Holiday apartment in De Schiphorst: De Havixhorst, nature and routes

De Schiphorst offers several different focuses for planning a trip: historic architecture at De Havixhorst, Dutch sculpture, the De Lokkerij stork station, and hiking and cycling routes in the Reestdal. If you are looking for a holiday apartment in De Schiphorst, you can tailor your stay more closely to your own interests, with culture, nature or activity as the common thread.

Country house, garden and sculpture

Havezate De Havixhorst is an 18th-century house with associated outbuildings, a garden, moat and surrounding woodland. In 1753, the De Vos van Steenwijk family built a representative country house at the site of De Havixhorst. It is precisely the combination of house, garden and landscape that gives the place its distinct historic character, without requiring you to limit yourself to a single building.

The cultural side also includes the Beeldentuin De Havixhorst sculpture garden. It presents highlights of Dutch sculpture from the past 100 years. Some of the characteristic farmhouses in De Schiphorst are designated as Rijksmonuments. This means that the area offers both representative country-house architecture and rural building culture, as well as modern and more recent sculpture.

Holiday apartment in De Schiphorst between culture and nature

Two signposted walking routes of clearly different lengths are available for walks. The “Ommetje over de es van De Havixhorst” is 1.5 km long, passes through the De Havixhorst estate and is marked with purple posts. The 8.5 km “Landgoederen van de Reest” route passes De Havixhorst, Dikninge and Huis Voorwijk and is also marked with purple posts. The different distances make it easier to include either a short circuit walk or a longer hike in your daily plans.

Reest landscape and stork station

Around De Havixhorst, the Reest meadows turn yellow in spring with marsh marigolds. De Lokkerij, a stork station, is also located in De Schiphorst near Meppel. At De Lokkerij, the storks use trees, the roof of the farmhouse and pole nests built by people. This means that, alongside the landscape, visitors can gain specific insight into the animals’ various nesting sites.

Groups can visit Stichting Ooievaarsbuitenstation De Lokkerij Reestdal from Monday to Saturday by appointment. The following applies to the Beeldentuin De Havixhorst: admission is free, and it is open daily from 12:00 to 17:00, unless a private event is taking place. These clear conditions help you fit cultural and nature-related activities suitably into your stay.

Cycling tours through the Reestdal

Different excursion ideas can also be combined by bicycle. “Een rondje door het Reestdal” is a 34 km cycling route that starts at the De Havixhorst car park. The “Landgoederen en havezaten” route can be cycled at any time of year. When choosing a holiday apartment in De Schiphorst, these options can therefore be a helpful guide if you would like to plan trips to country estates, a longer circular ride or cycling days regardless of the season.

More travel ideas

For more inspiration when planning your trip, you can also discover Nijeveen, Meppel and Broekhuizen.

Back to the overarching travel overview: Meppel.