Groningen

A university city in the northern Netherlands: beyond the Martinitoren and Groninger Museum, cycle to the star fort of Bourtange or go mudflat hiking and seal-spotting on the Wadden Sea.

Groningen is the largest city in the northern Netherlands and capital of Groningen province. Of its roughly 240,000 residents, a quarter are students—the University of Groningen, founded in 1614, makes this one of the youngest and liveliest cities in the country, and it is world-famous as a cycling city. The old town is ringed by canals, with the Grote Markt, the Martinitoren and the Vismarkt at its heart; on foot you can easily take in the Martinikerk, the Prinsenhof Gardens, the A-kerk, the shopping street Folkingestraat and the canalside warehouse district. The Groninger Museum, set in the canal opposite the central station, is renowned for its bold postmodern architecture, and the roof of the Forum cultural centre, opened in 2019, offers views over the whole city. Beyond the city lies the flat, open Groningen countryside, dotted with medieval brick village churches and manor houses (borgen): Menkemaborg to the north, Fraeylemaborg to the east, and about 55 km southeast the well-preserved star fort of Bourtange. Some 30 km north is the Wadden Sea World Heritage Site, where you can join a guide to walk across the mudflats at low tide (wadlopen), visit the seal rescue centre at Lauwersoog, or take the ferry to Schiermonnikoog National Park. The climate is mild and windy; May–September is best for cycling and mudflat hiking. Winters are grey and chilly, but the city has plenty of museums and cafés. Getting there: about 2 hours 15 minutes by train from Amsterdam, or about 2.5 hours direct from Schiphol Airport. Cycling is the easiest way around town; reach outlying sights by Qbuzz bus or rental car. Allow 2–3 days: one for the city, one for the countryside manors and fort, one for the Wadden Sea. Note: mudflat hiking requires booking a licensed guided tour in advance, and climbing the Martinitoren is by timed slot.

Top sights

• Martinitoren – A 97-meter Gothic bell tower and the symbol of Groningen. From the top, you can look out over the old town's canals and the northern plains.
• Groninger Museum – A postmodern architectural marvel standing in a canal, with exhibitions of contemporary art, design, fashion and large-scale shows, as well…
• Fort Bourtange – A fully restored 17th-century village built as a five-pointed star fortress, surrounded by a moat, bastions and windmills. It is like a liv…
• Wadlopen (Mudflat Hiking) from Pieterburen – The signature experience of the Wadden Sea World Heritage Site. At low tide, follow a guide barefoot across the seabed mudflats, even reach…
• Martinikerk – Groningen's oldest church, preserving medieval wall paintings and one of Northern Europe's most famous Baroque organs.
• Grote Markt – The core square of the Old Town, surrounded by the Town Hall, the Goudkantoor and the Martinitoren, with cafés and bars lining its edges.
• Vismarkt & Korenbeurs – The Old Town's second-largest square, with a 19th-century grain exchange at one end, and markets on market days selling herring, cheese and…
• Der Aa-kerk – A medieval church on the west side of the Vismarkt, with a Baroque spire reflected in the canal, now used as an exhibition and event venue.
• Forum Groningen – A landmark cultural complex opened in 2019, housing a library, cinema and exhibitions, with a free rooftop terrace overlooking the city.
• Prinsenhoftuin – A hidden 17th-century Renaissance garden with a rose garden, herb garden and a gate carved with a sundial, plus a little tea house for a qu…
• Museum aan de A (Northern Maritime Museum) – A maritime museum in medieval merchant houses on the canal, telling the story of northern Dutch shipping, shipbuilding and the tobacco trad…
• University Museum Groningen – A museum telling the 400-year history of the University of Groningen, with anatomical specimens and antique scientific instruments.
• Folkingestraat – An old street named one of the Netherlands' most beautiful shopping streets, lined with independent shops, antique dealers and cafés, endin…
• Pepergasthuis – Officially the St. Geertruid almshouse, a pilgrims' hostel founded in 1405, now a quiet residential courtyard complex in the hofje style.
• Noorderplantsoen – An English-style landscape park created from the old city walls, popular with students for picnics and jogging, and home to the Noorderzon…
• Groningen Canal Cruise – A ring-canal boat tour departing from opposite the central station, circling the Old Town in about an hour, passing warehouses, houseboats…
• Hortus Haren – A large botanical garden on the southern edge of Groningen, famous for Het Verborgen Rijk van Ming, the largest Ming-style Chinese garden i…
• Menkemaborg – The best-preserved moated noble estate in Groningen province, with 17th- and 18th-century interiors kept as they were and a symmetrical Bar…
• Fraeylemaborg – A moated estate in Slochteren, surrounded by an English-style landscape garden, often hosting art exhibitions and concerts.
• Ter Apel Monastery – The only largely intact medieval monastery in northern Netherlands, with its cloisters, church and herb garden tucked away in the forest.
• Garnwerd – A small village on a mound beside the Reitdiep river, with a windmill, a little church and an old riverside inn, and a classic end point fo…
• Pelstergasthuis (Holy Ghost Hospice) – Groningen's oldest and largest almshouse, dating back to the 13th century, with three courtyards and a small chapel tucked away on the sout…
• Drents Museum – The Drents provincial museum in the centre of Assen, famous for the bog mummy “Meisje van Yde,” a 10,000-year-old canoe and major internati…

Where to eat

• Nassau – A Michelin one-star restaurant in the Prinsenhof hotel, earning its star in 2026, the first starred restaurant in the c…
• Noor – A Michelin one-star restaurant in a 1920s chapel, earning its star less than three months after opening.
• Niemeijer – A family-run Bib Gourmand restaurant using vegetables and honey from its own garden to create French dishes with tradit…
• Dokjard Brewpub – A craft beer pub in an old warehouse on the Noorderhaven canal, with dishes cooked using its own beer, and re-listed as…
• Hanasato Japanese Restaurant – A traditional Japanese restaurant listed in the Michelin Guide. Set menus and à la carte dishes must both be pre-ordere…

Itineraries

• Wadden Sea Islands & Friesland Northern Route – Cross the Afsluitdijk to connect Texel, the Eleven Cities water towns, Schiermonnikoog, and Groningen.
• Grand Netherlands Loop Self-Drive Tour – A comprehensive loop around the Netherlands, from canal cities to islands, northern water towns, the Hoge Veluwe, and h…