Harlingen is a very pleasant place situated in Holland very well known and
characterised to be a famous dynamic Frisian harbour town
with a very lively atmosphere and furthermore with Unusual Hotels which
are certainly a very special highlight and attraction in their kinds capturing the attention
and the curiosity of every visitor also for the peculiar presence of those hospitality establishments developed with creativity and talent next toa notable historic and
cultural patrimony with protagonists architectural gems of the artistic Dutch school who created also in that centre stunning masterpieces and maritime landscapes very inspiring.
Situated at
approximately at 115,0 kilometres from the Capital of The Netherlands Amsterdam
and just 29,0 kilometres west of the town of Leeuwarden facing
the scenic Frisian Islands Vlieland and Terschelling at short
distance from the German border, Harlingen is a very suggested destination visiting and discovering a site with an appealing charm in a territory packed by beautiful natural attractions and a long captivating history including in the minor centres of that very pleasant region.
The Friesland, the province which includes in its land that town is a historic and relevant area famous
for its old traditions linked to trade, commerce and navigation boasting among the most skilled
sailors of the country, a prestigious busy mercantile activity started centuries ago with extreme success and making the fortune of country always very active to develop new routes across all the seas including the Far East developing superb operations admired by nearest bigger countries who frequently were surprised by the talent of a constantly advanced and productive Nation.
That captivating centre has always been mainly related to very busy
international maritime trades but apart all those marked features it is also a
site very famous for an outstanding ceramic, pottery and tiles production started a long time ago with extreme success and including in its boundaries you can admire monuments and sights of notable interest.
That past continuing
in the present consecrated the relevant local harbour which was for
centuries was one of the main maritime gates of The Netherlands placing Harlingen in the highest ranking, as a maritime
key for its very strategic position, a more than significant cross point on the shore
of the Waddenzee a space of the North Sea which is also very
famous for its fantastic biological diversity and inscribed in
the UNESCO´s World Heritage List.
Connected to the IJsselmeer and the Markemeer
those two maritime large waters basins which are a sort of hallway on the sea
leading to a direct access to the port of Amsterdam supported since centuries ago the active commerce
of the Dutch merchants started who started to use the harbour of Harlingen since the
17th century as frequent base for their several trips and expeditions towards Scandinavia,
Great Britain and the Baltic Sea.
Tourism became in more recent times another
notable source, the centre town is rich of Neo-Renaissance buildings and other architectonic marvels of extreme beauty and the visitor
can also admire a good number of historic attractions including monuments which reflect the historic and cultural patrimony of that important site.
The beautiful views on the
North Sea with the opportunity to enjoy excursions by ferry visiting the Frisian
Wadden Islands of Vlieland and Terschelling awarded by UNESCO for their marine value in its territorial waters is certainly another incentive which will delight your stay in Harlingen.
The presence of
two railway stations is definitely
another great option to visit that place with relevant facilities in terms of
communication permitting to insert that lovely centre as stage in a tailor made tour and including in alternative it could be an excellent start point for several trips all
around the county with radial excursions with a splendid and wide number of attractive destinations
discovering the many beauties of the Friesland.
The Dutch railway
system works very well and there is all around the territory a very
efficient service in combinations, connections, excellent scheduled times and frequencies of trains
from one destination to another and that is certainly a further great aspect obviously to take
in high consideration for all those who prefer that kind of transport than a Fly & Drive.
Comfortable accommodations including curious and unusual Hotels which can conquer the taste and an extreme curiosity of the tourist is another considerable feature and a delicious local cuisine is another pleasant surprise with fresh, superb fish and seafood that in that place are among the best of the entire country.
The History of the
town although in the local territory were found artifacts dated the bronze
age started with relevance in medieval times concretely in the 12th
century when the town of Grayn was inundated and Harlingen obtained
an important role to establish a former harbour to replace that centre as local maritime hub.
According to historic
documentations that place was also populated in the Middle Ages by some Viking
settlers, concretely in 1234 when the Norsemen developed a former small village along that coast of The Netherlands.
In the following
centuries there was an increasing development with and active port which was greatly enlarged and thanks to that started a very intense
commercial business at the beginning mainly dedicated to some important expeditions of fish, especially herrings but soon also
vegetables and cereals.
A relevant signal of the importance of that centre came in the
17th century when the Friesland Admiralty formerly based in Dokkum
since the late 16th century was moved to that port considered
for its strategic and geographic position more suitable, operative and appropriate to
develop more prosperous traffics.
