Save it for a rainy day… These are the best museums in the Netherlands for kids
Is it holiday yet? Anyone who has to entertain the kiddos for a week, two weeks or even six, naturally hopes for beautiful weather so that we can take to the paths and avenues without any worries. But what if the weather is unexpectedly bad? Well, then you do some educational work and take the little stuff to the nicest museums in the country. Because, and you may not have known this, the Netherlands has a few museums that are not only very educational, but just as fun! These are our favorite museums in the Netherlands for kids.
Yes, Artis is always a good idea, but did you know that this certainly also applies to the ARTIS-Groote Museum? An interactive museum where kids (and their parents) learn how all life on earth is connected. Where do we come from? Where are we going? And what role do we play in the bigger picture? These are the questions we all want to have answers to.
There are different ones throughout the year workshops, ranging from a game to a lecture or an experiment. The exhibitions, installations, exhibits, artworks, films and stories in this historic national monument hold up a mirror to you (young and old), confront you with questions and offer you new perspectives. Did you know, for example, that your intestines do the same thing as tree roots? And that as a baby you crawled over the ground just like a crocodile moves?
Free admission up to 12 years and best fun for kids from 8 years. Oon Thursday open until 22.00pm
When museums are really, really good, it's a pleasure to go there with kids. She does what she wants, you do what she wants. Ying and yang and all that. Anyway, exactly as it should be (and everything except pulling because it 'has to'). This is a good thing: there are more and more museums that really do their best to make it fun for the little ones. Not with a sad children's corner, but really fun and plenty of entertainment for the little ones.
Enter the LAM museum in Lisse. Exactly what is stated above and therefore a perfect place for a holiday day or rainy afternoon.
And: during the autumn holidays (14 to 29 October), Code Cacao can be visited every day at the Zaans Museum. Go on an exciting mission through the Chocolate Factory with your whole family. Crack the Code and discover the secret of chocolate.
Buy your tickets here.
Take a visit to the museum Naturalis in Leiden. The beautiful museum is for anyone who wants to discover more about the wealth of nature.
Where are we taking the kids again? If you are looking for an indoor activity (indoor, because we still live in the Low Countries and have to skip the beach every now and then because of tornadoes and hailstorms) for the kids, consider the children's book museum in The Hague! A fun afternoon or morning for everyone, we promise.
In any case, we would like to open a book with the kids. Here you read about our favorite reading books.
Okay, it almost seems like we want to make it easy for ourselves... But nothing could be further from the truth: science & technology museum Nemo is and remains a great tip for those who want to entertain the kids and teach them something at the same time. Okay, it's only really fun from the age of four, but anyone who has a very small one and a slightly larger one to entertain can have fun with this.
And while you're in the area: the top floor of the library on the other side of the water is also a real hit, especially for the slightly older little ones who like computer games. Fun for all ages in the new 'swimming pool' that was created at the rear of the Maritime Museum. Right, in the IJ. There is one floating in the water here boardwalk so that the inner harbor is shielded from, yes, swimmers! Swimming with a rather impressive ship in the background, anyone who is not impressed by that must have yet to be born.
As for the classical museum: every holiday there are lots of things organized for kids at it Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and the Teyler's Museum in Haarlem is impressive (and fun) for young and old. And one you will never forget: our favorite, Museum Voorlinden naturally!
Okay, it's not really a museum, but boy, are we always impressed by the Het Muizenhuis shop & workshop in the heart of the Jordaan in Amsterdam. There is probably no smaller store in the Netherlands where there is so much to see and experience: the entire right wall was 'decorated' as a gigantic house for little mice, the main characters in the Mouse House books. Of course the goal is to take (at least) one of the books home, which is by no means a punishment (super nice gifts too), but while you're choosing, it's a treat to study with one of the small binoculars what the mice are experiencing.
(images via citymom.nl)
The Miffy museum is by far our favorite for the little ones. Why? In the Miffy museum you feel like you are in a kids' paradise (and secretly for yourself too). Yes, it is busy and okay, there are a lot of hysterical, slightly exaggerated mothers and fathers... But if you can ignore that, then it is great entertainment for young and old.
For all the little drivers, conductors and hey, everyone who can say toot! The Railway Museum in Utrecht deserves praise for its simplicity and yet great fun. There is color and there are wheels, what more could mini men (but girls too!) want?
And, just to keep things fun for yourself: the Stay Okay Hotel has really nice theme rooms that belong to the Railway Museum. You can enjoy a nice glass of wine yourself.
Do you want more fun and child-friendly places to stay in the Netherlands? We have! Read more
The hit of the Fryslân Nature Museum is the popular Underwater Safari, which has recently been completely renovated. A good example of how museums these days are anything but boring; during this safari you get into a vehicle and make a ride through the colorful underwater world of the Netherlands. Want to bet your little one wants another round? Via ditches and lakes towards the Wadden Sea and of course the canals also pass by. Spot safari-style the Big Five of the Dutch waters.
