The Biesbosch is one of the most unusual nature reserves in the Netherlands, and arguably the best one to explore from the water. Take a long weekend here and you can explore the maze of creeks and reed beds by kayak, visit atmospheric fortified towns like Woudrichem and Geertruidenberg and spend the night in two different memorable places. The Biesbosch makes for a surprisingly versatile destination, barely an hour’s drive from cities like Antwerp or Rotterdam.
The landscape of the Biesbosch feels remarkably un-Dutch. Forget the endless tulip fields, the rows of windmills and Amsterdam’s overcrowded Canals. Here you navigate your little boat through a maze of narrow creeks where reeds and willows seem to close in on you, where string algae stick to your paddle and where you might even spot roe deer, eagles or beavers. The Biesbosch is one of only a few places in the Netherlands that still feels truly wild, and where it’s easy to forget the outside world for a while. Yet surprisingly few people outside the country have even heard of it. Which is surprising, since it’s quite close to the Belgian border and to some of the major cities on both sides of it. Let’s change this together, shall we?
Why the Biesbosch is so special: the national park created by a disaster
This unique landscape did not just come into being by itself. Anyone paddling through the Biesbosch today would hardly guess there used to be fields, meadows and even entire villages here. Until the fifteenth century, this place was known as the Zuid-Hollandse Waard: a vast agricultural area dotted with small towns. The night of 18 to 19 November 1421 sadly put an end to it. An exceptionally violent storm drove the water from the sea up the rivers, breaking the dikes and turning the entire area into an inland sea in a matter of hours. Dozens of villages were swallowed up by the water and thousands are thought to have died (official figures were never a medieval strong point). This so-called St. Elizabeth’s Flood was one of the largest flood disasters in Dutch history, and the Dutch unfortunately had their fair share of them.
The damage proved so extensive that repairing the dikes was eventually abandoned altogether. Via the Meuse and a number of branches of the Rhine, enormous amounts of freshwater flowed into the area towards the North Sea. At high tide, the incoming sea pushed back against the rivers, causing the water level to fluctuate by up to two metres each day. Slowly, the area transformed into a dynamic tidal landscape of creeks, sandbanks and islands. The vast beds of rushes (“biezen” in Dutch) growing on the sandbanks turned the expanse of water into an impenetrable “forest of biezen” – which eventually gave the area its new name.
This said, the Biesbosch still remained a source of income for those who decided to stay. “Griendhakkers” (willow cutters), reed cutters, rush weavers, fishermen and duck hunters scraped together a living here – often in appalling conditions. For hundreds of years, people here lived off the little that nature could offer them.
The Biesbosch at a glance
Where is the Biesbosch located?
The Biesbosch lies in the Dutch provinces of North Brabant and South Holland, about an hour’s drive from Antwerp and Rotterdam. Breda is just 30 minutes away.
How big is De Biesbosch?
Biesbosch National Park covers around 90 km², making it the largest freshwater tidal wetland in Europe. The Brabantse Biesbosch – the section featured in this itinerary – is by far the largest and wildest part of the park.
What makes the Biesbosch worth visiting?
The Biesbosch is one of Europe’s few freshwater tidal wetlands, where you can paddle through a maze of narrow creeks by kayak or canoe. Combine this with historic fortified towns like Woudrichem and Geertruidenberg, and you’ve got the perfect destination for a slow-paced long weekend.
How many days do you need?
Three days is ideal. It gives you enough time to explore the Biesbosch from the water while also discovering the historic towns surrounding it.
How do you get there?
A car is by far the easiest way to explore the region, as the villages and access points to the national park are quite spread out. Parking is free in many places. The park itself is best explored on foot, by bike or – even better – by kayak.
The landscape you see today only came into being after the construction of the Haringvlietdam in 1970. As a result, the strong tides almost completely disappeared and the water level became much more stable. The traditional griendhakker culture slowly disappeared, giving the willow forests free rein. Large parts of the area were eventually protected, and extinct animal species such as the beaver were reintroduced. As a result, the Biesbosch grew into one of the most important nature reserves in the Netherlands.
The water that created the Biesbosch caused more than just disaster. The historic fortified towns around the area owe their existence to the same rivers, which served as both trade routes and defensive lines. Our three-day trip starts in one of them: charming Woudrichem.
Day 1: Visit Woudrichem and spend the night in a historic fort
Explore the fortified town of Woudrichem and climb the Martinus Tower
Woudrichem is a tiny town with a historic core still completely surrounded by ramparts and water. It occupies an exceptionally strategic location where three rivers and three provinces meet. You can see them all from the top of the imposing Martinus Tower (only accessible on Saturday afternoons or by appointment). After 196 steps – you should just be able to make it – you’ll be rewarded with a panoramic view over the rivers and the fortress.
