How to Get To Giethoorn – 5 Best Ways by Flight, Car & More

Giethoorn is famous around the world for not having any roads.

The idyllic village is located in the northern province of Overijssel on the edge of Weerribben Wieden National Park. It’s a must-visit for anyone traveling through.

So what is the best way to get to the village without roads? Thankfully, there are a plenty of roads that lead there so long as you leave your motorized and/or wheeled modes of transportation on the village outskirts and walk or sail in.

Here are the 5 ways to get to Giethoorn. You can fly to the closest convenient airport and then go the rest of the way by tour, public transport, car, or bike.

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Flights to Giethoorn

Are there flights to Giethoorn?

To answer this commonly asked question, there aren’t any flights to Giethoorn per se, but there are two airports that will bring you quite close: Groningen Airport Eelde and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.

From there, it’s your choice of ground transportation to get to Giethoorn.

What is the closest airport to Giethoorn?

Groningen Airport

The closest airport to Giethoorn is Groningen Airport Eelde, a minor international airport located in the largest city in the north of the Netherlands. Groningen Airport is located about 70km from Giethoorn and operates a number of flights with directs mostly in continental Europe only.

While it’s definitely possible to fly into Groningen Airport, it’s likely that if you’re coming from abroad, you’ll be flying in Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is the biggest airport in the Netherlands and one of the busiest in all of Europe. Schiphol Airport serves over 300 direct destinations, so if you’re coming from abroad, chances are good that you’ll land here.

Schipol Airport is about 135km from Giethoorn and it takes about 1.5 hours to get there by car. There’s also a lot of other options to get to Giethoorn.

 

Day Trips to Giethoorn

How to take a day trip to Giethoorn from Amsterdam

If you’re visiting the Netherlands from abroad, you’re probably going to stay in Amsterdam at least a day or two so it’s the perfect opportunity to arrange a day trip from Amsterdam to Giethoorn.

For those living in Amsterdam or elsewhere in the Netherlands, Giethoorn is still a worthwhile daytrip to take. You might be used to canals already, but there’s something about the village that still makes it a unique experience.

There are a lot of ways to take a day trip to Giethoorn from Amsterdam depending on if you have a car, how much you mind taking trains and buses, or how much to you like or dislike tours.

How to get to Giethoorn from Amsterdam by car

If you have a car, you’ll be happy to know that there is free parking around the outskirts of Giethoorn. Driving is the easiest way to get to Giethoorn, taking about 1.5 hours from Amsterdam.

Take a day tour

If you’re visiting Amsterdam and not sure if you want to rent a car, consider that parking is €7.50 per hour in Amsterdam city center and gas is currently €2.40 a liter. The Netherlands is also well connected by public transport so there’s not much need for a car.

If you don’t mind sitting on a train and bus for hours, then you could always take public transport to Giethoorn from Amsterdam.

Take a Giethoorn day trip tour from Amsterdam

If you don’t have a car or don’t want to rent a car and also don’t want take public transport, you can always opt to take a Giethoorn day trip tour. There are a lot of Giethoorn tours that leave from Amsterdam every day.

The nice part about taking a day tour is that you don’t have to worry about transportation or tickets. All you need to do is show up.

Ticket prices for Giethoorn boat tours start from €75 a person and include round-trip transfers in an air-conditioned tour bus and tickets for a Giethoorn canal cruise.

To book day tours around Europe, I like using GetYourGuide. They have 24-hour service and a special feature where you can get a full refund of your tour if you are unsatisfied for good reason.

Explore the best options for a Giethoorn boat tour at GetYourGuide!

Instead of a day trip, you could also consider staying overnight and enjoying the picturesque village and surrounding lakes at a more leisurely pace.

 

How to Get To Giethoorn by Train

To get to Giethoorn by train, you can route yourself to a convenient nearby train station. The closest train station to Giethoorn is Steenwijk Station, followed by Meppel Station, and Zwolle Station.

You can catch direct buses to Giethoorn from Steenwijk and Zwolle Station, although if you’re not a fan of buses, Steenwijk Station and Meppel Station are close enough that you can hail a cab without paying an arm and a leg. There are usually taxis waiting outside Steenwijk Station in particular, so you don’t have to worry about calling one.

 

How to Get To Giethoorn by Bus

From Steenwijk Station

From Steenwijk Station, Bus 70 will get you to Giethoorn in 15 minutes. The bus only comes every hour though, so be prepared!

Get off at Dominee Hylkemaweg, Giethoorn to reach your destination.

The price for this trip on Bus 70 is around €3. This price can fluctuate depending on time of day.

From Meppel Station

From Meppel Station, there is unfortunately no direct bus. You’d have to first take a train to Steenwijk Station and then Bus 70. In this case, it would be easier to call a cab since Giethoorn is only 15km away.

