Experience the Novelty of The Hague
View over the Hague’s Hofvijver pond and town from a lookout platform at the Binnenhof
“…the love of novelty most rules the mind. In search of this, from realm to realm we roam.” –Shelby Foote
The Netherlands Royal City, The Hague, Den Haag or ‘s-Gravenhage, is known as the Royal family’s residence and, since 1588, the seat of government. Yet confusingly, the constitution refers to Amsterdam, where the sovereigns are crowned, as the capital. This third-largest Dutch city, situated in South Holland between Rotterdam and Leiden, is also home to the International Court of Justice in the Peace Palace, and the International Criminal Court, making the Hague internationally important as well as a novel, delightful green city by the sea.
Beyond the political infrastructure, The Hague is a city of monuments, cultural institutions and museums, a wonderful international food scene, a bustling shopping district, many parks, and the beach at Scheveningen. The city center encompasses distinct areas: Royal, Historical, Shopping, Chinatown, and Modern, all, of course, surrounded by canals as well as parks, like the huge festival meadow Malieveld.
Between the main square, Het Plein, and Hofvijver pond in the historical area, Binnenhof is a historic complex begun in the mid-13th century as a royal palace, which now serves as the Netherlands’ seat of government. Both the pondside and parallel street, Lange Voorhout, are pretty promenades, lined with elm trees and embassies. In the adjacent Royal Area, Noordeinde Palace, the King’s residence and workplace, abuts the public Palace Garden and is set among picturesque streets with crown-topped streetlights, a multitude of cafés, art shops, and galleries. The Grote of Sint-Jacobskerk, where members of the House of Orange are baptized and married, is a brick hall church begun in the early 1300s, famous for its 6-sided tower and intricate wooden ceiling.
The Shopping District blends traditional with modern: The Passage, is a historic glass-covered arcade of shops, and De Haagsche Bluf incorporates shopping and food hall in surprising and quaint contiguous interior courtyards, all near the Dutch department store De Bijenkorf, housed in a notable Hendrik Petrus Berlage-designed brick geometric building.
Of the Hague’s museums, Maurtishus is an exquisite small venue in a Dutch Classicism manor house built in 1644 for the governor of Dutch Brazil. The most renowned Dutch Master on display is Vermeer’s Girl with the Pearl Earring, though numerous Rembrandts and The Goldfinch by Carel Fabritius also delight. Escher in Het Paleis, in a beautiful former royal palace, highlights Dutch printmaker M.C. Escher’s optical illusions and fascinating prints that marry art, nature, and mathematics in continuing endless cycles. Panorama Mesdag displays artworks by the painter couple Mesdag-van Houten, and in a specially-built rotunda with a lighthouse feel, their astounding 360-degree panoramic painting depicts the beach and fishing village of Scheveningen as it was in 1881.
A 5km (3 mi) bicycle trip to the Atlantic Ocean passes the Peace Palace and leads through a lovely, forested stretch of beech trees and along canals to the old fishing village. The South Beach is quieter than North Beach; the latter lies behind dunes near Scheveningen village. North Beach has pavilions, restaurants, a Ferris wheel, wonderful sunsets, and a lively atmosphere even before the bathing season begins. An 1818 bathhouse, which brought the healing benefits of seawater to the people, was replaced in 1885 with The Kurhaus Hotel. The splendid new establishment quickly attracted the well-heeled like Marlene Dietrich, Winston Churchill, Leonard Berstein, and the Rolling Stones, whose 1984 concert lasted only 10 minutes before fans got out of hand.
Don’t Miss:
Biking out to Scheveningen for dinner after a day of walking through the marvelous city center.
Serendipity:
Locals along the way- conversing with a group of ladies with sewing machines in the Groete Kerk, who were laying out fabric on long tables to create enormous tapestry quilts that will be hung in the church.
Lunch Tip:
Deluca in The Passage for excellent sandwiches and salads in an old-world atmosphere.
Dinner Tip:
The beautiful Kurhaus on the beach in Scheveningen for fresh fish.
Bedtime:
Hotel Moxy The Hague, a modern, quirky hotel near the train station at the edge of the historical district.
Subscribe for inspiration to have my posts drop directly into your inbox. *If you enjoyed what you read, please share this post with like-minded travelers.*
*All photographs are mine, taken with my Nikon D5600 or iPhone 14 Pro.*