4 weeks, 2 kids, suggested routes for Holland please.

Laurin

Laurin

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Having finished teacher training, for the first time this year I've got time to consider our summer cruise to Holland. Not been before, we have 4 weeks, but with a 4 and 6 year old we like to sail about half the time, so a full days sailing is usually followed by a day exploring ashore.

Sadly I can't find our inland waterways guide we've had for years, so, anybody want to suggest some routes, particularly any with kid friendly delights.

Possibly got crew for the way over so could do a longer crossing and enter the waterways further north if this makes sense.

Cheers
 
vlissengen
middelburg
veere + islands
goes (marina good 4 kids)
gravelingenmere ( islands great 4 kids)
browesharven on browersdag is good fun with lots to see.
also in the veeresmers moor near the dam for great beaches on the seaward side
try Steenburgen, a place not many Brits get to
Zeeland is really nicer than North Holland too
 
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Thanks. How long to travel between places.... Is there a general rule of thumb for time to get through locks?
 
sailorman said:
nowhere is very far & the locks are all depended on holidays s when they are obviously busier.They are part of the experience, don't rush in, let others go on the wall then you raft up to them :) .

delta week can be busy
Click to expand...

So where would you choose to enter the inland waterways if you had 4 weeks?
 
Breskens, bit up itself - avoid the weekend.
Terneuzen, nice little town - good, inexpensive marina. Things in the town. Lidl & Aldi, if that matters.

Up to Antwerp, for the fun of it. Stay on linker oeffer - left bank Jachthaven Antwerp = the KLYC - Royal Liberty Yacht Club. Can walk, or cycle, through the tunnel under the Schelte to Antwerp centre. The Zoo, near the station, worth a visit.
Take the train to Brussels - if you feel you have to.
Back up the Schelte and through the canal to Wemmeldinge and or Yerseke.

Up to Zieriksee

Back to Kortegene and down the canal to Middelberg and thence to Vlissingen

You can include the Grevelingenmeer for good value

Good bye 4 weeks. Enjoy.

Keep your red diesel receipts and a log of engine hours. None in cans when you arrive.
Have the sea cocks for the heads shut, with a cable tie - depends on this seasons position on the black-grey water issue.
Up to date charts and the Vol 1 & Vol 2 things - have fun.

Rehearse the lock technique and have some long lines handy. Try not to move at the busy weekends - that can be an adventure and a specialist sort of activity - we are too nice and used to queing and taking our turn.

We had 3 years there and never a dull moment.
 
I would make Breskens your first stop, easy to get into day or night, then across to Vlissingen and the inland waterways, once in, all the places as mentioned earlier.
 
Weather permitting I am going over from Burnham next Monday. Monday Burnham to Harwich. Tuesday across to Ostend. Although others ports are available. Then up to Vlissingen Once you are in the lock at Vlissingen and onwards into the Veersmere, Oustershelde and Gravelingmeer there are numerous islands and small towns to keep young children amused . Enjoy
 
What Sailorman says, he pretty well has it covered.
Also Dordrecht is well worth a visit, especially if you can get into St Maartens haven, when we went you had to press a doorbell and a man came and wound the bridge open by hand.
We like de Bastiaan in Veersemeer, Archipel in Grevelingenmeer, Hellevoetsluis and the trip up the Spui to Dordedrecht.
If you want to spoil the kids there is a sort of pirate theme park Het Arsenaal in Michiel de Ruijterhaven in Vlissingen itself, [not the canal entrance.] It's bit of a wriggle to get into the haven but a good spot if you want town centre stuff.
We hope to be there if summer ever arrives.
 
Dordrecht is a nice trip but the bridge can be a hassle in poor weather. We used to go to the Haringvliet and back in two weeks in a 26 footer with the children. Middleharnis is pretty and fun and Hellevoetsluis is good too. We anchored off the shore nearby and puzzled the locals by playing French cricket with a dinghy paddle.
 
a game we saw a Dutch family play was fun.
they formed a circle,each stood behind a 2 lts bottle full of water, the bottle had no cap. the ball was thrown at a bottle, if knocked over it had to stay that way until its owner had retrieved the ball. The one with most water at the end wins
 
The comments on this thread remind me of the charm of Netherlands, stumbling across unexpected little gems.
There seem to be an event or festival most summer weekends, often using herring or mussels as an excuse.
Many small towns with a great pride in their history and beautifully preserved or restored.
The friendliness of [most] Nederlanders and their fondness for "geselligheid" [never really fully understood that, having a good time I think].
The variety, to be able to be isolated at anchor in the middle of a lake or be tied up in a town centre haven next to the bars within a short while.
I hope it's still as good as I remember it.
 
vlissengen
middelburg
veere + islands
goes (marina good 4 kids)
gravelingenmere ( islands great 4 kids)
browesharven on browersdag is good fun with lots to see.
also in the veeresmers moor near the dam for great beaches on the seaward side
try Steenburgen, a place not many Brits get to
Zeeland is really nicer than North Holland too
Click to expand...

Agree with most of the above however last time we went over it cut up pretty rough approaching Vlissengen, so we opted to head North a little and enter via Roompot.
Glad we did it was much nicer than the sea lock at Vlissengen.

I question "lots to do" at Browershaven", Apart from the great food at the sailing club we did the town in an hour and found it pretty dull.
Perhaps we've missed something.
However North of Browershaven is Ouddorp which was great fun after renting a couple of bikes there.

Our fav places which we'll be visiting this year again are Zierikzee, Goes, Veere and Willemstad

Edit: btw where on earth is Steenburgen, cant find it.
 
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Javelin said:
Agree with most of the above however last time we went over it cut up pretty rough approaching Vlissengen, so we opted to head North a little and enter via Roompot.
Glad we did it was much nicer than the sea lock at Vlissengen.

I question "lots to do" at Browershaven", Apart from the great food at the sailing club we did the town in an hour and found it pretty dull.
Perhaps we've missed something.
However North of Browershaven is Ouddorp which was great fun after renting a couple of bikes there.

Our fav places which we'll be visiting this year again are Zierikzee, Goes, Veere and Willemstad
Click to expand...
Browersdag was mentioned, it is a good days event with much to see
here are some other events

http://www.vvvzeeland.nl/en/out-and-about/events/events

http://www.deltaweek.nl
 
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