More than 170 murals tell stories about the city of Breda. The Blind Walls Gallery is a museum in public space: each image draws on a story from Breda that is connected to its location. This means you can encounter street art and the city’s history not only in exhibitions, but also at the places the artworks refer to.
Street Art and Cycling Routes
If you’d like to combine the Blind Walls Gallery with a specific route, the official routes include the Trek Brand Store Bike Route. It passes 16 murals and is about 12 kilometres long. This makes it easy to compare the route length with another cycling tour in and around Breda: the Van Gogh cycling route is 33 kilometres long. Both figures provide a guide when choosing between a shorter and a longer ride; the approximate length of the Trek route remains an estimate.
The murals themselves offer a different way to engage with the city than a single art exhibition: each tells a story connected to its location. If you’re interested in the interplay between the city and its images, you can make the Gallery a focus of your visit. If you’d rather choose a route by distance, the two cycling routes give you concrete kilometre figures to compare.
Nassau History in a Museum and a Church
At Stedelijk Museum Breda, the “Familiesporen” activity leads visitors through the permanent exhibitions about the Nassaus and the 19th century. Another exhibition, “De Nassaus van Breda,” offers insights into the city’s history and the influence of the Nassaus through historical objects, art and stories. Together, the two themes offer different ways to explore the subject: “Familiesporen” takes visitors through the permanent exhibitions mentioned, while the Nassau exhibition focuses on objects, art and stories about the city’s history.
Grote Kerk Breda is also part of the city’s history. The church dates back to the 15th century and contains the tombs of nine members of the Nassau family and the first Prince of Orange. Anyone exploring Nassau history can therefore visit both exhibitions and a specific historical site. The church also provides a different kind of place to visit from the exhibitions at the museum.
Begijnhof, Garden and Historic Sites
The history of Breda’s Beguine community goes back 750 years. At the centre of the Begijnhof is a well-kept herb garden with 300 different types of herbs. The Begijnhof also has two museums at separate locations: the Begijnhof Museum is in one of the houses, while the Miniature and Doll’s House Museum is in the gatehouse. History, the garden and the museums each offer a different focus, so you can tailor your visit to your interests rather than treating all the sites as equivalent stops.
Valkenberg Park offers another historical perspective: until 1812, it served as the castle garden of the Lords of Breda. Mastbos adds another dimension of nature to the Breda experience; the forest is more than 500 years old. Alongside street art, collections and historic buildings, park and forest history are also themes to consider when planning your trip.
More Things to Do on and by the Water
For an activity with a choice of rental duration, you can hire a Waterbike Breda for one, two or four hours. At De Stadsboot Breda, group cruises are the main offering: luxury cruises are available for groups of eight to 70 people. These options raise two different questions: how much time would you like to set aside for a rental, or are you looking for a cruise for a group within the stated size range?
Belcrum Beach, Breda’s city beach on Haveneiland in the Belcrum district, is another side of the city. During your stay, you can choose between street art and history, museums, cycling routes, garden and nature experiences, and activities on the water. The specific route lengths, rental durations and group sizes can help you compare activities based on the time available or the size of your group.
Discover more destinations: Ulvenhout
Return to the main travel overview: Breda.
