An old baptismal font, already mentioned in the founding charter of 1400, is among the church treasures of the Sijpekerk in Nieuw-Loosdrecht. Together with memorial sites, museum collections and nature in the surrounding area, it offers several themes for your trip: local history and culture alongside excursions into the landscape.
Sijpekerk and Sypesteyn: Architectural History and Collections
The Sijpekerk was built around 1400–1450, replacing a smaller chapel. Its church treasures include three copper crowns, an old oak pulpit, the Belleman, two memorial shields from 1725 and an old baptismal font already mentioned in the founding charter of 1400. You can view these items during an open day; if you would like to include them in your plans, take the date of such a day into account.
Kasteel Sypesteyn is located on Nieuw-Loosdrechtsedijk. The Kasteel Museum Sypesteyn displays portraits of Henri’s ancestors spanning four centuries, as well as a large porcelain collection featuring a great deal of Loosdrecht porcelain. The season can also be a point of interest: 35 species of stinzen plants bloom at Sypesteyn in early spring. The precise timing of the bloom can vary from year to year, so bear this in mind when planning if it interests you.
Memorial Sites, Each with a Different Story
The Joods monument commemorates 23 Jewish children and their leaders from Jeugdalijah Loosdrecht, who lost their lives in the resistance or in concentration camps during the Second World War. The horizontal memorial slab of white natural stone bears a Star of David. The monument was unveiled on 11 August 1987.
The war memorial is a stone sculpture depicting a dying male figure with a dove on his right arm. It commemorates residents who lost their lives as a result of wartime events during the years of occupation. In particular, it remembers ten people shot by the occupying forces on 20 March 1945, 50 metres from the memorial.
Gedeeld verleden, also known as Masa lalu bersama, is a steel artwork made up of ten plaques and fifteen vertical bars of varying heights. It commemorates Moluccan marines who fell victim to acts of war. At the same time, the work reflects on the history of many Moluccans: their journey to the Netherlands, the impossibility of returning, and their struggle to build a home. The memorial sites thus differ both in form and in the stories they commemorate.
The Dike Landscape and Nature in the Surrounding Area
The Nieuw-Loosdrechtsedijk, which still exists today, forms part of the dike around Loosdrecht’s star-shaped drainage landscape, known as Het Stergebied. This broader landscape context adds a regional history, visible in the shape of the drainage landscape, to the individual historic buildings and memorial sites.
In the wider Nieuw-Loosdrecht area, the Loosdrechtse Plassen combine water sports with peaceful natural surroundings and offer opportunities for walking, cycling and canoeing. One specific canoeing option is the 4.8-kilometre route in the Vuntus. It passes through a network of lakes, ditches, meadows, reed beds and swamp forests. Water and access conditions can vary seasonally, so it is advisable to check conditions before making plans.
The Doortraproute Loosdrecht runs through Nieuw-Loosdrecht and the countryside and heathland of the surrounding rural area. As route details may change, it is worth checking the latest information before making plans. The Hoorneboegse Heide is a nature area nearby. The sixth stage of the Westerborkpad also passes the Jeugdalijah memorial.
Natural Ice Skating as a Conditional Winter Option
De Lange Akker is a natural ice rink on Nieuw-Loosdrechtsedijk, opposite number 195. Skating depends on suitable natural ice. After paying, club members have access to De Lange Akker and to the natural ice rinks on the Loosdrechtse Plassen prepared by the club. Access is limited to members; check the current club rules before planning a skating visit.
Discover more destinations: Ankeveen, Breukeleveen, Oud-Loosdrecht, Loosdrecht, Nederhorst Den Berg, Kortenhoef, ’s-Graveland
For the wider travel overview: Wijdemeren.
