Holiday apartment in Uitgeest – discover water, landscapes and culture

Uitgeest offers you a variety of holiday experiences combining military history, water activities and expansive polder landscapes. Anyone choosing a holiday apartment in Uitgeest can use their own interests as a starting point: culture leads to the forts and the information centre at Uitgeestermeer, while active days can be spent on cycling, hiking, sailing and canoeing routes.

Forts, landscapes and regional history

At Fort aan den Ham, a military museum invites you to learn more about the fort and the soldiers’ former lives. The history does not remain abstract; instead, it is given a tangible setting and an illustrative perspective on everyday military life.

Fort K’IJK has a visitor centre with audio tours about the nature and strategic landscape of the Stelling van Amsterdam. The fort is surrounded by extensive meadows that serve as breeding and living habitats for various animal species. This combines the view of the historic site with a landscape in which observing nature plays a role of its own.

At Uitgeestermeer, an information point is located in a restored wooden drying shed, providing information about the Oer-IJ and the landscape that shaped Uitgeest. It also presents information about Cornelis Corneliszoon, his sawmill and its invention. This place therefore focuses both on the development of the landscape and on a specific technical tradition.

Waterways and active holiday experiences

The Pontjesroute is one of the cycling and hiking routes created along the shores of Alkmaardermeer and Uitgeestermeer. For a day on the water or along its shores, Zeilschool Uitgeest offers sailing courses for children and adults, surfing lessons and boating lessons for sloops.

The guided Oer-IJ walk also has a distinctive focus: it explains how the landscape was shaped by water and time. For families, the combination of a shared course for different age groups and a themed walk can provide interesting variety, without every holiday day having to follow the same pattern.

The Woudpolderroute starts in Uitgeest and is a green-marked canoe route through the polder landscape. Reed beds, meadows with cows and sheep, and habitats for breeding birds define its character. The route starts at Kanoverhuur De Aker in Uitgeest, where you can rent a canoe or launch your own canoe.

At Uitgeestermeer, you can also rent a sloop, a sailboat, a SUP board or a canoe. This gives you several options on the water when planning your trip.

Choosing Uitgeest as your holiday base

Uitgeest railway station offers direct train connections to, among other places, Amsterdam, Haarlem and Alkmaar. This is a specific factor you can consider when choosing your accommodation, alongside the excursions you would like to take.

Whether you are looking for a holiday apartment for cultural discoveries, days of hiking or water sports, the right choice mainly depends on your preferred daily rhythm. The forts and information point are ideal for days focused on history and landscapes, while the routes, courses and rental options around the water offer different focal points.

For the overarching travel overview: Uitgeest.