From the tower you look out over a patchwork of water, dikes and fields: an ideal walking and cycling area. You can walk all the way around the old fortifications, and those looking for a longer hike can take the Voetveer at the marina. This ferry takes you across the Meuse to Loevestein Castle: now a national museum, with shops and terraces in the courtyard.
Woudrichem itself is perfect for a stroll as well. In the windmill on the outskirts of town, you’ll find all kinds of local products. Right next to it is Bodega WouW, where you can enjoy wine and tapas in a former powder cellar.
Today, life in Woudrichem feels as though time stood still here for about three generations, but in the Middle Ages this was a crucial defensive point in the Dutch Waterline. This was one long “water wall” that had to protect the west of the Netherlands: from Amsterdam all the way to the Biesbosch. Whenever the French or Spanish came marching in again, large areas of land could be flooded in a controlled manner. Too deep to march through, but too shallow for ships to cross. That’ll show’em.
Fort Bakkerskil: spend the night in a former military fort
If you’d like to continue the Waterline theme throughout the night, there’s a unique place to stay in nearby Nieuwendijk. Here you’ll find Fort Bakkerskil: the southernmost fort of the New Dutch Waterline, built in the early 19th century to protect Woudrichem and the nearby lock. Hundreds of soldiers were stationed here during the World Wars, and in the 1980s it was secretly used to train Cold War spies.
Those days are long gone. Today, Fort Bakkerskil is a charming B&B run by Laurens and Wilma, who also live on site. Guests stay in the former soldiers’ quarters, which have been tastefully restored and are surprisingly spacious. You can have a relaxed drink on the terrace or get on top of the fort’s grass-covered roof, where a bench overlooks the surrounding countryside. A surprisingly peaceful place to end the day.
For dinner and a locally brewed beer, drive to Bierbrouwerij De Magistraat in Almkerk, just a couple of miles away. This brewery occupies a beautifully restored 17th-century farmhouse with a spacious terrace and an excellent menu.
Day 2: hiking, wildlife and kayaking in the Biesbosch
Discover De Pannekoek Nature Reserve
Biesbosch MuseumEiland is the perfect place to begin your visit to the Biesbosch, and there’s a large free parking lot where you can easily leave your car. The museum doesn’t open until 11 a.m., so if you arrive early, cross the bridge to De Pannekoek first. This eight-hectare nature reserve doubles as an open-air museum and shows what the majority of the Biesbosch once looked like. This makes it the perfect introduction to the landscape before exploring the rest of the national park.
De Pannekoek is a traditional “hakgriend”: a planted willow forest where trees were cut down every few years. The wood was used to weave baskets and other everyday objects. The trail is just over two kilometres (1.5 miles) long and follows narrow paths lined with willow trees. It’ll take you past a beaver lodge, a traditional duck decoy and a so-called “schrankkeet”: a simple wooden shelter where griend workers tried to keep warm during the winter harvest. It’s a short walk, but the perfect warm-up for the rest of the day. If you go out early in the morning and keep quiet, you might even spot a roe deer, just as I did. Fingers crossed.
Visit Biesbosch MuseumEiland
The museum itself is located on a small island in the heart of the Biesbosch. In seven themed pavilions, you’ll discover how the Biesbosch was formed, how people shaped the landscape for centuries, how generations of griend workers made a living here and which animals can be spotted in the area today. You’ll also come across some lesser-known parts of history. Did you know for example, that the Biesbosch served as a shelter and transit route for the Dutch resistance towards the end of the Second World War? The area was right on the front line between the occupied and liberated Netherlands, and the so-called Biesboschcrossers secretly brought messages, medical supplies and resistance members back and forth. Because they knew the creeks inside out, they were able to evade German patrols for months.
The grounds are well worth exploring too. Outside you’ll find a miniature version of the Biesbosch doubling as a water playground for children, complete with a working tidal system. You can also walk on the roof of the museum. It’s completely covered in vegetation and almost seems like a natural part of the surrounding landscape. When I was there, the gutters were full of little frogs.
Kayaking in the Biesbosch
If you want to experience the Biesbosch like you’re supposed to, you’ll have to get out on the water. We did so from the Oversteeg Marina: just half an hour’s walk – or a five-minute drive – from MuseumEiland. Here you can rent everything from electric boats and motorboats to canoes and SUPs. We opted for two brand new kayaks, because people rarely die from a little exercise.
