours north of Amsterdam and European Capital of Culture in 2018.794pts
4HaarlemA compact old city west of Amsterdam, centred on the Grote Markt, the St. Bavo church and the Frans Hals Museum.774pts
5DeventerA Hanseatic city on the IJssel with one of the best-preserved medieval centres in the country and a famous Dickens festival.741pts
6RotterdamEurope's biggest port city, rebuilt after 1940 into a showcase of modern architecture from the Cube Houses to the Markthal.529pts
7MiddelburgThe capital of Zeeland, with a Gothic town hall, a medieval abbey and streets once rich from the Dutch East India trade.529pts
8GroningenThe lively student capital of the north, known for the Martinitoren, the Groninger Museum and its cycling culture.433pts
9AlkmaarThe North Holland town of the traditional Friday cheese market, set among canals and gabled warehouses.433pts
10LeidenThe oldest Dutch university town, with the Rapenburg canal, Rembrandt's birthplace and more museums than its size suggests.433pts
11GoudaThe cheese town of South Holland, with a Gothic city hall on its market square and a weekly summer cheese market.317pts
12's-HertogenboschDen Bosch, the Brabant city of Hieronymus Bosch, St. John's Cathedral and the covered canals of the Binnendieze.317pts
13ZwolleA Hanseatic city in Overijssel with a star-shaped moat, the Sassenpoort gate and a busy shopping centre.317pts
14ArnhemA green city on the Rhine, known for its John Frost Bridge, the Open Air Museum and the Hoge Veluwe park next door.317pts
15DelftThe home of Delftware and Johannes Vermeer, a small canal city with two great medieval churches.317pts
16UtrechtA university city whose sunken wharf-level canals and Dom Tower, the tallest church tower in the country, sit at its heart.0pts
17The HagueSeat of the Dutch government and the royal family, with the Mauritshuis museum and the beach resort of Scheveningen.0pts
18MaastrichtThe southernmost Dutch city on the Maas, with Roman roots, cobbled squares and a cafe culture closer to Belgium than to Holland.0pts
Photo credits
- Amsterdam — Billie Grace Ward from New York, USA, CC BY 2.0
- Nijmegen — Fantaglobe11, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leeuwarden — Baykedevries, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Deventer — Michielverbeek, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Rotterdam — Rob Oo, CC BY 2.0
- Middelburg — Ad Meskens, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Groningen — JAHensens, CC BY 4.0
- Alkmaar — A. Bakker, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Leiden — Roger Veringmeier, CC BY 4.0
- Gouda — Ralf Roletschek, CC BY 3.0
- 's-Hertogenbosch — Zairon, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Zwolle — Ben Bender, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Arnhem — Zairon, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Delft — Zairon, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Utrecht — Sebastiaan ter Burg from Utrecht, The Netherlands, CC BY 2.0
- The Hague — Zairon, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Maastricht — Bert Kaufmann, CC BY 2.0
