Dutch Water Defence Lines Weekend Tour

(102.0 km)

This weekend tour begins in Weesp and passes by numerous forts of the Dutch Water Defence Lines. You’ll cycle through an incredible water-rich landscape that includes the Loosdrechtse, Ankeveense and Vinkeveense lakes and the Vecht river.

Three Weekend Tours
Go on a journey of discovery across a distinctive military landscape and cycle through up to five defe…

Three Weekend Tours
Go on a journey of discovery across a distinctive military landscape and cycle through up to five defence lines and 2,000 years of military history. During three weekend tours ranging from 100 to 125 kilometres that largely run through the Province of Utrecht, you’ll enjoy a mix of stunning natural scenery, robust fortresses, wide rivers and beautiful terraces. The tours run along marked cycling routes and are therefore easy to follow. You’ll pedal through a charming backdrop of waterways, greenery and fortified towns that tell the story of days gone by. After relaxing and refreshing with a tasty beer at one of the forts, you’ll continue cycling along fortresses, dykes, sluices, canals, casemates, group shelters and large green areas that could be flooded on command: an ingenious system that used to protect the Netherlands against enemy troops. You can also enjoy the three weekend tours during the week, of course. Hop on your bike and explore these traditional Dutch defence lines.

Utrecht’s defence lines
Dive into the unique story of the Roman limes, the Old Dutch Waterline, the Grebbe Line and the Dutch Water Defence Lines (made up of the New Dutch Waterline and the Defence Line of Amsterdam). The weekend tours tell the story of 2,000 years of military history. You’ll immerse yourself in our centuries-long battle against the enemy, in which water played a leading role. Nowhere in the world are water managers as creative as in the Netherlands, where a large part of the country lies below sea level. Dykes, dams and sluices keep our feet dry, but they also come in handy when flooding a piece of land to create an obstacle for the enemy: too deep to wade through, too shallow to sail. And so our unique military defence lines took shape over the centuries with forts, sluices, strategic landscape and natural features.

Take a look

Take a look

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Sights on this route

Starting point:

Herengracht 1
1382 AE Weesp

Muideslot

Amsterdam Castle Muiderslot is one of the Netherlands’ best-known castles. Built on the orders of Floris V, Count of Holland, shortly after 1285, the square castle with its characteristic round...

Naarden Vesting

Naarden-Vesting is the oldest fortified city in the Gooi and one of the best-preserved cultural monuments in the country. If you would like to find out more about its turbulent history, a visit...

Dutch Fortress Museum

Naarden-Vesting’s barracks and grassy ramparts serve as reminders of its eventful past, when it served as a military defence post to protect the access road to the wealthy district of Holland an...

Batteries on the Karnemelksloot

Just south-west of Naarden-Vesting are the twin batteries on the Karnemelksloot. These forts are not accessible to the public: one of the two batteries is home to a Scout troop, while the other...

Fort Kijkuit

Cross the water and explore the grounds of the fort! Visit the former gunpowder magazine to find out more about the fort’s history and the exceptional surrounding nature.The former gunpowd...

Fortress Nieuwersluis

Fort Nieuwersluis is situated in the heart of the Netherlands, between Loenen and Breukelen. In the 19th century, this fortress was part of the New Dutch Waterline, an ingenious series of water-based defences. Today, bats spend the winter in its central t

Fort in de Botshol

Fort in de Botshol is the only fort of the Defence Line of Amsterdam of which the earthen ramparts are still intact. During World War II, people in hiding found safe shelter in the storage depot...

Fort Nigtevecht

Fort Nigtevecht lies hidden in the landscape, next to a quiet road running along the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal. It can be found in a unique spot between Abcoude and Nigtevecht, surrounded by nature....

Fort Uitermeer

Fort Uitermeer occupies a prime strategic position in a bend of the river Vecht. If it could speak, it would tell many a tale about how the Vecht valley was formed, the clean waters of the Vecht...

Fort on the Ossenmarkt

Fort on the Ossenmarkt, in the fortified city of Weesp, was built to defend both banks of the river Vecht, the sluices and the Amsterdam-Hilversum railway line that crosses the river here. The t...