What struck me almost immediately after leaving the marina was just how varied the waterways actually are. Sometimes you’ll paddle through wide streams where you occasionally have to evade much larger boats. In other places, the water is so shallow your kayak might get stuck. Then there’s nothing for it but to wriggle yourself free with a series of wild (and rather suggestive) hip movements.
The most beautiful parts of the Biesbosch are the completely silent, narrow creeks you can only get through in a canoe or kayak. The banks there are so densely overgrown with reeds and willows you’ll almost feel like you’re in the Everglades – fortunately with pike instead of alligators. One of my favourite creeks near the marina is the Sloot van Beneden Petrus, which winds along the southern bank of the Petrusplaat.
There are countless paddling routes in the Biesbosch (click here for an overview), which vary in length from a few kilometres to over twenty. You decide how long or challenging your trip will be: even inexperienced kayakers can easily put together a route. Before setting off, you’ll receive a detailed sailing map. Hardly a luxury if you ever want to find your way back (I may be exaggerating slightly). Along the way you’ll encounter waterbirds galore. Oddly enough I kept spotting large flocks of Canada geese – which ironically are an invasive species. You have to be lucky to spot ospreys and white-tailed eagles, but both are regularly seen here. If you want to see a beaver – and why wouldn’t you – join one of the museum’s guided evening tours. Beavers tend to – and I understand them completely – only wake up when the sun starts going down.
Day 3: Geertruidenberg and Drimmelen: the historic gates to the Biesbosch
Stay in Geertruidenberg’s former city hall
We didn’t spend our second night in the Biesbosch itself (where you’ll find some excellent camping spots by the way) but in nearby Geertruidenberg. Like Woudrichem, Geertruidenberg was a fortified part of the Zuiderwaterlinie. The church tower is just as impressive as the one in Woudrichem, and if you climb it you can see all the way to the famous Efteling theme park in the distance. Life in Geertruidenberg mainly takes place on the central market spread out in front of the church, where almost all of the bars and restaurants are located. We were in luck, because just that day the “Kofferbakverkoop” took place: a flea market where people from far and wide sell second-hand treasures from the boots of their cars. The event takes place on the last Saturday or Sunday of every summer month and is fun to wander through – especially in combination with a beer in Tapperij Huis ten Bosch: a traditional Dutch brown café.
Today Geertruidenberg is a tiny and somewhat sleepy town, but for centuries it was considered the key to Holland. Its strategic location turned it into an important trading city, as evidenced by the stately merchant houses on the market. Here too the St. Elizabeth’s Flood changed everything. Large parts of the area were flooded, causing the city to slowly lose its position as a trade hub.
We spent the night in one of the most beautiful buildings on the market. Stadshotel Geertruidenberg is housed in the former town hall, which was stylishly restored. Our room was larger than the average Amsterdam apartment, and in some of the common areas you can still admire original medieval frescoes. If you want to dive even deeper into history, you can visit Museum De Roos. There you’ll discover how Geertruidenberg developed over the centuries, through a collection of historical weapons, armour and other artefacts.
Drimmelen: the charming gateway to the Biesbosch
Just a ten-minute drive from Geertruidenberg, you’ll find Drimmelen: a village with just over 500 inhabitants. Home to five small harbours, it’s one of the most important gateways to the Biesbosch. Because the weather let us down a bit – read: because it started pouring – we decided to take shelter/have lunch in Restaurant BOEIEN overlooking the marina. It’s housed in a warehouse with a very “expressive” interior, and has a gigantic indoor playground hidden behind an inconspicuous door next to the toilets – good option if you’re suffering through similar rainy days.
Drimmelen is quite picturesque and, provided it’s not raining cats and dogs, a lovely place for a stroll. This is no coincidence, because the village was voted the most beautiful in North Brabant twice. You’ll find the most photogenic part of town around the flower-lined Herengracht, where several elegant 19th-century salmon fishermen’s cottages line the canal.
If you want to experience the Biesbosch from the water one more time, it’s easy to book a boat trip from Drimmelen. Want to go for a last walk instead? Visit De Worp nature reserve to the west of the village: a swampy area inside the dike where several walking trails begin. Between the old harbour and the village is the Beverpad: a beautiful hiking and cycling route with a view over the Biesbosch on one side and the vast Brabant polders on the other. After three days of exploring, Drimmelen is a fitting place to end your trip. It may not boast headline attractions, but it’s somewhere you can soak up the atmosphere of the Biesbosch one last time before heading home.
Practical information
More inspiration for North Brabant
Looking for more inspiration for your next trip to North Brabant? Head to the VisitBrabant website, where you’ll find plenty of ideas for walks, cycling routes, historic towns and other great days out. I would like to take the opportunity to thank my friend Floor as well, for posing so diligently on half the pics.
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