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When planning a holiday, North Brabant probably doesn’t come up immediately, but this region will surprise you more than you think! With its charming cities and villages, interesting history and culture, delicious food, and above all amazing nature, North Brabant is a must-visit in the Netherlands!
This region is close to home, so I could sustainably travel to this destination! I discovered this region by electric bike (to make it myself easier), which is the best way as the Netherlands is better known as a bike country. Hopefully, I can inspire you to do the same and have the same amazing experience as I did!
For your information, all these pictures were taken in September 2023.
We did a 3-day cycling tour through North Brabant and cycled about 150 kilometers, which was about 50 kilometers per day. We were riding an electric bike and were going between 18 – 20 kilometers per hour.
North Brabant is a province in the south of the Netherlands and borders with Belgium. The provincial capital is ‘s-Hertogenbosch (better known as den Bosch). Some well-known cities like Eindhoven, Tilburg, and Breda are located in North Brabant.
This region is famous for being the birthplace of Vincent van Gogh, the world-famous painter who painted ‘The Starry Night’ and ‘Sunflowers’. Another popular attraction in North Brabant is the ‘Efteling‘, which is an attraction park and a theme park with a fairytale theme.
The Netherlands is located in the northwestern of Europe, which borders Germany and Belgium. The United Kingdom is a sea border. As it’s pretty central in Europe and has a heavily visited capital, the country is quite easy to visit.
As the airport of the Netherlands, better known as Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, is one of the most visited airports in Europe, you can travel from almost all parts of the world to this country. But Amsterdam isn’t a part of Nothern Brabant, so you still need to take another mode of transportation.
It would be better to arrive at Eindhoven Airport, which is a city part of North Brabant. This airport has around 80 destinations, so a lot of European countries fly to this airport.
The train system is very well handled and is the most enjoyable to travel to the Netherlands! No matter the destination in the country, you will be there in no time!
I travelled from Belgium to the Netherlands by train and it was such an easy, enjoyable train ride. You can also travel from Germany, but these times can take a bit longer, depending on where you come from.
You can also come to the Netherlands by car, but I would still recommend going by train. As you want to visit big cities, you’ll probably have trouble of finding a parking spot for your car. It can even be faster by train!
You can travel around the country by car, by public transportation, or by bike. As the Netherlands is well-known around the world for being a bike country, that’s the option I took for this trip. And I will say that it’s such an easy way to explore the region of North Brabant.
The cycle paths are well-maintained and are signposted by bicycle junctions (better known as ‘fietsknooppunten’ in Dutch). If you don’t have a bike, but still would like to have the same experience as I had, you can rent your bike here.
To really put in perspective why North Brabant is the cycling province and why you should do a cycling adventure, I want to introduce you to the concept of Brabant cycling cafés! North Brabant wants to facilitate cyclists even better, and that’s why they created the ‘Brabant Fietscafé’ label. Near the cycling junctions, they label cafés where cyclists can feel extra welcome!
Not only can you drink and eat here, but you can also charge your e-bike, and fill your water bottles. They also all have a bicycle repair kit, first aid kit, and bicycle pump available. And, they all have cycling maps available to look at and at some places, you can even buy them.
We visited some Brabant cycling cafés throughout our trip and I will share them below! But you can find a full list of all the cafés here.
Total biking distance: 61 kilometers (38 miles)
As I took the train from Antwerp to Breda, my trip started in this city! On the first day, I tackled around 50 kilometers on the electric bike and passed by the big city of Breda, wine-making nuns, De Loone National Park and Drunense Duinen, and a small village called Heusden.
We started our bike trip in Breda, the third-largest city in North Brabant. It’s where history and street art meet with each other. The city center also contains lots of beautiful old buildings, like the Castle of Breda, the Begijnhof or the Great Church.
You can also enjoy the many cafés, terraces, and restaurants Breda has to offer. To stay in the theme of this biking trip, we made a small stop at a bike café called KAMU. Here, you can enjoy a coffee, while you can shop for accessories or repair your bike at the same time!
Follow knooppunten to the next location: 80 – 20 – 78 – 91 – 02 – 04 – 03 (15.3 kilometers)
After exploring Breda and having a bike trip of 15 kilometers (approximately an hour), it’s time to learn something about the third wine province of the Netherlands, after Limburg and Gelderland. North Brabant has at least fifteen (semi-) professional vineyards, but the biggest is located at the wine estate of Sint-Catharinadal.
Would you believe me if I said that these vineyards are maintained by nuns? For centuries, the fields were used for growing corn and grazing cows, but as of today, the land has been used for wine growing and they had their first wine harvest in 2017.
We got a very interesting tour around Sint-Catharinadal, where we got to see the vineyard, the vegetable, herb, and bee garden (which they use for their restaurant), and some more. This was very interesting to get more background information about the monastery and see how it all works! You can also book a tour, which happens on Wednesdays! Check their website for the right time and date.
