Vlissingen: Holiday apartments and holiday homes

Coast and paths

Vlissingen is located on the Western Scheldt. The Vlissingen boulevards are suitable for walking and cycling along the coast. At the same time, they are accessible at all times to pedestrians, cyclists, mopeds with blue licence plates and mobility scooters. The Western Scheldt ferry also transports pedestrians and cyclists. From the ferry terminal, the centre of Vlissingen can be reached on foot along the Western Scheldt in 20 minutes.

The coastal paths connect different impressions: on the boulevards, the view extends along the Western Scheldt, while forts, forests and historic sites are scattered throughout the nearby and wider surroundings. The paths and access points are therefore not to be understood as an abstract backdrop, but as concrete components of the landscape that recur in the local and natural features around Vlissingen.

History and culture

Fort Rammekens is located nearby, near Ritthem. It dates from 1547, is the oldest sea fort in Western Europe and played an important role in Zeeland’s maritime history. The Fort Rammekenshoek walking route starts at Fort Rammekens. Near Fort Rammekens, outside the dike, lies the only remaining salt marsh of Walcheren. This area, built up by the sea, has creeks and muddy edges; the coastal breeding birds mentioned there include redshanks, oystercatchers and avocets.

In Vlissingen, the Maritim MuZEEum Zeeland offers various guided tours. Their themes range from Michiel de Ruyter and the Lampsinshuis to 17th-century trade and strong women on land, as well as the history of Zeeland and Zeeland’s history of slavery. The restored Dok van Perry, the oldest dry dock in the Netherlands, is also part of the city’s historic culture.

At the end of the Nolledijk stands the Wind Organ, a monument unique to the Netherlands; there are only three of them in Europe. Its bamboo pipes produce changing sounds when the wind blows through them. The Carolingian Ringburg is located in Oost-Souburg, and is the best-preserved ring rampart castle in Zeeland. It dates from the last quarter of the 9th century. Molen De Pere, a grain mill built in 1725, also stands on Kanaalstraat in Oost-Souburg. It is once again fully operational for milling; a professional miller operates it almost every day, and various types of flour are sold there.

Natural environment

A deciduous forest was planted around the creeks of Rammekenshoek created by acts of war in the 1950s. It consists mainly of oaks, ash trees and poplars. The Ritthemse Bos, officially known as the Rammekenshoek nature area, covers approximately 70 hectares and lies near the village of Ritthem. The Ritthemse Bos has quiet walking paths and picnic areas.

This means that very different landscape elements exist side by side within the same geographical context: the salt marsh of Walcheren outside the dike, with its creeks, muddy edges, salt-loving plants and coastal breeding birds, and the deciduous forest of Rammekenshoek, with its oaks, ash trees and poplars. The Fort Rammekenshoek walking route starts at Fort Rammekens and thus leads from a historic structure into the landscape created by acts of war.

Events and regional connections

Every year, the Film by the Sea film festival brings filmmakers, actors, writers and audiences from across the country together by the sea. In addition to this recurring annual event, several historic and scenic sites are part of the surrounding region. Fort Frederik Hendrik, Fort Willem I, Lemmerplaat, Arneplaat, Spieringplaat and Haringvreter are located nearby. The ruins of Hellenburg are located in the wider region.

The area described therefore extends from the Vlissingen boulevards and the Western Scheldt via Fort Rammekens, Rammekenshoek and the Ritthemse Bos to the places of Oost-Souburg and Ritthem. The destination pages for Vlissingen, Oost-Souburg and Ritthem provide further information on the local connections mentioned.

For the higher-level travel overview: Zeeland.

More destinations

More places within the same destination:

Veere, Kapelle, Middelburg, Tholen, Borsele.