From Zwolle Station

From Zwolle Station, Bus 70 heading toward Steenwijk will get you to Giethoorn but be warned that the bus ride takes over 1 hour!

Get off at Dominee Hylkemaweg, Giethoorn to reach your destination.

The price for this trip on Bus 70 is around €8. This price can fluctuate depending on time of day.

 

How to Get To Giethoorn by Car

Getting to Giethoorn is probably the easiest if you have access to a car. Bear in mind that if you’re visiting from abroad and planning on renting a car, it costs €7.50 an hour to park your car in the center of Amsterdam and gas is currently €2.40 a liter in the Netherlands

Is there car parking in Giethoorn?

The good news about getting to Giethoorn by car is that parking is free almost everywhere and there is a lot of parking space so you don’t have to worry about lots being full.

Of course, you can’t drive into the village (there’s no roads after all), but there are many parking lots on the outskirts.

Giethoorn has also created a convenient system called “P-Route” with signs that you can follow as you approach the village.

The P-Route guides you to clearly labeled parking lots that are all located within a 5 minute walk from the main strip of Giethoorn where there is the Binnenpad Canal, most of the boat rentals shops, many restaurants, and De Oude Aarde Museum.

 

Get To Giethoorn From Within the Netherlands

How to get to Giethoorn from Amsterdam

By car

By car, you can get on the A10 from Amsterdam, take the A1 exit toward Almere / Amersfoort / Groningen / Hengelo, continue to the A6 exit toward Groningen / Lelystad / Almere, and take exit 14-Emmenloord. The journey is about 120km and will take 1.5 hours.

By public transport

There is a direct train from Amsterdam Zuid Station to Steenwijk Station, where you can then take Bus 70 to Giethoorn.

You can also take the train from Amsterdam Centraal Station to Almere Centrum, then another train from Almere Centrum to Steenwijk Station, where you can get on the Bus 70.

How to get to Giethoorn from Rotterdam

By car

Take the A4 toward Amsterdam / Den Haag-Leideschenveen / Leidschendam take the A1 exit toward Almere / Amersfoort / Groningen / Hengelo, continue to the A6 exit toward Groningen / Lelystad / Almere, and take exit 14-Emmenloord. The journey is about 180km and will take 2.5 hours.

By train

Take the train from Rotterdam Centraal to Zwolle Station, then the train from Zwolle Station to Steenwijk Station, and then Bus 70.

How to get to Giethoorn from Den Haag

By car

Take the A4 toward Amsterdam, the A1 exit toward Almere / Amersfoort / Groningen / Hengelo, continue to the A6 exit toward Groningen / Lelystad / Almere, and take exit 14-Emmenloord. The journey is about 170km and will take 2 hours and 15 minutes.

By train

From Den Haag Centraal, there is a direct train to Steenwijk Station, where you can take Bus 70 to get to Giethoorn.

How to get to Giethoorn from Utrecht

By car

Take the A28 toward Zwolle and exit 18-Zwolle-Zuid. The journey is about 120km and will take 1.5 hours.

By train

From Utrecht Centraal, there is a direct train to Steenwijk Station where you can get on Bus 70 to Giethoorn.

How to get to Giethoorn from Groningen

By car

Take either the A7 and A32 and follow exit 5-Steenwijk-Noord, or A28 and follow exit 28-Ruinen. Both routes are just under 90km and will take around 1 hour.

By bus

From Groningen Centraal, you can either a train or Bus 315 to Heerenveen Station, then a train to Steenwijk Station where you can get on Bus 70.

 

How to get to Giethoorn by Bike

If you really want the Dutch experience, you can considering biking to Giethoorn. While biking from Amsterdam is really quite the stretch, it’s possible to take your bicycle onto the train outside of rush hour (so between 9am and 4pm and 6:30pm onwards).

You can take the train to whichever of the nearby stations is easiest for you, and then bike the rest of the way. It’s actually faster than taking Bus 70! The Netherlands is a very flat country, so it will be a relatively relaxing bike ride.

How to get to Giethoorn from Steenwijk Station by bike

From Steenwijk Station, it’s about 10km or 30 minutes to bike.

How to get to Giethoorn from Meppel Station by bike

From Meppel Station, it’s 14km or 45 minutes to bike.

How to get to Giethoorn from Zwolle Station by bike

You can also bike from Zwolle Station if you’re up for a workout. It’s 32km and about 1 hour and 45 minutes to bike.

 

Rent a boat in Giethoorn

Now that you’ve made it to the village without roads, you need a way to get around! While there are some footpaths, the best way to get around Giethoorn is without a doubt on a boat.

I have a very detailed article on how to rent a boat in Giethoorn here.

 

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I hope you make it safely and enjoy every moment of your time in this magical village!

If you liked this guide, you may also like what I share on Instagram @gracegonewandering.

I live in Amsterdam with my husband and am always sharing where to eat, what to do, where to go.