After the tour, it was time for lunch at their attached restaurant, called ‘De Blauwe Camer‘. I can recommend this, the food was just so good! They took ingredients from their own vegetable garden and made the most creative artworks. Click here for more information!
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 03 – 30 – 06 – 08 – 09 – 38 – 13 – 12 – 37 – 37 – 32 – 22 – 22 (22.1 kilometers)
After an extensive and delicious lunch, it was time to visit one of the four national parks in North Brabant, called ‘de Loone National Park and Drunense Duinen‘. Here, you can find forests, heather, and sand, lots of sand, as it’s the biggest drifting sand area in Europe and you can just bike in between it!
We had a drink at ‘Restaurant de Roestelberg‘, one of the entrances to this area. This restaurant is also perfectly placed at a sandhill where you can enjoy a perfect view over the dunes and the heather, when in bloom!
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 22 – 33 – 81 – 21 – 15 – 14 – 70 – 87 – 86 – 85 – 83 (13.5 kilometers)
Finally arrived at our last destination! And what a place this was, it truly blew me away! Heusden is a fortified city founded around 1200 when an urban settlement arose along the river Maas. Back in those days, the city already looked much like it still does today.
Heusden has true picturesque streets, old houses, and a lot of cute stores and restaurants. It’s a true pleasure to wander around this place and admire the streets and the windmills. It’s also possible to visit the fortification walls, where you have a beautiful view over the Brabant and Gelderland landscapes, the Bergsche Maas, and the fortified city!
Ended our day in one of the cute restaurants in the center of Heusden, called ‘Ons Gheluk‘. They serve a compilation of traditional dishes from around the world. And the products are all fresh and of high quality!
Where to stay in Heusden:
We stayed at the hotel called ‘In den Verdwaalde Koogel‘, which is the only hotel directly in Heusden. It’s in an attractive monumental building from 1620 and is directly located at the center of Heusden.
It’s the perfect place to stay! But be fast to book accommodation as there are only 11 rooms, which are sold out quickly.
Total biking distance: 50 kilometers (31 miles)
The second day of riding the bike around North Brabant! This day will be all about food, visiting some beautiful cities, learning more about Van Gogh and a bit of history.
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 01 – 82 – 41 – 45 – 46 – 48 – 48 – 49 – 50 – 51 – 53 (17.3 kilometers)
After an hour’s bike ride, we arrived in ‘s Hertogenbosch, better known as Den Bosch. This is the regional capital, which is an absolute must to visit! It’s a centuries-old city that still resembles the Middle Ages, with its cozy streets and historic center.
But before seeing a bit of this city, we got the local treat: the Bossche Bol. This specialty from this city is baked from choux pastry, dipped in melted dark chocolate, and then filled with whipped cream! The size of this pastry is enormous but very delicious! We ate this at ‘Brasserie Bolwerk‘
After that delicious treat, it was time to wander around the city for a bit! The city is not only historical but has many different facades! It’s full of hip boutiques restaurants, and creative food concepts!
One of the most famous medieval painters is from here: Jheronimus Bosch. On the market, you can find a statue of him and can find lots of his work at Jheronimus Bosch Art Centre. And if you love art, you need to visit the ‘Noordbrabants museum‘, which is filled with Jan Sluijters and Vincent van Gogh!
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 59 – 55 – 21 – 22 – 24 – 63 – 60 – 61 – 12 – 14 – 10 – 15 – 26 – 78 (13.1 kilometers)
We passed the Camp Vught on our way to our next stop, so we didn’t actually go inside. But it’s still a very important place to visit as this was the only SS concentration camp outside Nazi Germany during the Second Worl War. The exhibition is told through the individual stories of the people. You can find the opening hours and ticket prices here.
Before diving into the story of Vincent van Gogh, we needed to fuel up and we did that at ‘LOTS‘. We do this at Helvoirt, which is also called Vincent’s homeland.
Vincent van Gogh was born in Zundert and started his career in Etten-Leur. Helvoirt was also a significant place for Vincent. His father was a minister between 1871 to 1875 and Vincent visited Helvoirt on church holidays and birthdays. Also, several family members, besides his parents, brothers, and sisters, all lived in this village!
Here, you can find three musea and 46 monuments about van Gogh, which you can visit on cycling and walking routes. The total length of the cycling route is 435 kilometers, divided into 10 different routes, and are all connected. We only did a small part of the route, but you can find the full route for Helvoirt here.
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 26 – 44 – 81 – 01 – 82 – 89 – 88 – 77 – 25 – 19 – 22 (12.3 kilometers)
Before our final spot of the day, we made a small stop at ‘De Drie Vennen‘. This restaurant is located in the middle of the beautiful ‘Oisterwijkse Bossen en Vennen‘. You can relax here because it has a large terrace on the water with a beautiful view of nature. It really is the perfect place for a drink and a snack!
