The Hague in Netherlands

What to see and do

The tourist information office offers different walks through this beautiful city.

Among them is a 1.5-hour long Royal walk that takes you past the different royal monuments:

photo Ruben de Rijcke [CC-BY-SA-3.0] Wikimedia Commons

Huis ten Bosch

The palace where the King lives with his wife and his three daughters.

It is in the woods at the edge of the city.

Paleis Noordeinde

The working palace of the King.

There is free entry to the palace gardens behind the palace.

If you do not want to walk, you can tour The Hague in a horse-drawn “Golden Carriage” with a coachman and a footman, or share the cost and see the city by bike.

City Cycle Tours organises bicycle tours.

One of these (the orange tour) starts in Scheveningen, the famous beach resort adjacent to The Hague, and is worthy of a visit in its own right.

It leads past the Peace Palace, the royal palace with its woods, and through the dunes.

There are many opportunities to take pictures and stop for a drink, snack or picnic.

Dutch Parliament

This town isn’t only a city of Palaces. It also houses the Dutch Parliament and the European Court of Justice.

Het binnenhof

A visit to “Het binnenhof” (The Inner Court) which is right in the city centre, is highly recommended.

After entering via the Mauritz gate, it seems as if you have stepped back in time.

The Binnenhof is the oldest part of The Hague. It is a cobble-stoned square with a fountain and statue of Count Willem the second, the city’s founder.

Behind the fountain, you can see a gothic building, “De Ridderzaal” (The Hall of Knights), open to the public.

There is a permanent exhibition in the basement about the history of the King’s speech which takes place on the 3rd Tuesday of September every year.

This is a big event. The King arrives in a golden carriage and reads the budget for the coming political year.

After admiring the exhibition, you can climb the big spiral staircase leading to the Hall of Knights gallery.

From here, you can look down into the impressive Hall of Knights with its wooden beams, chandeliers and stained windows and see the thrones for the King and the Queen.