You can travel to Giethoorn in several ways. The village can be reached by car, but you cannot drive into the centre of Giethoorn. Public transport (bus and train) to Giethoorn is well organised, and there are a few other options and combinations too.
Are you coming to Giethoorn by car? You can park in many places. There are no large car parks; you park at local businesses.
In the watery part of Giethoorn you explore the village on foot or by boat. Cars do not come in there. So you leave your car at one of the many parking spaces spread around the village. These are offered by local businesses, such as restaurants, boat hirers, accommodation and shops.
From every parking spot you are in the centre within a few minutes. The village is long and easy to find your way around, so you can explore Giethoorn from any location.
Many restaurants, rental companies and places to stay offer their guests their own parking space. These spots are often right next to the business, so you can easily get out and start your day or stay. In many cases you can leave your car there for a longer time.
Have you made a reservation for an activity or restaurant? Then you often know straight away where to park. That saves you time searching.
If you book a hotel, B&B, holiday home or guesthouse in Giethoorn, a private parking space is usually included. These are normally reserved for guests, so you are sure of a space close to where you are staying. Always ask when booking how it is arranged and whether there are any extra costs. With direct bookings or bookings through platforms, this is often clearly stated.
Planning a boat trip, a bike ride or a meal in Giethoorn? Parking is not a problem then either. Many businesses also offer a parking space with an activity or meal. That way you start your visit from one location: you park, step out and you are there.
Businesses all over the village offer parking spaces, so you can enter Giethoorn from any spot. Reserving an activity or overnight stay in advance? Then you know straight away where to leave your car.
Want to choose a restaurant in advance? You can find an overview of restaurants in Giethoorn here.
At most restaurants you can say during booking that you would like to reserve a parking space. If that is not the case, you can still pass this on or ask about it by phone after booking. Reserving a ‘general’ parking space in Giethoorn in advance is not possible.
There is no railway station in Giethoorn. The nearest NS station is Steenwijk, followed by Meppel. You can also reach Giethoorn by bus from Zwolle station. Depending on the time of year, a train stops at Steenwijk or Meppel two to four times an hour.
From the stations there are several ways to reach Giethoorn. From NS station Steenwijk you can take the bus to Giethoorn. You can also take a taxi or hire a bike at the station. This is possible in both Steenwijk and Meppel.
If you take the bus from Steenwijk to Giethoorn, there are two options.
In both cases it is best to get off at the Hylkemaweg-Giethoorn Centrum stop or the Hollands Venetië stop. From there it is only a few hundred metres on foot to the village centre.
From Steenwijk it is about 8 kilometres to the centre of Giethoorn. At Steenwijk station there is a bike hire. There you can hire a bike or an electric bike for a day or longer. It is a lovely bike ride from Steenwijk to Giethoorn. The road is flat, so it is easily done on an ordinary bike with gears too.
You can also choose to take a taxi from the station. When you come off the platform, you will see the taxi rank on your right. You can recognise a taxi by its blue licence plate. There is often a taxi waiting. If not, you can use the call point to contact the taxi control centre and order a taxi to Giethoorn.
There is no direct bus connection from Meppel to Giethoorn. So do not get off in Meppel if you want to take the bus to Giethoorn. Travel on to Steenwijk and take the bus to Giethoorn from there.
At Meppel station you can hire a bike at the bike shop. The ride to Giethoorn is a lovely trip of about 9.5 kilometres. The route is flat, so in principle it is very doable on a bike with gears. Several routes are possible. One of them goes ‘the back way’ through the fields and via the village of Wanneperveen. On the way through this long village you pass farms along the road, and you can make a stop there.
Giethoorn is easy to reach from the big cities in the Netherlands and abroad.
Trains towards Steenwijk leave Amsterdam Centraal regularly. You can take the intercity to Almere and change there to the intercity to Leeuwarden, or take the intercity towards Leeuwarden directly. The journey time to Steenwijk station is about an hour and a half. There you can take the bus (line 70 or line 270) to Giethoorn.
The other way round is of course possible too. How do you get from Giethoorn to Amsterdam? First you take the bus (line 70 or line 270) to Steenwijk. In Steenwijk you take the train, and an hour and a half later you can get off in Amsterdam.
In just over two hours the train takes you from Rotterdam Centraal to Steenwijk station. At Rotterdam Centraal you take the intercity towards Groningen and at Zwolle you change to the train towards Leeuwarden. That one also stops at Steenwijk. At Steenwijk station you then board the bus (line 70 or line 270) to Giethoorn.
At Den Haag Centraal you can board the intercity towards Leeuwarden directly. It stops at Steenwijk just over two hours later. From Steenwijk you take the bus (line 70 or line 270) to Giethoorn.
From London you can fly from several airports to Groningen (Eelde Airport) or Schiphol. The flight takes about an hour and a quarter. From Groningen Centraal you can take the intercity towards Zwolle. An hour and a quarter later you are at Steenwijk station. There you can take the bus (line 70 or line 270) to Giethoorn.
From Schiphol you are also at Steenwijk station in about an hour and a quarter. At Schiphol you take the intercity towards Leeuwarden and get off at Steenwijk. There you take the bus to Giethoorn (line 70 or line 270).
If you are only visiting Giethoorn for one day, the train and bus combination is an easy and inexpensive option. Take the train to Steenwijk and then the bus to Giethoorn (line 270: the Giethoorn Express, or line 70).
Not a fan of the bus? Then a taxi is a good option.
You can find more information about hiring a boat here.
Giethoorn is easy to reach by car, but the watery village centre is car-free. You park at one of the many spots spread around the village, often at local businesses such as restaurants, boat hirers and accommodation. If you book an activity or an overnight stay, you will usually get parking information straight away. From any parking spot you are in the centre within a few minutes.
There is no railway station in Giethoorn; the nearest NS station is Steenwijk, followed by Meppel. From Steenwijk station you can take bus line 70, which runs once or twice an hour all year round. In summer and on public holidays there is also the extra bus line 270, the Giethoorn Express, which takes a faster route twice an hour. Both lines stop at Hylkemaweg-Giethoorn Centrum or Hollands Venetië, from where it is a few hundred metres on foot to the village centre. Taking a taxi or hiring a bike from Steenwijk is also an option.
From Amsterdam Centraal, take the intercity towards Leeuwarden, or via Almere, to Steenwijk station. From Rotterdam Centraal, take the intercity towards Groningen and change at Zwolle for the train to Steenwijk. From The Hague Centraal you can take the intercity towards Leeuwarden directly, which also stops at Steenwijk. The journey to Steenwijk takes roughly an hour and a half to just over two hours. From Steenwijk station you continue with bus line 70 or the seasonal line 270, the Giethoorn Express, straight to the village centre.
The most common route is by train to the nearest station, such as Steenwijk. There you change to a regional bus, for example line 70 or the Giethoorn Express (line 270 in season), which takes you straight to the village centre. If you come by car, you park on the edge of the village at local businesses. In the village you walk along the water or hire a boat to sail through the canals yourself.
Cars are not allowed into the centre, but you can park at many places on the edge of the village. Many local businesses, such as restaurants, accommodation and boat hirers, have their own parking spaces for their guests. When you book an overnight stay or activity, ask straight away how parking is arranged. After that you explore the centre on foot or by boat.
