Giethoorn by boat

Set out from Amsterdam and trace 120 km northeast on the A6 and N331, skimming reclaimed polder land before entering Overijssel. The scene shifts: Giethoorn grew from peat-cutting canals in the 1200s, stitched together by 176 wooden bridges and reed thatch cut on the Wieden lakes. Electric punts slide under apple trees and past raised lawns; local praus still run errands by water. Wedged between Weerribben–Wieden National Park and the hamlets of Dwarsgracht and Wanneperveen, waterways truly act as streets.

For the day, your driver collects you at your hotel in a Mercedes and stays on standby while you roam. Boarding is arranged on Dorpsgracht by Museum Giethoorn ’t Olde Maat Uus, or on Bovenwijde if the wind is kinder; we pre-book your silent boat and adapt the loop to conditions. With your Amani Limousines private driver in Giethoorn, you taste herring at Vishandel Gerrits & De Boer, pause by De Swaan bridge, then roll on to Blokzijl or Zwartsluis while the driving and timing are handled for you.