When in the Netherlands – stay in the fabulous Kurhaus hotel

by Scott Carmichael on

Most tourists heading to the Netherlands prefer to stay in Amsterdam – that is after all where most of the “action” is. If you’d prefer to see more of the country you really need to grab a train to The Hague. This governmental capital of the country borders the nations most popular beach destination – Scheveningen.

If you have the time, you definitely need to consider spending a night in the Kurhaus hotel. The history of this amazing beach hotel reaches back to 1818, and the building survived fire, war, renovations and the shortest concert ever performed by the Rolling Stones. The name “Kurhaus” comes from the German word to cure – the wind off the North Sea is considered to be one of the most beneficial in the world.

Rooms start at EUR141 (add about EUR40 for a beach side room). For EUR1075 a night, you get the presidential suite, complete with your own private balcony.

During the summer, the beach is packed with tourists enjoying the comfortable waters or having lunch at one of the many beach pavilions Scheveningen is so famous for. Of course, they had to spend hours in their car getting there, and all you have to do is walk downstairs.

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Amsterdam says “we are all gay” – begs gays to visit them

by Scott Carmichael on

The Dutch tourist bureau is reaching out to American gays by trying to convince them that “everyone is gay in Amsterdam”.

The bureau says that gays are one of the few remaining tourist groups with any disposable income left, and they are trying to paint Amsterdam as a very gay friendly city in the hope that they’ll make the trip and spend their cash in the Dutch capital.

To deliver their message, they’ll be inviting the gay community in the US to visit Amsterdam using TV commercials and magazine ads.

Gay TV channel “Here TV” is even planning to show a documentary about gay friendly Amsterdam.

Of course, the whole promotion could also have something to do with the fact that Amsterdam really isn’t as gay friendly as it used to be, and that many other European cities have bypassed them.

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Amster-done? Visit a castle

by Sean McLachlan on

In my last Amster-done? post I talked about taking a day trip to the beautiful city of Delft. Today I’m featuring two medieval castles far from the noise and pungent smells of Amsterdam, but still less than an hour away by public transport.

Muider Castle, known to the locals as Muiderslot, is a twenty minute bus ride from Amsterdam’s Amstel station. Get off at the stop for Muiden and take a short walk through a park, then the village of Muiden, and along a harbor where you’ll see the castle in the distance.

It’s a pretty sight. This castle was founded around the year 1285 to protect Muiden harbor. It was expanded over the years and now appears much as it did when major building was completed in 1450. There’s a peaceful garden off to one side, and an open area where falconry demonstrations are held. If you’ve never seen a falcon doing its stuff, this alone is enough to make you glad you came. These regal birds are amazingly quick and well-trained, and can pluck a bit of meat out of their trainer’s hand while swooping past at blinding speed.

The interior of the castle is made up like it was in the olden days, with chambers for the lord and lady, an armoury for the soldiers, a creepy dungeon for people who use their cell phones in restaurants, and even some primitive privies. The privies are noticeably lacking in the dungeon. Serves them right.

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The Castle de Haar (Kasteel de Haar in Dutch) is another fine relic of the bad old days. If you don’t have a car, the easiest way to get there is to take a train or bus to Utrecht Centraal Station and then take bus 127 in the direction of Breukelen/Kockengen to the “Brink” stop at Haarzuilens. It’s only a 15 minute walk at that point.

This is one of the most attractive castles I’ve seen in Europe. It was built sometime before 1391 and expanded in the following century before falling into disrepair. A massive restoration project of the castle and nearby town brought it back to its former glory. Around the castle is a large baroque garden filled with flowers and dotted with ponds, perfect for snuggling with that special travel companion.

Both of these castles make for a fun, easy day trip from Amsterdam, and their close enough that you can be back in time for the nightlife.

Do you have a favorite day trip from Amsterdam? Post a comment!

Tampons with parachutes being dropped on Dutch beaches

by Scott Carmichael on

Bet that headline grabbed your attention? Good. Imagine lying on the beach enjoying the summer sun, and watching thousands of tampons being thrown out of a plane. You watch in amazement as a huge pink cloud of parachutes descends on the sand.

The PR stunt was the idea of tampon firm Libresse, and took place at six of the most popular Dutch beaches. The video clip is in Dutch, but I’m sure you’ll get an idea of the message (and the target audience).

The tampons are not being given away just for fun, the manufacturer is trying to convince women that tampons are a “must have” in the beach gear bag. According to the PR dude, 1 in 7 women avoid the beach during “that time of the month”.

Of course, the Dutch “Green Party” has already objected, and is trying to get the law changed so these promotional stunts won’t be permitted in the future.

Best bar in the world is not where you’d expect it

by Scott Carmichael on

Lonely Planet and Singha beer released the results of their “best bar in the world” contest.

The winner is a small corner bar in the heart of Rotterdam called “De Witte Aap” (the white monkey).

I am at a total loss how this bar was able to reach the top spot – I have been there, and while it isn’t a bad bar, it’s miles away from being the best bar in the world.

In fact, there really isn’t anything special about this bar. They do offer regular live entertainment and the same assortment of beer and snacks that you’ll find at most decent Dutch bars, but compared to some of the amazing other bars around the world, De Witte Aap is nothing special.

When you check out the list of other bars that made the Lonely Planet lineup, you’ll understand why I’m surprised they made a fairly basic bar in Rotterdam their top pick. Oddly enough, De Witte Aap never appears on any other “best bars of Rotterdam” lineup.