Discover Holland: April 2026 Adventure Awaits

Aalsmeer Flower Auction (Bloemenveiling Aalsmeer) is a flower market based Aalsmeer, Netherlands. It is the largest flower auction in the world. The Aalsmeer Flower Auction building is the ninth largest building by floor area in the world, covering 999,000 square metres (10,750,000 sq ft; 247 acres).Flowers from all over the world – Europe, Israel, Ecuador,   Colombia, Ethiopia, Kenya, and other countries — are traded every day in this gigantic building. Around 43 million flowers are sold daily.

 

A day at the smallest Wadden Island of the Netherlands; Schiermonnikoog. Enjoy your (E)-biking on the island and the nature and the smell of the sea. The Wadden Sea is the largest system of tidal flats in the world, where natural processes occur with minimal interference. It stretches along the coastlines of Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands. Recognized for its exceptional geological and ecological significance, the Wadden Sea has been designated a World Heritage site by UNESCO.

While the fighting in Ortona in Italy is regarded as the most famous example of Canadian urban warfare, in April 1945 a much larger battle was fought in the streets of Groningen. The first major battle fought by 2nd Canadian Division  began on 13 April when lead elements reached the outskirst of Groningen. The German garrison commander surrendered at noon on 16 April. Prisoner-of-war were 95 officers and 5,117 other ranks. The 2nd Division reported 43 fatal casualties and 166 wounded in the battle of Groningen. This was a high price to pay at this stage of the war, and the deaths of 110 civilians caught in the crossfire added to the tragedy. You will follow the route the Canadian Army took to liberate the city of Groningen.

You will visit on this trip a castle built in 1391! The medieval house De Haar was probably founded as early as the 13th century on a higher embankment along a tributary of the Rhine. De Haar is first mentioned in writings in 1391. Surrounding the castle there is a park, designed by Hendrik Copijn [nl], for which Van Zuylen ordered 7,000 grown trees. Because these could not be transported through the city of Utrecht, Van Zuylen bought a house and demolished it. The park contains many waterworks and a formal garden reminiscent of the French gardens of Versailles. During the Second World War many of the gardens were lost because the wood was used to light fires, and the soil was used to grow vegetables. Today most are restored to their original state.

Beautiful field of tulips for photo option. Enter the vibrant world of The Tulip Barn, your spring getaway in the Dutch flower bulb region. Explore the stunning garden with over 200 different varieties of tulips and enjoy food and drinks in the greenhouse restaurant or sunny terrace. Please feel welcome at the most colourful tulip farm in Holland. You will visit the Tulip Barn, and you will have the opportunity to make memory pictures between the tulips.

From 1942 to 1945, Westerbork was a transit camp. As a transit camp, Westerbork served as a temporary collection point for Jews in the Netherlands prior to their deportation by the Germans to killing centres and concentration camps in the east. For Dutch Jews, Westerbork was a key location in their experience of the Holocaust. More than 100,000 Jews spent time in the Westerbork transit camp prior to their deportation. Most were sent to killing centres at Auschwitz-Birkenau or Sobibor. Only 5,000 Jews who passed through Westerbork survived. You will visit Camp Westerbork and will get insight into the atrocities of the Nazis.

You will visit the Batavia Stad Fashion Outlet, which is built on the bottom of the sea in Lelystad. Batavia Stad Fashion Outlet is the largest outlet shopping destination serving the greater Amsterdam region and has been established for over 20 years.

There will also be shopping opportunities for you in Rotterdam at the Markthal and in Volendam and Groningen during your visits to these places.

Admire the city’s unique history! Through the historic canals, you can admire the beautiful bridges, ancient towers, and medieval patrician houses. During the cruise, you will receive information and facts in various languages. The perfect way to really get to know the city.
Groningen is an old university city and well known for the medical expertise in the university hospital. Besides visiting de Grote Markt in Groningen, you will have a canal cruise through Groningen.