It was since then that Harlingen became due to those reasons the most dynamic Frisian harbour town and probably reaching its golden ages in that period in which acquired reputation, value and prestige thanks also to clever merchants who contributed to a boom highlighted by a superb commercial activity on large scale with several products added to the previous such as fabric, textiles and potters.
In 1645 that centre began to organise a very important merchant fleet and to lead several relevant naval operations in that Dutch region and furthermore that site was connected to the important town of Leeuwarden by the canal Van Harinxma.
The local
history always linked to the destiny of Holland continued with all those successful
maritime operations which elevated The Netherlands in a position of high ranking with the notorious monopolies and companies established in the Americas and Asia controlling important markets until today with a
decline during the 2nd World War when the Dutch territories were occupied by
German troops but retaking a brilliant rhythm not long time later that historic
event.
Nowadays the aspect of
the town still reflects its glorious mercantile past visible along the banks of its constantly busy harbour Noorderhaven and next to it you can admire
a series of beautiful Neo-Renaissance and Renaissance buildings erected in
periods in which those artistic movements in Holland created important schools conquering the admiration of a multitude of art lovers for those special
and defined lines, high shaped facades with a very scenic aesthetic image and
use of different materials all harmoniously combined, features very visible in
many local constructions.
You can admire other excellent examples around the Stadhuis, the Town Hall, and those two areas highly represent those
characterful architectural styles which are certainly a beautiful local highlight giving accent and appeal to a very pleasant urban environment.
Voorstraat is a very important avenue of Harlingen considered the central axis of the municipality and in its proximity there are the most important historic monuments. That artery is the lively heart and beating core of the town and along that street you can find some other fascinating buildings with many houses boasting very distinguished charming lines and decorations.
Voorstraat is a very important avenue of Harlingen considered the central axis of the municipality and in its proximity there are the most important historic monuments. That artery is the lively heart and beating core of the town and along that street you can find some other fascinating buildings with many houses boasting very distinguished charming lines and decorations.
Those works left by
talented architects all around Holland closely related the Flemish School
captured the attention of several Kingdoms and Duchies who called those incomparable
masters to embellish their cities and towns in many corners of Europe and in Harlingen you will be delighted by stunning clear kinds of those masterpieces.
Captivating gable roofs,
ample windows placed on charming wide facade and stylish portals are some of
the most significant details of those constructions present in that site and all is
very well integrated in the local urban architecture.
Hannemahuis
elevated in 18th century is certainly a clear and lively exponent of those enchanting structures
, consisting in a splendid big house erected using brick as main material, highlighted by large rectangular windows and fine lines all around the contour of the building.
Arranged on three story and developed on a large rectangular plan with a
charming ample main gable facade all in the layout is i perfect harmony with the architectural
elements inserted with extreme criteria also in a section consisting in a flat lateral roof covering part of the house.
That stylish architectural marvel apart its historic value hosts a
special local attraction, the Geementemuseum Het Hannemahuis a very
interesting exhibition representing the chronological history of the town since
its maritime golden ages and main local activities displaying collections of tiles,
Chinese porcelain, replicas of boats, ships and typical objects of the
province of Friesland as traditional furniture and silverware.
In that museum
you can also admire paintings by Nicolaas Baur a prominent artist
considered one of the most distinguished painters in the 18th century about
seascapes and well known all around the Dutch territory for his incredible talent to immortalise marine subjects, views of cities and towns, sunsets and moonlight something who elevated that man native of Harlingen as an icon considered in addition as one of the best artists in that concrete period.
The versatility of that artist during his life was also highlighted when he started to paint winter scenes with different colours and tonalities of nature and also for that he was declared as one of the most eclectic and complete painters of the entire Nation between the late 18th century and early 19th century.
Baur apart his profession covered the charge of correspondent of the Royal Institute , that Institution predecessor of th Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences founded in 1809. The man died in his beloved Harlingen in 1820 leaving great memories and the town decided to pay homage to that unforgettable local figure with the dedication of that museum.
The versatility of that artist during his life was also highlighted when he started to paint winter scenes with different colours and tonalities of nature and also for that he was declared as one of the most eclectic and complete painters of the entire Nation between the late 18th century and early 19th century.
Baur apart his profession covered the charge of correspondent of the Royal Institute , that Institution predecessor of th Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences founded in 1809. The man died in his beloved Harlingen in 1820 leaving great memories and the town decided to pay homage to that unforgettable local figure with the dedication of that museum.
