Top sights and activities in Leeuwarden

Leeuwarden is the capital city of Friesland, one of the most Northern provinces of the Netherlands. Leeuwarden is a great city for a weekend getaway. It has many old houses and cobblestoned streat, independent shops and great food spots. On this page I’m sharing the top sights and activities in Leeuwarden. All the nice things that are there to see and do are listed here.

Blokhuispoort

De Blokhuispoort is a gate that leads to a former prison. Don’t worry, you won’t find any inmates here but instead you’ll find several creative initiatives, shops and restaurants. Part of the building is still furnished as a prison and you can take guided tours there.
Personal favorite: restaurant Proefverlof has a great lunch menu and a terrace by the water.

Boat rent

This is such a fun activity in Leeuwarden! You can rent your own electrical boat at Greenjoy and cruise through the waters of Leeuwarden. It’s great for couples but also for groups or families. You can have up to 10 people in the boat. There’s a table in the middle so you can bring your own food and drinks if you want. You can rent your boat online and also unlock it with your phone. This makes it very flexible and you can even rent a boat only 10 minutes in advance.

De Waag

‘De Waag’ is the building where they used to weigh goods that were sold on the market. The building dates back to 1590 and was used as a weighing station until 1880. Nowadays you can find a lunchroom in the building.

Pharmacy

This lovely old pharmacy is very Instagrammable! This Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) building was build in 1904. On the side you see a picture of the Greek Goddess Hygieia, the goddess of health and hygiene. I love that it’s still being used as a pharmacy nowadays. It’s called Centraal Apotheek (central pharmacy).

Colored Street

I love colored houses! Whenever I’m in a city that has a colorful neighborhood, I always like to visit it. From BoKaap in Capetown to Nothing Hill in London. In Leeuwarden you can find this colorful street. The street is called Kruisstraat and you can find it close to the Blokhuispoort.

De Eendragt Mill

The original mill on this location was build in 1786. Unfortunately it got destroyed during a fire. But I love how they restored the mill!

Love, mistfountain

You can find these two heads opposite the train station. They look like they’re 3 dimensional, but they’re actually flat! So impressive.

Trainstation

The central train station from Leeuwarden is housed in a beautiful old building. It opened in 1863.

Gotten hungry? Click here for my top food spots in Leeuwarden.