Hoge Veluwe National Park is the Netherlands’ largest and most diverse protected area — a stunning 5,400-hectare mosaic of heathland, shifting sand dunes, and ancient woodland in the province of Gelderland that contains one of the world’s great art collections inside the park: the Kröller-Müller Museum, home to the second-largest collection of Van Gogh paintings on the planet and a world-famous sculpture garden set in the forest. With its famous free White Bicycles (over 1,800 of them, available to all visitors at no charge), Hoge Veluwe offers a uniquely Dutch combination of nature, art, and cycling that makes it one of the country’s most rewarding day trips and a highlight of any Netherlands itinerary.

Quick Facts: Hoge Veluwe National Park

• Best time to visit: April–October; August–September for the purple heather bloom on the heathland; April–May for the rhododendrons; autumn for spectacular colours
• Top attractions: Kröller-Müller Museum (Van Goghs — including “Café Terrace at Night” — Mondrians, and the spectacular outdoor sculpture garden), the Jachthuis Sint Hubertus (the art-deco hunting lodge designed by Berlage), and the Museonder (underground museum exploring the park’s geology)
• How to get there: ~1 hour from Amsterdam by car (A1/A12); ~2 hours by train + bus from Amsterdam to the park entrances at Otterlo, Hoenderloo, or Schaarsbergen
• Entry fee: ~€13 (adult) including the Kröller-Müller Museum; ~€7 for park only
• White Bicycles: Free to use at all three park entrances and key points within the park — one of the world’s first and most successful free bike-share schemes, operating since the 1970s

Nationaal Park De Hoge Veluwe, or The Hoge Veluwe National Park in English, is situated in the province of Gelderland near the cities of Ede, Arnhem and Apeldoorn. It is approximately 55km2 in area, consisting of woodland, heathland, peat bogs and drift sand and it is the largest actively managed conservation area in private hands in the Netherlands. The Veluwe area contains the largest terminal moraine in the Netherlands.

Most of the landscape of the park and the Veluwe was created during the last Ice Age. The alternating sand dune areas and heathlands may have been caused by human utilization of the surrounding lands. The park forms one of the largest continuous nature reserves in the Netherlands.

The Hoge Veluwe National Park enjoys a wide variety of plants and animals and provides habitats to extremely rare Red List species. Together with the Kröller-Müller Museum, the Sculpture Garden and Country-residence/Museum Jachthuis Sint Hubertus, the Park forms a unique and (inter)nationally renowned combination of nature, art and architecture.

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Have you cycled Hoge Veluwe’s White Bicycles or discovered the Kröller-Müller Museum? Share your Dutch nature and art experiences in the comments! 🚲

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