Hardinxveld-Giessendam: Holiday apartments and holiday homes

On the northern side of Hardinxveld-Giessendam are an open polder landscape and the De Giessen river, while the Merwede river lies to the south. Open spaces, nature, tranquillity and water are regarded as important tourism assets in Hardinxveld-Giessendam. De Wiel is also part of the historic waterscape: it was created in 1396 by a storm surge and a dyke breach. In the Dordtsche Avelingen, an improvement in the quality of the landscape and recreational area can be seen. An improvement in the quality of the landscape and recreational area can also be seen near the Tiendweg in Beneden-Hardinxveld.

Nature and water

From Hardinxveld-Giessendam, Riveer pedestrian and bicycle ferries connect the town with Gorinchem, Sleeuwijk, Woudrichem and Werkendam. During the summer season, the Riveer ferry service also reaches the attractions Slot Loevestein and Fort Vuren in the historic Vestingdriehoek. Along the Giessen towards Hardinxveld, visitors can rent a sloep or canoe for a boating route starting in Giessenburg. This means that, alongside the polder and river landscapes, designated routes on the water are also central to the local landscape experience.

Paths and walking routes

The Hagi Wandeltochten held annually in March in Hardinxveld-Giessendam offer routes of 3, 5 or 10 kilometres. The Avelingenroute ANWB is an 8.75-kilometre walking route starting at the Avelingen car park in Boven-Hardinxveld; the route runs along unpaved and partly paved paths. A longer connection is described by the seventh stage of the Pelgrimspad: it runs from Groot-Ammers to Boven-Hardinxveld railway station and ends there after 25.3 kilometres. The Verkenning Tiendweg Hardinxveld-Giessendam walk is 12.7 kilometres long, starts at the railway station on Stationsweg and runs along the edge of the town and through the polder along the Tiendweg.

Culture and history

The De Koperen Knop Museum is located in a listed farmhouse at Binnendams 6. In and around a 17th-century farmhouse, the museum presents the history of the Alblasserwaard region. It comprises a main building, a smithy, a workshop for making hoops and an extensive garden. Visitors can view the current exhibition, cultural and historical heritage and the museum garden; the museum also offers guided tours. The reconstruction of Trijntje can be seen at the De Koperen Knop Museum in Hardinxveld-Giessendam.

Trijntje was discovered during excavations at Polderweg in Hardinxveld-Giessendam: a complete human skeleton around 7,500 years old, described as the oldest complete skeleton ever found in the Netherlands. Settlement remains more than 7,000 years old were also discovered at Polderweg on a former river dune, a so-called donk; a second excavated donk called De Bruin is located nearby.

The Tiendwegse Molen at Giessendamse Tiendweg 1 is listed as a Rijksmonument and a water mill. It formerly served to drain the Binnentiendweg sub-area of the Giessen Oude Benedenpolder polder in Giessendam and also functioned as a beacon or signal mill for the Waterschap Nederwaard. The Historical Information Centre of the Historical Association Hardinxveld-Giessendam provides access to local archives, photo collections, newspaper records and genealogical materials.

Further historic structures add to this picture. The Hervormde Kerk at Peulenstraat 234 was built in 1729; its tower dates from 1821 and is a Rijksmonument. De Koepel at Het Laantje 1 is a hexagonal tea pavilion from the second half of the 19th century, with remnants of a park-like garden. The Boven-Hardinxveld water tower is a functionalist industrial monument and Rijksmonument that has shaped the town's skyline since 1928. The HD1, built around 1905, is one of the surviving boats from the historic salmon fishery of Boven-Hardinxveld. The Contragewicht monument on Rivierdijk commemorates the region's shipbuilding history and was originally the counterweight of a crane at the Merwede Shipyard. The Mr. Dr. G. Kolff pumping station on Kanaaldijk Zuid is a municipal monument; its grounds also contain a flushing sluice and a chamber or navigation lock.

Further destinations at this level: Korendijk, Rozenburg, Zoeterwoude, Hillegom, Noordwijk, Middelharnis, Graafstroom, Noordwijkerhout.

To the higher-level travel overview: South Holland.