Along Vorstraat you
can also see a statue dedicated to Anton Wachter a character present in
several novels written by Simon Vestdijk, a writer, poet and also doctor
considered among the most talented novelists of the 20th
century and born in that Frisian town which decided to honor that
illustrious son of the municipality who often narrated his native Harlingen in his works and that
monument is a tribute to an iconic character that as Baur helped to increase the popularity of that centre in another kind of art as literature.
Stadhuis, the Town Hall is another of the local architectural marvels, a beautiful construction reflecting a sublime representation of the finest Dutch
Neo-Renaissance style dating back the 18th century erected by the
architect Hendrik Jacobs Norel and ended in 1736.
That outstanding masterpiece consists in big two story building with ample windows on the sides of the facades while in the middle was
placed a splendid arched doorway surmounted by a forged iron balcony. In the upper section of
the main facade under a typical gable roof was inserted a lunette and you
will notice a relief depicting St. Michael the Archangel the Saint Patron of
Harlingen.
Very interesting is
also to enjoy a walk around that stunning building and Voorstraat where there
is an impressive concentration of other charming structures built in different periods,
the major part of them dated from the 17th until the 19th century.
What is very
impressive as notable detail is that those two centuries of difference of age
between those constructions is an aspect almost irrelevant because all is in perfect harmony,
including some are a perfect or almost identical replica of the older and all that is certainly very impressive and captivating with no one detail broke the harmonious aesthetic environment.
The use
of identical materials, shapes and outlined elements loyal to a school which transmitted marked architectural concepts to the successors undoubtedly has left those deep marks generating a very charming local urban image with a total absence of peculiar contrasts with the risk to ruin the setting
with something of extremely bizarre and that aspect is something which delight the visitor in a while.
You can continue to
enjoy the visit admiring Groete Kerk the main local Church
also called Nieuwe Kerk, the new Church which is also the most relevant
local Religious Temple erected in the town. It was totally rebuilt in the 18th
century over the foundations of a former Sacred site dated the 12th century
and the only section of that older medieval building is the Neo-Gothic bell tower which
was totally saved with an integral restoration managed in the 15th century.
That architectural element is
certainly the main highlight of the entire complex and it presents as relevant detail
a splendid arched wide stained glass window in its inferior section surmounted
by a high metallic conical roof. The interior conserves
some relevant attractions such as an organ and a pulpit dated 18th century
and notable are also ample stained glass windows transmitting a considerable
luminosity to the nave and apse.
De Stenen Man located in Westerzeejdijk next to Harlingen dam is
another iconic symbol of the town. It is an iron monument erected in 1774
depicting Caspar de Robles son of a Portuguese merchant and a
Spanish woman.
That man was Governor
of Friesland during the Dutch War of Independence and in occasion of a
terrible inundation which devastated a big area of the province in
1570, the local inhabitants had not money to build a dam system to save the
land and they contacted De Robles looking for support.
That character heard the
population which was living a very bad time and he ordered to build a barrier
consisting in two dikes around the centre. For all that Harlingen paid him a tribute honouring that great helpful attitude towards the community with that symbol representing him in that work you can
see nowadays.
Noordhaven is the local Port and Marina of the town and it was developed in the place formerly occupied by the old dock, the site where born all the historic local relevant maritime trade activity and today despite that mutation it continues as in the past to have a very lively and dynamic
atmosphere with its busy mercantile activities and much more in its proximity you can find bars and and shops which form all together a very bustling and animated environment.
The harbour is lined
by beautiful Renaissance buildings which give that area a very picturesque
aspect and it is also the place in which tourists and locals are mixed walking
along a charming maritime promenade.
As important harbour town, Harlingen naturally has
its Vuurtoren, the lighthouse which is today an iconic building protagonist since a long time ago when it started to indicate the routes of the Dutch sailors and navigators sailing and landing along the local banks or in proximity of the coastline and its towering image is a superb highlight.
That emblematic construction was totally restored in a
splendid Art Deco style and transformed in a Hotel offering the chances
to have a very unusual accommodation. Climbing the steps arranged on three
floors the guests can enjoy a beautiful view of the town, the entire harbour and the
Frisian Islands.That is certainly a great attraction in its kind and not just for ordinary curious people but for tourists and and professionals of Hotel & Hospitality Industry who can admire a special and rare accommodation greatly arranged with many comforts.
If the Lighthouse is a curious
accommodation that Dutch town has another one probably much more unusual and it is the Harlingen Crane Harbour Hotel. Well known all around the country but with a fame
which also captured the attention of many people worldwide it is definitely one
of the main local highlights and unique attraction in its kind.
