Noord-Beveland: Holiday apartment between the North Sea, Oosterschelde and Veerse Meer

Noord-Beveland lies between the North Sea, Oosterschelde National Park and Veerse Meer. This location combines waterscapes with paths through dykes, inlets and villages. Banjaard Beach, by far the largest beach, offers views of the Oosterschelde storm surge barrier and the North Sea. Behind the dykes are wet inlets where many birds can be observed; there are also birdwatching huts and birdwatching screens.

Nature

The “Eindeloos Eiland” hiking network covers almost 150 kilometres of walking trails on Noord-Beveland. The connections lead to mudflats, salt marshes, inlets and authentic villages. Most dykes also have a cycle path running outside the dike, parallel to the water. Along the routes, open coastal sections, wetland areas and the village surroundings therefore meet directly.

Activities

For extended tours on horseback or by carriage, Noord-Beveland’s bridleway and carriageway network covers more than 100 kilometres. It runs along roads, special field margins, verges, forest paths and the beach. Several differently marked routes are available for cyclists. The “Ontdek Noord-Beveland” route is 36 kilometres long and follows the contours of the island. It passes through Kortgene, Wissenkerke, Kats and Colijnsplaat.

The Noord-Beveland Midden mountain-bike route is around 37 kilometres long. It runs along Veerse Meer, through the inland area and along the Oosterschelde, partly around Goudplaat, and is marked with green arrows. The Noord-Beveland Oost mountain-bike route is 21 kilometres long and marked with red arrows. Near Colijnsplaat, it offers views of the Zeelandbrug. On the 27-kilometre western mountain-bike route, the North Sea, Oosterschelde and Veerse Meer come into view; this route is marked with blue arrows. The Zeelandbrug has a cycle path.

In Kamperland, the Schotsman Watersportcentrum has a water-ski cableway and an aquapark with an obstacle course on the water. For larger groups, the centre also organises banana boat rides, kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding.

Culture

Colijnsplaat has a protected villagescape with a distinctive cultural and historical character. The approximately 240-metre-long Voorstraat forms the main axis of the geometric historic street plan. The “Uniek” Parelroute starts at Havenstraat 15, 4486 AA Colijnsplaat, and is 4 kilometres long. As an interactive route, it combines questions with collecting letters that can be used to form a word at the end. At the same time, it tells the story of how Colijnsplaat escaped the 1953 storm surge.

Near Colijnsplaat stands the Nehalennia Temple, a reconstruction of a Roman temple. It was dedicated to the goddess Nehalennia, the patron goddess of shipping and trade. In the 1970s, around 330 Nehalennia altars were recovered from the water near Colijnsplaat. Next to the Nehalennia Temple stands the reconstructed Roman cargo ship Caudicaria. In Colijnsplaat, Caudicaria Navis can be visited as a freely accessible open-air monument.

Another cultural destination in Colijnsplaat is GalleryMaritime, which specialises in contemporary maritime art. Every year, the gallery presents several temporary exhibitions featuring works by experienced professional maritime artists.

Events

The Colijnsplaatse Dagen have taken place on the second weekend of August since 2003. They were formerly known as Visserijdagen. The Peerock Festival has taken place on the last Saturday in July since 1994. Both events are part of Colijnsplaat’s event history, but differ in name and their fixed date.

History

Until 1960, Noord-Beveland could only be reached by boat.

Other places on Noord-Beveland: Geersdijk, Stroodorp. Another regional destination is Goes.

To the higher-level travel overview: Zeeland.