You will visit the replica of an old VOC ship, which is from the Dutch Golden Age, when the Dutch flag was all over the world in the 17th century. VOC is the Dutch East India Company, a trading company founded in the Dutch Republic (present-day Netherlands) in 1602 to protect that state’s trade in the Indian Ocean and to assist in the Dutch war of independence from Spain. The company prospered through most of the 17th century as the instrument of the powerful Dutch commercial empire in the East Indies (present-day Indonesia). It was dissolved in 1799. It is interesting to see how ships were built in those days.

 

Food brings people together. And that is exactly what we do as a global tastemaker in Markthal. Here you can taste the diversity of the world city of Rotterdam. Looking for your taste? Select your choice and be surprised by more than 100 food spots. Walking outside the Markthal, you will see a row of cubical houses. We will bring a visit to the Markthal, a good place to buy excellent Dutch food and cheese for bringing home. You will have time to stroll around and browse at the Markthal.

 

The history of Keukenhof dates back to the 15th century. Countess Jacoba van Beieren [Jacqueline of Bavaria] (1401-1436) used ‘Keukenduyn’ [kitchen dunes] as hunting ground for the kitchen of Teylingen Castle. Keukenhof Castle was built in 1641 and the estate grew to encompass an area of over 200 hectares. We will spent a couple of hours in the wonderful flower world of the Keukenhof.                                                      Every year, more than 7 million flower bulbs are planted by hand in the autumn to flower in spring. There is a variety of 800 different tulips. A unique and unforgettable experience for everyone.

The Netherlands fell to the Germans in May 1940 and was not re-entered by Allied forces until September 1944. The great majority of those buried in Holten Canadian War Cemetery died during the last stages of the war in Holland, during the advance of the Canadian 2nd Corps into northern Germany, and across the Ems in April and the first days of May 1945. After the end of hostilities, their remains were brought together into this cemetery. Holten Canadian War Cemetery contains 1,393 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War. You will have decent time to visit this impressive war cemetery and its information centre.

The Flower Parade in the Bollenstreek (Dutch for flower bulb area) starts in Noordwijk. Fantastic floral creations can be admired. The highlight is the parade on Saturday, when colourful floats and luxury cars richly decorated with flowers will pass by us as spectators. Something you will remember forever. The flowers are cut off from the bulbs so the bulbs can be sold all over the world. The night before, you will see a smaller parade with lights on the floats.

The Afsluitdijk was completed in 1932, thereby shutting off the Zuiderzee  from the North Sea. Until then, the Zuiderzee had been a large bay south of the North Sea that gave maritime access to five provinces of the Netherlands and, particularly during the Dutch Golden Age, provided a protected entrance and exit for the harbour of Amsterdam and several other important Dutch sea harbours. Furthermore, the Zuiderzee provided relatively shallow and calm fishing grounds. You will travel over the Afsluitdijk and make a stop in the middle of it. This dike created a new lake, and in this lake the Dutch reclaimed land for agriculture and cities.

Giethoorn used to be a pedestrian precinct, but nowadays exceptions are made. There were no roads (though a cycling path was eventually added), and all transport was undertaken by water over one of the many canals. The lakes in Giethoorn were formed by peat digging. Enjoy a nice canal cruise through this village where the houses have thatched roofs. You will have a relaxing canal cruise in Giethoorn.

The Port of Rotterdam is the largest seaport in Europe. From 1962 until 2004, it was the world’s busiest port by annual cargo tonnage. Rotterdam consists of five distinct port areas that facilitate the needs of a hinterland with over 500,000,000 consumers throughout Europe. You will have a tour over water in the old port area, and you will travel to a unique cafeteria on the dike around the new reclaimed part of the port. Here you can see the ships entering and leaving the port of Rotterdam from and to the North Sea.

Volendam is a tourist town, known for its streets, old fishing boats, and the traditional clothing worn by some residents. The women’s costume of Volendam, with its high, pointed bonnet, is one of the most recognizable of the Dutch traditional costumes and is often featured on tourist postcards and posters. We will make a stop in Volendam so you can browse yourself, eat fish, and have your pictures taken in traditional clothing.