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 22 – 85 – 79 – 84 – 18 – 14 – 02 – 16 (7.1 kilometers)
After a day of biking, we got to our final stop of the day, called Oisterwijk. This village in North Brabant is also called ‘The Pearl in the Green‘, because of all the walking and cycling tours in and around the city. But you shouldn’t only visit for the beautiful nature, but also for the center called ‘De Lind‘. This is the biggest terrace in the Netherlands!
We ate at restaurant ‘De Swaen‘ at De Lind. Here, you can taste classic, traditionally prepared dishes with a Flemish twist!
Where to stay in Oisterwijk:
We stayed at the hotel called ‘NEO KVL Hotel‘, which is part of the other side of the train tracks on the KVL-terrain. This area is still in full development, but you can find all different kinds of buildings, all in an industrial setting!
For example, you can experience art at the European Ceramic Work Center, get bread at ‘Bij Robèrt’, or drink coffee at ‘Rozema & Van Schijndel‘.
The NEO KVL Hotel has only been open for one year. The hotel really used the character of old fashion mixed with a modern twist. I was really in awe by the entrance of the hotel.
Total biking distance: 45 kilometers (28 miles)
We have a few more stops for our last day before going home! But not before we tackled some interesting activities and sights like tasting the only Trappist beer in the Netherlands or visiting the city of Tilburg! But first, we need to leave from Oisterwijk and bike 23 kilometers to reach our first destination.
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 15 -16 – 17 – 19 – 19 – 25 – 86 – 90 – 09 – 08 – 23 – 03 – 80 – 81 – 81 (22.8 kilometers)
We left early in the morning as we had a large part to tackle on the bike. We’re on our way to Middelbeers, but passed by some stunning sights along the way, like the ‘Oisterwijkse Bossen en Vennen‘. We were there yesterday for a small drink, but now we passed by with the morning light and it was SO beautiful!
After such a long bike ride, we made a small stop to get some coffee to wake up. We really deserved it! We had our quick stop at ‘Lunchroom Meesterlijk‘. It’s a perfect place to stop as it’s a bike café, where you can enjoy coffee, thee and something sweet, but also breakfast, lunch or dinner!
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 25 – 26 – 68 – 49 – 48 – 01 – 42 – 42 (13.7 kilometers)
After another hour of riding the bike, we arrived at Hilvarenbeek. It’s mostly known as the Safaripark called the ‘Beekse Bergen’, which is only a few kilometers from here, but that’s not why we’re here.
Hilvarenbeek is known for the square in the middle of the center, which has been known for years as one of the most beautiful squares. Ever since the Middle Ages, there have been activities planned on this square, called the ‘Vrijthof’. And let it be no coincidence that we had a beer festival!
Lunch was at ‘Restaurant Grand Café de Zwaan‘, located at Vrijthof. Here, you can sit at a large terrace at the Hilvarenbeekse Vrijthof, which makes it a great location for lunch!
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 41 – 09 – 06 – 82 (8.3 kilometers)
After a very short bike ride, we arrived at the Abbaye of Konningshoeven, where we had a guided tour planned! There are only 7 Trappist beers around the world, and only one of them is from the Netherlands! And you guessed it correctly, it’s La Trappe at the Abbaye of Koningshoeven!
There are only two locations where they make La Trappe. The first one is in Zundert (the birth village of Vincent van Gogh) and the second one is in Berkel Enschot, near Tilburg.
Not only do you get a fascinating look inside the process of making Trappist beer, but you also get to taste the product itself. You can book one for yourself here, both in Dutch and English!
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 76 – 78 – 79 – 02 – 68 – 67 – 80 (3.6 kilometers)
Tilburg will be the last stop on the North Brabant bike tour! We didn’t have much time here, but we could see quite a lot by just biking around the city. Tilburg is a city with lots of color and creativity, which makes it a fun city to wander around!
A few must-visits in Tilburg are:
At the end of our trip, we took the train from Tilburg to Breda, which is only a 12-minute train ride. But there is also a possibility to cycle all the way from Tilburg to Breda. It’s still a 27-kilometer bike ride away, but I will still share the junctions with people who are up for it! And if you want to stay overnight in Tilburg, you can do that at the ‘Mercure Hotel‘!
Hope you will love this trip as much as I did!
Follow ‘knooppunten’ to the next location: 80 – 65 – 64 – 04 – 03 – 22 – 61 – 56 – 43 – 01 – 71 – 19 – 19 – 42 – 46 – 87 – 86 – 85 – 81 – 80 (27.1 kilometers)
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Hello, I’m Ellen and welcome to this blog! I’m in love with exploring the world and hopefully I get to inspire you with these blog posts and pictures to feel the same. You will find detailed itineraries, hidden gems, tips and so much more!
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