De Wilp offers several distinct ways to explore the area: the origins of the village along the Wilpsterhoofdvaart, church and local history, local art, and gardens and the corn maze. When planning your stay, you can give these highlights different weight depending on your interests: architectural history and settlement development tell a different story from a plant collection or a puzzle activity. The places and dates below provide concrete points of reference to help you choose.

The Origins of De Wilp

The Wilpsterhoofdvaart was dug at the end of the 18th century. A settlement gradually developed and was named after the inn of the time, “de Wulp.” In the early days, there were no roads, only canals and muddy paths along the banks. Frisian workers opened up the area around De Wilp, and the village emerged as a result. Later, peat workers settled on the reclaimed land as small farmers. This sequence of events helps distinguish the history of the canal from the later settlement of the land.

Churches, Organ and Bell Frame

The Plantsoenkerk has been a Rijksmonument, a listed national monument, since 11 August 1993. The Oosterkerk was built in 1919 and extensively renovated in the 1990s. Another historical detail concerns an organ: in 1871, the Doopsgezinde Gemeente (Mennonite congregation) sold it to the Hervormde kerk in De Wilp. A bell frame stands in the cemetery in De Wilp: a wooden structure with a suspended bell.

Wulp Sculpture and Local History

A sculpture of a curlew by Klaas Duursma stands in the heart of De Wilp. As part of the “De Wulp” project, launched in 2016, a new curlew sculpture and a seating praam were installed in the centre. The name “De Wulp” thus appears in two different contexts: as the name of the former inn in the village’s history and as the name of the art project.

Language in Everyday Life

Frisian is used as a spoken language in De Wilp today, mainly as a result of migration. This adds a contemporary linguistic aspect to the historical themes of architecture and settlement.

Gardens and Activities

Lianne's Siergrassen combines a specialist nursery with a prairie garden and an ornamental grass garden. The Dutch plant collection for ornamental grasses is located there. Beech hedges divide the garden into areas with different atmospheres. These details bring various garden themes to life: the ornamental grasses, the collection and the spatial layout. So, if you include gardens in your plans, you may be interested both in the plants and in how the garden spaces are arranged.

The De Wilp corn maze offers a new adventure every year, with puzzles, craft activities and a treasure hunt at the end. Check the current dates when planning a specific visit. A scheduled walk through De Wilp followed a route past the sports fields and through the village forest. These are two different types of activity: a puzzle and craft experience and a specific walking route.

Discover more destinations: Marum, Nuis.

Go to the overview of the wider area: Marum.