Natural areas
Belevingspad Hoogersmilde
Een avontuurlijke speelroute van 2,5 kilometer door het bos met tien verschillende belevingsobjecten. Kinderen kunnen er onder meer water oppompen en klimmen over houten toestellen. Een toegankelijke buitenactiviteit voor gezinnen in de directe omgeving.
Friesland Miniature Golf Park – Appelscha
A spacious mini-golf course featuring a unique Swedish felt course. Visitors can enjoy a relaxed, family-friendly game in a lush green setting. An accessible outing for all ages.
Duinen Zathe Amusement Park – Appelscha
A well-organized family park with a variety of attractions, including roller coasters, water slides, and an indoor playground. The park offers an all-inclusive package for food and drinks. Perfect for a day of fun with the kids.
Kabouterpad Appelscha
Een paaltjeswandeling van 1,5 kilometer speciaal gericht op kinderen van 3 tot 6 jaar. Gewapend met een knapzak ontdekken de kleinste bezoekers het bos op een speelse manier. Ideaal voor een korte wandeling met het gezin.
TT Junior Track – Assen
A professionally designed go-kart track near the famous TT Circuit, specially designed for children ages 6 and up. Young visitors can safely get a taste of motorsports here. An active and fast-paced experience for kids.
Joytime Climbing Park – Grolloo
A large outdoor adventure park situated around a forest lake, featuring climbing courses, archery tag, and water sports. It offers athletic challenges for children, teens, and adults alike. An active way to spend the day in the natural surroundings of Drenthe.
Boomkroonpad – Drouwen
Een wandelpad dat bezoekers letterlijk door de toppen van de bomen leidt voor een uniek perspectief op het bos. Rondom het pad bevinden zich speelbossen en diverse wandelroutes. Een educatieve en actieve natuurbeleving.
WILDLANDS Adventure Zoo
WILDLANDS Adventure Zoo in Emmen feels like a trip around the world in one day. You walk through the jungle of Jungola, go on safari in Serenga and dive into the polar Nortica.
Fancy some extra action? Join the boat ride, take a ride on the Tweestryd roller coaster or experience the 4D test ride Arctic 1. Along the way, you can also join shows and presentations.
Sightseeing
Roofvogelfietstocht – Staatsbosbeheer
Een begeleide fietstocht door het nationale park onder leiding van een gids van Staatsbosbeheer. Deelnemers leren onderweg alles over de in het gebied levende roofvogels en hun leefomgeving. Een verdiepende natuurervaring op de fiets.
The Blue Lake – Hoogersmilde
A deep forest lake known for its strikingly clear blue water and surrounding sandbanks. Visitors can hike through the protected nature reserve or swim at the designated beach. A peaceful spot surrounded by nature.
Bosberg Tower – Appelscha
A 33-meter-high observation tower built at the highest point on the Frisian mainland. From the platform, you’ll enjoy a panoramic view of the vast forests and shifting sand dunes. A striking spot to rest during a hike or bike ride.
National Park Drents-Friese Wold
On the border with Friesland you will find National Park Drents-Friese Wold. This nature reserve is much more than just forest: you will encounter sand drifts, heaths, fens and marshes. It is the second largest contiguous forest area in the Netherlands after the Veluwe and there is plenty to do. Take to the water in a canoe, grab a mountain bike or hike the experience trail at Hoogersmilde.
Drents-Friese Wold Outdoor Center – Appelscha
The Staatsbosbeheer visitor center is the ideal starting point for hiking and biking trails through the national park. There you’ll find exhibits on the local flora and fauna, as well as a cozy brasserie. A convenient starting point for nature lovers.
National Park Dwingelderveld
National Park Dwingelderveld is home to the largest contiguous wet heathland area in the Netherlands. It is an impressive place where you can really feel the peace and quiet. During your walk you might just run into a shepherd with his sheep, because two flocks graze in the area: the Ruiner Schaapskudde and the Dwingelder Schaapskudde. Both have their own shepherd and sheep pen. Definitely worth stopping by, because the shepherds love to tell you about their special work.
National Park Drentsche Aa
The National Park Drentsche Aa is a special piece of Drenthe where nature and culture meet. You will find characteristic esdorpen, farmland and beautiful nature in one landscape.
Throughout the area meanders a brook of 28 kilometers, which takes you past 21 villages and hamlets. Along the way you pass, among other things, the Balloërveld, a vast heathland of 367 hectares, peat lakes and sand drifts. The 'giants' of Drenthe are not missing here either: the dolmens give the area a mystical atmosphere.
Cities
De Hildenberg Golf Park – Appelscha
A challenging 9-hole golf course with A-status, located in the rolling countryside of Esdorp. The course features a driving range, practice greens, and a clubhouse with a restaurant. Suitable for golfers of all skill levels.
Appelscha Adventure Park
A challenging climbing course among the treetops, featuring various elevation levels and zip lines. Both children and adults can safely push their limits here. A fun, active outing in nature.
Diever–Hoogersmilde MTB Trail
An official 23-kilometer mountain bike trail that winds through forests, across heathland, and past sand drifts. The route features unpaved trails and singletrack for a challenging ride. An excellent destination for active cyclists.
Cycling and hiking routes Drenthe
With over 1,100 kilometers of bike trails, Drenthe is ideal for exploring by bike. You ride leisurely through the Drenthe countryside, along quiet paths and past villages and nature. There are also plenty of routes for mountain biking, hiking, Nordic walking and horseback riding, and you'll regularly pass megalithic tombs along the way.
Cities
Drents Museum
The Drents Museum in Assen is one of the best-known museums in the northern Netherlands, attracting visitors with a strong mix of archaeology, art and special exhibitions. Among other things, the collection shows how people used to live in Drenthe, with striking archaeological finds and stories from prehistory and early history.
In addition to the permanent presentation, the museum regularly organizes temporary exhibitions that highlight a different theme or era each time. This makes the Drents Museum an interesting destination for anyone who likes to soak up culture and be surprised by changing exhibitions.
Camp Westerbork
Camp Westerbork tells the story of deportation and loss during World War II. At the Memorial Center, this history comes close through film images, exhibitions and personal stories.
In the museum, the names of more than one hundred thousand victims are projected and read aloud daily from a restored wagon near 'the Rampe', the place where the trains left for the East. On the grounds you can also see original barracks and the house of the camp commander. A visit is impressive, but well worth it.
(TT) Assen
Assen, the capital of Drenthe, combines culture, history and relaxation. For fans of motor sports, the TT Circuit Assen is highly recommended, with major international racing events such as the MotoGP.
In addition, Assen has a lively and cozy city center with stores, terraces and restaurants. Those who want to get out into nature can visit the nearby Asserbos: a historic city forest that is ideal for a walk. Assen is thus a versatile destination for a day out in Drenthe.
Hunebed Center
The Hunebedcentrum in Borger is the place to discover all about hunebeds, the oldest monuments in the Netherlands. They were built by the Funnel Beaker people with huge boulders that were brought from Scandinavia to Drenthe during the Ice Age. In Drenthe, the hunebedden are numbered; you can find them as D1 to D54 within a radius of about 30 kilometers.
Right next to the Hunebedcentrum is immediately the largest of them all: hunebed D27. With a length of no less than 22.6 meters, this impressive structure is really worth a visit.