Cycling family holidays • Royal towns and sandy beaches

The hotel is located in the centre of Zoetermeer. If you have time for sporting activities in Zoetermeer on arrival or departure day, these are our tips: 

• SnowWorld for skiing and snowboarding all year round. 
• Ayers Rock has indoor and outdoor climbing walls (book ahead). 

On your marks… Get set… GO! After a big breakfast, take a bike ride to The Hague. For traditional sightseeing visit the Royal Palace & Gardens, Parliament, churches etc. If your children appreciate the arts, opt to take them to see quaint Panorama Mesdag or the amazing Escher Museum of optical illusions. Teenagers (10+) will be fascinated by “De Wonderkamers”, a truly excellent interactive art exhibition, at Gemeente Museum. Alternatively, learn all about the Netherlands whilst ambling through delightful Madurodam (Miniature Holland).

At breakfast, don’t forget to try Dutch chocolate sprinkles on your bread! Then hit the road and pedal towards the coast. On the way, you will pass through a posh and leafy community called Wassenaar where our king and queen used to live with their three lovely daughters. If your children like amusement parks, opt to stop off at Duinrel. Top attractions include the Dragonfly rollercoaster and a waterslide paradise but the playgrounds are great too. Later on, head up the coast enjoying the sea, beach, dunes and woods. At the end of the day, watch the sun set into the sea in Noordwijk aan Zee.

Noordwijk aan Zee lies in the Dune and Bulb Region. Make sure to come in springtime when streaks of bright colours light up the landscape: Tulip fields are absolutely sensational! Who will take the best picture of the day? Keukenhof flower park is world famous and extremely busy in the 8 weeks a year it is open. If you can handle crowds, don’t miss the spectacular floral displays – they are unforgettable! When you’ve had enough of flowers, opt to visit Space Expo for everything you ever wanted to know about astronauts, rockets, satellites etc. Alternatively, head back to the beach and go for a paddle in the sea or build a sandcastle.

The scenic route back to Zoetermeer takes you inland past Katwijk, Leiden and Voorschoten. The historical university town of Leiden boasts some charming canals and excellent museums. Our tips: Naturalis (natural history museum) holds wide appeal – the kids won’t want to leave! Corpus - The Journey through the Human Body is a great experience for kids! The botanical gardens are quietly impressive. The National Museum of Antiquities exhibits finds from Ancient Greece, Egypt and the Roman Empire. In the National Museum of Ethnology the cultures of the world pass you by. Tourists like to visit the windmill “Molen de Valk” and cruise the canals in a rented motorboat.

Today, after breakfast, this fun family trip comes to an end.