A fairytale wonderland you'll never forget in your lifetime—embark on a road trip to the dreamy Dutch "Giethoorn"!

Text & Photos /Evan

Whenever someone talks about going to the Netherlands—whether they've been there or not—the first question friends and family always ask is: “Are you going to Giethoorn?” Giethoorn, Giethoorn, Giethoorn. Whether browsing blogs or hearing travel stories from friends who’ve just returned from the Netherlands, Giethoorn is always listed as one of the most unforgettable places. Even W’s colleague said it's on their lifetime must-visit list.

My goodness—what exactly is this magical place called Giethoorn? Because when we first arrived in the Netherlands, we didn’t go to Giethoorn right away. We passed through many other villages along the way—like the red-white-green Dream Trinity Village, Windmill Village, and others—all equally dreamy. At that moment I thought: “Are people not coming to these places? Or is Giethoorn really that incredible?”

Introduction

Alright, let’s stop imagining how beautiful Giethoorn is and dive right in. On this trip, we drove to Giethoorn ourselves (we’ll explain later what to do if you’re not driving, including schedules and how to get there from various places).

Since we were driving, the day before heading to Giethoorn, we chose to stay in Nijeveen, which is closer to Giethoorn. It’s cheaper than staying in Giethoorn itself, and it only takes seven minutes to drive there. Actually, you can already spot some reed houses in Nijeveen—just without the canal views. It’s like a sneak preview XD

The next morning, we got up super early to hit Giethoorn before it got crowded—so we could capture scenes with more houses than people. We spent quite a while looking for this mysterious village on the outskirts. At one point, we even went to a more remote area of Giethoorn, thinking it was the entrance. But when we saw it, we thought: “My goodness—what a disappointment!”

Just when we were about to give up on Giethoorn, we found a nearby boat rental operator. We figured since we were already there, why not rent a boat and explore a bit? It was actually the boat owner who told us where the real entrance to Giethoorn was. (Yep, a mysterious place does come at a cost XD)

There are no main roads in Giethoorn. Basically, you park your car outside and choose to walk, bike, or rent a boat to explore the village. But I strongly recommend renting your own boat because cruising around Giethoorn by boat is absolutely top-tier beautiful. There are options for one hour, two hours, one day, or even two days. We opted for one hour, which covers the main waterways.

The price is per boat, not per person. One boat for one hour costs €15 (we heard there’s an option for €12/hour further in). It can fit 7–8 people (if you want to save money, you can find someone to share the ride on the spot XD).

There are also public boats you can take. No matter which type of boat you choose, the minimum rental time is one hour. We also saw people renting speedboats and canoes—but personally, I think speedboats are too fast and canoes are too slow XD. So we chose a self-driven boat for one hour, planning to fully enjoy the serene and beautiful Giethoorn. Of course, you can also hire a guide to steer the boat and give commentary.

Boat Options

Self-drive Boat

Public Boat

Canoe

Brief History

Giethoorn was originally a very modest place. People didn’t have much money to build houses, so they used whatever materials were available—mainly the abundant reeds and grasses in the area.

To build such beautiful thatched cottages, I truly believe art is a kind of talent. Who knew reeds could be used to construct such lovely homes? It’s like those European tin-roof houses—why can’t they all look this charming?

The Netherlands is truly full of canals. Anywhere with a canal and houses is just indescribably beautiful. But here, the canals are lined with reed houses—and that makes all the difference. These waterways were originally dug by residents for their livelihoods—to extract local peat for sale and to serve as transportation routes.

Back then, reeds were much cheaper than bricks, but little did anyone know that today, these reed houses in Giethoorn have become symbols of luxury homes in the Netherlands. It’s said that only the wealthy can afford to live here now—like a concept art museum district.

What we initially thought was the entrance

Entering Giethoorn Up—initial restaurant display featuring boats and Giethoorn-themed scenery

Iconic photos of Giethoorn

View from the bridge

Scenery along the way

The large lake along the route (lots of sailboats here—they move slowly so there are lots of bugs buzzing around!)

Thatched cottage sample after the lake

Even outside the village, the scenery continues after exploring Giethoorn

After arriving in Giethoorn and getting on a boat, I finally understood what people meant when they said it's a must-visit place in a lifetime. Every house is not only adorable but practically like a show home, and you can even cruise through the village in your own boat. Actually, driving the boat isn’t that hard — when you want to turn right, you steer left, so if you’re someone who often gets left and right mixed up, you’ll do just fine XD

But W wasn’t used to the concept of reversed steering at first, and ended up driving like he was in a bumper boat, bumping into things left and right. The boat owner kept shouting after him, "TURN RIGHT, LEFT, BACK," worried W might damage the boat. The foreigners nearby were laughing their heads off, while I just sat quietly at the front feeling pretty awkward. Eventually, he got the hang of it, started to steer more freely, and even snapped some scenery along the way. Looking back, it was quite a unique and enjoyable experience XD

So if you can, you definitely have to rent a boat and drive it yourself in Giethoorn to take in the uniquely fairytale-like scenery there. Here’s a photo of the very nervous-looking boat owner XD

Transportation

1. Drivers: (Here’s the Google Map link for everyone, because just entering coordinates isn’t that easy to find either, and the museum is nearby) It’s recommended to directly search for "Giethoorn free parking lot"

2. Travelers from Amsterdam – Time Reference →http://9292.nl/en

A. Direct train (total time is just under 3 hours): Amsterdam Central Station → ZWOLLE, then walk and transfer to BUS 70 → Giethoorn

B. Train with transfer (total time is just over 2 hours): Amsterdam Central Station → Almere Centrum, then transfer to a train heading toward Groningen → Zwolle, then walk and transfer to BUS 70 → Giethoorn

3. Travelers from other regions: You can refer to →http://9292.nl/en

Evangeline-Evan
Hi, I’m Evan, a timid and easily scared person,
but through independent travel, I’ve slowly found my courage,
and each trip has helped me discover a different side of myself.
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