The Netherlands is a treasure chest of exquisite art-filled cities and towns, canals, windmills, and tulip fields, along with shiny-new sustainable urban environments, and glorious natural landscapes, coastlines, and islands. While it’s one of Europe’s smaller nations (you can cross the entire country in a handful of hours), choosing where to spend your time takes planning. These are some of the best places to begin your explorations. **Special mention goes out to: ** **Delft** - Best for time-honored streetscapes and artistic traditions **Den Haag (The Hague) **- Best for regal museums and performing arts **Maastricht** - Best for Roman relics and revelry
Amsterdam
Best city for culture
Amsterdam brims with museums headlined by the national showpiece, the Rijksmuseum, neighboring Van Gogh Museum and modern-art Stedelijk Museum, with eye-openers like the Wereldmuseum (a museum of world cultures), and scores of smaller, specialist gems as niche as piano-player pianolas or sustainable fashion.
Music spanning classical to EDM spills from historic churches, hallowed concert halls (the Concertgebouw has near-perfect acoustics), and legendary venues like Melkweg, as well as open-air spaces such as the stage in the sprawling green Vondelpark.
Planning tip: It’s easy to avoid overtourism and escape the crowds by heading to less-visited neighborhoods. Amsterdam Noord is a fantastic starting point, home to a state-of-the-art film museum, the world’s biggest street-art museum, a vast art "breeding ground" in former shipping warehouse NDSM-Loods, and eco-focused cafes and bars, many built from recycled materials.
Rotterdam
Best city for contemporary architecture
The Netherlands’ second-biggest city and Europe’s largest port, Rotterdam has triumphed over the adversity of its WWII devastation, transforming into a veritable gallery of contemporary architecture and public art. Standout structures include the Overblaak "forest" of tilted cube-shaped houses (one houses the Kijk-Kubus museum), the soaring, horseshoe-shaped Markthal with original food stalls and restaurants, and the gleaming mirror-ball-like Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen – a world-first open-access art storage facility. Repurposed spaces abound, such as the Schieblock, a midcentury office building converted into creative studios, topped by a harvestable roof terrace.
Planning tip: An exhilarating way to see the shape-shifting cityscape is aboard a water taxi zipping across the harbor. Daredevils can even abseil 100m (328 ft) from Rotterdam’s iconic 1960-opened Euromast observation tower.
Texel
Best spot for outdoor activities
Basking less than 2 miles off the Dutch coast, the bucolic Wadden Sea island of Texel (pronounced "Tes-sel") is capped by a crimson lighthouse and fringed by sweeping white-sand beaches. With its lush pastures grazed by fluffy sheep (prized for their wool) and dairy cows (producing milk used in local cheeses, chocolate, and ice cream, mixed with freshly picked berries), along with rambling forests and nature reserves, Texel is an outdoor paradise. Cycling trails crisscross the island, with activities ranging from horse riding and skydiving. Watersports include sailing and kitesurfing.
Some 10,000 seals swim in the surrounding waters; you can spot them on boat trips or at Ecomare’s seal sanctuary.
Planning tip: Ferries carry foot passengers, cars, and bikes from mainland Den Helder to Texel in just 20 minutes. In summer, there’s also a service linking Texel with the Frisian island of Vlieland.