When choosing accommodation in Hoorn Terschelling, it is worth considering the island’s activities too: Terschelling combines natural areas, historical themes and routes with a variety of focuses. Whether you want to explore birdlife and landscapes, are interested in wartime history or would like to sample local products, you can narrow down the options to suit your interests.
Natural areas and seasonal considerations
In the east of Terschelling lies De Boschplaat, a designated European nature reserve. Its landscape includes broad beaches, extensive salt marshes and the Berkenvallei, the largest natural forest in the Wadden Islands. In summer, flowering sea lavender turns the fields purple. The area is also an important bird breeding ground and a stopover for hundreds of thousands of migratory birds. Visitors are welcome at night, too, to experience the darkness: in 2015, De Boschplaat was named the Netherlands’ first Dark Sky Park by the International Dark-Sky Association. Night visits remain subject to nature conservation rules.
Terschelling’s natural areas are accessible almost all year round. However, parts of De Boschplaat and a breeding area near West aan Zee are closed from March through August to protect nesting birds and resting seals. Please observe the signs at the entrances. De Noordsvaarder offers a different landscape, with sand flats, salt marshes, shifting dunes and green valleys. From a cycle path near De Walvis, you can explore the area by bike, following the dunes and going through the forest towards the North Sea beach near West aan Zee. The route may change due to maintenance or nature conservation measures; check it before setting out.
Routes by theme and distance
Those interested in military history can follow the 7-kilometre Bunker Route, which takes in Atlantic Wall bunkers in the dunes, bomb craters in the forest, and former radar stations and lookout posts. The 33-kilometre Route van het Rode Goud offers a different focus: it passes through dunes, forests and heathland where cranberries have been growing since 1868. The distances make it easier to compare routes by length; no walking or cycling times are provided.
Another option is the 38-kilometre Art and Monuments Route. It starts at the harbour of West-Terschelling and leads to places connected with the island’s history, culture and creativity. Horse-drawn wagon rides travel through dunes and forest, along the beach and through De Boschplaat. On a guided mudflat walk near Baai Dellewal, you cross the exposed seabed at low tide. The Wadkanutocht to the seal sandbank starts at Groene Strand in West-Terschelling and reaches a sandbank between Vlieland and Terschelling. Weather and tides affect departure times for this trip; availability from the provider also plays a part.
Island history, art and local products
Bunker Museum Terschelling explains how the Tigerstellung worked and how the Second World War affected life on the island. At the time, the Tigerstellung was a key radar post for the German occupying forces and is considered one of the best-preserved sites of its kind in the Netherlands. Museum ’t Behouden Huys focuses, among other things, on Anthon van Rappard, the wreck of the Lutine and Willem Barentsz’s expedition to Nova Zembla. The museum also covers the English destruction of almost all the houses in West-Terschelling in 1666. Another historic landmark is De Brandaris, the oldest lighthouse in the Netherlands still in operation.
Every June, the Oerol Festival takes place on Terschelling over ten days as a site-specific arts festival. If you would like to plan your trip around it, check the current festival dates and programme. For a culinary experience, the farm shop at the organic sheep farm De Zeekraal offers a range of hard and soft sheep’s-milk cheeses, as well as ice cream with island flavours such as cranberry, sea buckthorn and elderflower. Cranberrywinkel offers tastings, including cranberry jam, liqueur and sweets; the selection may vary by season.
Getting there by train, ferry and bicycle
For train travel to Terschelling, trains from Leeuwarden stop at Harlingen Haven station. From there, it is about a five-minute walk to the ferry terminal; several buses stop nearby. Bicycles can be taken on the regular ferry service between Harlingen and Terschelling, but not on the fast ferry. Check timetables and current bicycle rules before travelling.
Discover more destinations: Formerum, Baaiduinen, Midsland, West-Terschelling, Kinnum, Terschelling, Lies, Oosterend Terschelling.
Go to the main travel overview: Terschelling.
