From sea to dunes, from woods to polders to mud flats – discover large areas where the land has been reclaimed from the Wadden Sea by building dikes and drainage canals. The Kop van Noord-Holland is known as ‘the Netherlands in a nutshell’, with a huge diversity of natural phenomena alongside a rich maritime history.
Enjoy the unique Dutch Shallows, one of the most unspoilt nature reserves in the Netherlands. Boasting a wealth of birds and salt-loving plants, the open space of the North Frisian Wetlands, with its lakes and canals, forms the largest continuous wetland in Europe.
One of the only coastal regions inside the dikes characterised by openness, tranquillity and space which is all but lost in other Dutch regions. Be sure to take time for an expedition on foot or by bike to discover the open polder landscape with its vast fields, former seawalls, historic farms and ancient earth mounds or ‘terps’.
Part of an archipelago that extends along the German and Danish coastlines, the Wadden islands you see today are a remnant of the former coastal dunes. Admire the wide beaches and vast dunes, marvel at the flora and fauna and explore the sights and specialties of each island. The ferry to the island is, especially at low tide an unique introduction to the World Heritage. Did you know you that Wieringen is called the secret Wadden Sea Island, now part of the mainland it used to be an island.
Visit the largest colony of grey seals in the entire Wadden Sea located west of Terschelling, where many sand banks lie exposed during low tide and provide a perfect spot for seals and shorebirds. Or find out why the tidal area outside the dikes, with salt marshes and Wadden plains, where nature, plants and animals constantly adjust to the alternating fresh and salt water.
Meet the forces responsible for a constantly changing Wadden Sea in this part of the Groningen coast where nature is allowed to develop undisturbed. Or discover which islands “wander” slowly but surely towards the mainland and how the islands of Vlieland and Ameland have moved eastward through the centuries, having lost land on one side and grown on the other.
Netherlands
Oplev Vadehavet i møllernes og kogenes land.
Den hollandske del af Verdensarv Vadehavet ligger mellem Marsdiep ud for Den Helder og Dollard ved Groningen. Fra tidevandsområdet uden for digerne med sine marskområder og vadeflader til det åbne kog-landskab inden for digerne med sine vidtstrakte marker, tidligere havdiger og historiske gårde – der mangler ikke attraktioner, som kan holde dig beskæftiget i denne del af Verdensarv Vadehavet.
Hvad enten du besøger de endeløse vidder af sandstrande ved Kop van Noord-Holland, forundres over synet af Frisland, som er blevet erklæret den smukkeste provins i Holland eller udforsker kysten ved Groningen Wadden, som er karakteriseret af åbent landskab, fred og plads, så er du aldrig langt væk fra spektakulær natur.
Lær at forså den hollandske fascination af vind og vand, lad dig beundre af den lange historie med marsk og indvinding af mose, og betræd meget gamle beboelseshøje (terp), der er rejst på land, der varunderlagt hyppige oversvømmelser før man byggede diger.
Og sørg for at tilbringe noget tid på en af de hollandske Vadehavsøer, der stadig er under påvirkning af den daglige ebbe og flod, sand og vand. Vælg mellem Schiermonnikoog, Ameland, Terschelling, Vlieland og Texel, kendt som fem perler i det nordlige Holland – der er så meget, at man nærmest ikke ved, hvad man skal vælge.