The Efteling and beyond
The Efteling at Kaatsheuvel opened in 1952, three years before Disneyland, and it remains the oldest theme park of its kind in Europe. The character is different from the big chains: woodland setting, fairy tales rather than film franchises, and a great deal of detail. It runs year-round, with a Winter Efteling from November to January.
Coming for the Efteling means staying near Kaatsheuvel; coming for the landscape means the Peel or Oisterwijk.
There is also Beekse Bergen safari park at Hilvarenbeek, which you cross by car or boat, and the National War and Resistance Museum at Overloon. The Efteling and Beekse Bergen are half an hour apart, so a week covering both is straightforward.
The Peel and the pools
The Peel is a former raised bog on the Limburg border, now a nature reserve. De Groote Peel and the Strabrechtse Heide are the best-known parts: open heath, peat cuttings and a lot of birdlife. Parks at Someren and Mierlo sit on its edge.
Around Oisterwijk lie the Oisterwijkse Vennen, a chain of small lakes in the woods you can walk in an afternoon. The village itself has a long avenue of terraces and shops.
Tip
Den Bosch is the birthplace of Hieronymus Bosch, and the Jheronimus Bosch Art Center holds full-size reproductions of every work he made, since the originals are spread across museums worldwide. The city also runs boat trips through the Binnendieze, a canal system that flows underneath the streets.
Towns and cities
Den Bosch has St John's Cathedral, among the largest Gothic churches in the country. Breda and Tilburg lie further west and are more compact. Eindhoven is the largest city in the province and has a different character altogether, with the Van Abbemuseum and the Strijp-S design district on a former Philips site.
Who North Brabant suits
- Families combining the Efteling or Beekse Bergen with woodland
- Cyclists: the node-based route network was developed in this region
- Anyone wanting quiet without long drives: the Peel and the pools are next door
- Groups of up to twenty, mainly around Someren and Overloon
When to go
August and September turn the Peel heathland purple. Spring suits the pools at Oisterwijk, when the woods come into leaf and the birds return. The Efteling runs all year; the Winter Efteling from November to January falls in the quietest season on the parks themselves.
