Netherlands ferry holiday - duinrell? Eftling?

[HamSand]

Hi

I’m looking at booking a trip to the Netherlands next summer. We are from Scotland and would be going at the start of the Scottish holidays, would be early July. Wanting to do around 10 days or so. 2 weeks max.

Never been before and looking for some b advice.

I am considering staying at Duinrell for part of it and was also thinking of Eftling, perhaps with an overnight stay, but not sure if doing both on the same trip would be too much theme parks? We would like to be able to go into Amsterdam to museums and to see the city a couple of days. we will have the car so don’t really want to stay in the city centre where parking will be tough.

wondering if there is another landal / centre parks / eurocamp type place or other family friendly accommodation we can stay at that gives close access to the city but isn’t as expensive as Duinrell. Somewhere we can use as a base for exploring perhaps.

my kids will be 8 and 3.

any advice would be helpful.

Duinrell isn’t really a theme park, more like lodges with some facilities. The swimming pool was packed beyond belief when we went. We visited Efteling for one day which was brilliant, in retrospect we would have preferred to make that the centre piece if the holiday with maybe 3 or 4 days staying in a Eurocamp near to Amsterdam for day trips. We also visited Den Hag which we really enjoyed ( lots to do including a beach).

Thanks that’s good to know. What time of year did you visit?

We have just been to Efteling on the ferry and stayed in a eurocamp near Efteling. Efteling was AMAZING. We are planning to go back and will try to stay overnight in their accommodation. Two days at the park would be enough though.

Also we had a few days in Amsterdam and we stayed centrally and used the tram park and ride system. It wasn't too complicated (it was a bit but the people at the main train station ticket office helped us work it out). It cost us 18 euro for 3 days parking rather than 50 euro a day at our hotel!

Can't recommend the science museum in Amsterdam highly enough, we spent a full day there.

We spent a few days in Duinrell this summer, had looked at Efteling but didn't have the availability when we needed it.

agree the swimming pool at Duinrell was packed and, for a a 3yo it wouldn't feel worth the entry fee for the indoor pool to me as there is very little they can go on at that age. If you had good weather the outdoor pool would be good though, and if you do go indoors then my tip is book the first slot as it's less busy then.

I kind of know what PP means about not quite being a theme park but there are definitely plenty of rides which even my thrill-seeeking 10 and 13yo enjoyed. We also hired bikes from the campsite and visited the nearby beach which was beautiful, and a local art gallery Voorlinden which wasa great day. So overall we had a good time but for your ages I think Efteling might be better as the pools look more fun for them.

We used to do ferry holidays to Center Parcs in NL/BE/FR every year when the DC were little. They loved the adventure of sleeping on a ferry and Center Parcs was perfect for them. The site on the border at De Vossemeren has the most amazing indoor play centre and was definitely our favourite. We used to do 4/7 nights at CP and a day at Efteling on the way to the late ferry. Worked brilliantly every year.

We went to Beekse Bergen this year with an 8 and 5 yo. It was absolutely brilliant for those sort of aged kids and I'd highly recommend it. About a 30 minutes drive to Efteling so possible as a day trip or as a second part to the holiday. Again, a really great park for that aged children. We really rated the Netherlands, such a family friendly, safe feeling place.

We went in August.

Have a look also at roompot.com

I second Beekse bergen

We go often and have done since ds was 3. We get around by train it’s so easy. If you stay in Leiden or The Hague or delft you can easily get onto the train network.

Thanks everyone! This morning I booked the ferry and Beekse Bergen. Our trip will be for 9 nights (excluding ferry), and I’ve booked Beekse bergen for the first 4 nights, staying in a safari lodge on the savannah.

Now thinking of booking 1-2 nights at Eftling for the end of the trip, and the rest of the time in the city.

will need to find somewhere to park the car for a few days outside the city as don’t want to take it into the city.

any recommendations for city centre accommodation? Also any tips on Eftling, is 1 night enough or 2 better?

thanks!

Good choice on Beekse Bergen! It's great! Efteling for a couple of days will also be really nice. Its very close to Beekse Bergen. Amsterdam is a very easy city to visit. You can leave the car in one of the Park + Rides. Especially if it is the weekend. The one at the Olympic stadium is almost in the city centre and only costs €6 per 24hrs if you do the park + ride option.

We have been to both Efteling and Duinrell. Efteling is a proper theme park that you can spend a couple of days in it. We stayed for two nights than moved to De Kempervennen. It’s a Center Parcs. We have day outs and cycle around. It is great to have some relaxed days after a busy 3 days in Efteling.

For Duinrell we went on a different trip. There isn’t enough to keep my kids busy. They were tween and teen though so younger kids might see it differently. However we loved our stay there. It’s in a very populated part of the Netherlands. We drove to a park and ride for Amsterdam a couple of times. The highlights were Anne Frank house and the street art museum. We also went to a windmill village. It’s great then to come back to the park and go on a few rides after a day out.

I have now booked Eftling for 2 nights at the end, staying in loonsche land hotel. We still need to book somewhere for 3 nights for the city centre.

very excited for the trip!

We have just arrived at CP Het Heidjebos and going to De Eftling on Tuesday. DC are latec20s but wanted to have a holiday like we used to have when rhey were little.
They also loved Duinrell they were tweens at the time

You could stay somewhere like Haarlem/Edam/Alkmaar, which would give you good access to Amsterdam for a day visit without being in the centre (with higher prices and car worries). They are also nice places in themselves to visit for a day.

Utrecht is lovely & its railway museum is worth a visit.

We used the park and ride in Amsterdam at Easter. It took us a while to find one with spaces which was a bit frustrating. But, it was fine in the end (we parked at the Ajax stadium).

You’ll have a great time, NL is a lovely country.

We’re doing Duinrell and Efteling for the third time next month. We took our own tent the last couple of times but staying with Eurocamp next time. It’s £600 for 6 nights on 3 bedroom accommodation. Duinrell’s own accommodation is supposed to much nicer and swimming is included in the price, but it costs more and arrival and departure date are fixed. We will use it as a base with pool or amusement parks for a couple of hours then cycle out to the beach, Leiden, The Hague, full day in Amsterdam. We take our own bikes.

Efteling is amazing. I like how the accommodation has separate room areas so we’re not all on top of each other. Lovely theme park, really nicely laid out and not too hectic.