Developed in a crane of the 60s used in
the past to support the expeditions of the mercantile boats with destination the
Baltic Sea and Scandinavian countries, that operation to convert that
industrial crane was managed between 2001 and 2003 with
extreme success.
Located on the dock it was transformed in a very
functional and comfortable Hotel certainly for many people strange, singular and for many also pretty bizarre but at the same time ingenious. All that you can see nowadays was an idea by Willem
Dookstra and his wife Carla who decided to use that mean dedicated to
the charge of different materials in a luxury accommodation and including the old ladders
were converted in modern lifts.
The room is equipped with the most modern design
providing stylish decorations including furnished by the latest audio &
video technologies and a cabin shower completing that
unusual Hotel with also an internal lift delivering the breakfast.
Accessible by a steel ladder but also by a lift,
another highlight is that the crane is still working and it can rotate at 360
degree giving the great chance to admire unique panoramic views. It is
really curious and impressive to see an accommodation with those features and that kind of hospitality representation for
many people is a very astonishing surprise.
Both they became further attractions in that harbour town for a stay or also for a visit. The curiosity and the
desire to see and admire something special in that case linked to the Tourism Industry in structures suitable to offer overnights are always
something very interesting to discover and appreciate the creativity of who invented all that.
A historic detail related to Harlingen is also the
immigration of the local community had in different periods when some natives left the
town to look for and find a better life on the other side of the Ocean and
especially in America.
As you know many Dutch people settled in U.S.A
and New York was one of the first destinations when several colonies coming from The Netherlands who
started to settle the territories along the bay of the River Hudson. Some
others including inhabitants of that town also reaches other places of the Unites States of America among
them Texas where there is an American town called Harlingen
founded by settlers coming from that harbour town of West Frisian.
Local cuisine is another aspect delighting the visitor in Harlingen and it reflects the local seafaring spirit and
soul but you can taste many other typical Dutch specialities in a culinary panorama
pretty rich and varied. A special mention deserve the exquisite herrings
considered among the best in the world and also cod has a very
considerable reputation prepared in different styles. Mussels and
prawns are always fresh and they are extremely appreciated for their very special taste.
Very traditional are the Metworst and the
Rookworst famed local sausages cooked in different styles such as
grilled, boiled or baked and also accompanied by the Stamppot, a dish
consisting in mashed potatoes with vegetables and bacon.The Hutspot is another popular plate made by mashed potatoes combined with carrots and garlic often accompanied by
beef and pork meats but it can be combined with the mentioned Rookworst.
In addition the cheese is another product of
high quality in Holland and you will find excellent types in that region too. In Holland you can find superb beers, the country is an important
producer of famous brands with a remarkable International reputation and you
can find a vast choice mainly lager beers also produced in in that Region.
Visiting Harlingen is like a pleasant walk in the
Dutch and Frisian culture and history. That corner of The Netherlands offers a
multitude of very interesting things to do, highlighted by its artistic and
historic attractions and it is also relevant to discover the hard work of
that people to save the land under the level of the sea highlighted by a secular struggle and all what they developed creating a relevant
historical patrimony with all their efforts taking land from the North Sea.
The locals are very kind and lovely and in addition
there is always all around a very relaxing atmosphere which is another very
positive incentive during a stay.
If you are planning a tour, holidays or you
are in Holland in another town or city, Harlingen is very
suggested to insert in an itinerary as stop and stage during
your tailor made route in a fantastic Fly& Drive.I added some links below they could be useful for your pleasurable holidays in Holland if you have some future plans to visit that marvellous country.
Amsterdam Schiphol Airport is situated just 123,0 kilometres south of that town and from
that city by E22 motorway via
Purmerend in about one hour and some minutes in normal conditions of traffic
you will be at destination.(I wrote a post about that city in the case you are interested)
Simply the view of the enchanting Frisian islands and
a visit in the centre of that town will capture your attention at first sight, the special atmosphere you will breathe all around that dynamic and attractive harbour town
is another detail which will delight you enjoying a very pleasant and captivating place in that attractive country called Holland which always
has something of beautiful to offer surprising you.
Francesco Mari
Recommended Hotels in Harlingen
Hotel Holland Zeezicht
Hotel Anna Casparii
Hotel & Restaurant Vof´T Hereenlogement
Hotel Centraal
Harlingen Harbour Crane Hotel
Recommended Restaurants in Harlingen
Restaurant De Tijoter
Restaurant Vof´T Herenlogement
