Driving Inspiration: Gouda, Netherlands
You'll discover there's more to the southern Dutch city of Gouda than just cheese.
- Driving inspiration
- Netherlands
- Visit Gouda
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There's more than just cheese in GoudaThere certainly is. Of course, when visiting Gouda the cheese is hard to miss. From the cheese shops to the cheese market and the De Waag (the cheese weighing house), the product for which Gouda is famous is rightly celebrated. But did you know that Gouda was also the childhood home of the Renaissance philosopher Erasmus, boasts the longest church in the Netherlands and holds the largest Christmas by candlelight event in the country?
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Driving to Gouda from CalaisVisiting Gouda from the LeShuttle terminal is quicker than you might think. Gouda is in the province of south Holland, around half an hour’s drive from Rotterdam. Other Dutch cities in close proximity are the seaside city of The Hague, beautiful Utrecht and, around an hour’s drive to the north, the capital Amsterdam. The fastest route from our Calais terminal will get you to Gouda in just under four hours. You will experience a beautiful drive through France, Belgium and the Netherlands on your journey.Read more about driving in the Netherlands
Insta-worthy attractions in Gouda
There are plenty of opportunities to ‘say cheese’ in Gouda! From the captivating towers and spire of the Town Hall to the flower-flanked canals and windmills, your camera or phone will be happily snapping away.
Gouda cheese market
Thursday is cheese market day in Gouda, so if you are in the town between April and August you will be able to take in this world famous foodie spectacle. It is held in front of Goudse Waag, just like it has been for hundreds of years. While it is fascinating to watch the cheese traders do business, it is also a chance for you to buy the local produce at the Gouda cheese market.
The Market Square
The Plaza Markt is the centre of life in Gouda. It is home to the stunning town hall, the cheese market, the Goudse Waag and a pleasant variety of shops, restaurants, bars, cafés and food vendors.
It is the ideal spot for a bite to eat (cheese perhaps?) or just to feast your eyes on the magnificent buildings. At Christmas time it is also the venue for ‘Gouda by Candlelight’, when the town’s Christmas tree (a gift from Gouda’s Norwegian sister town) and all the buildings in the market square are illuminated solely by candlelight. First held in 1956, it is the largest candlelit festive celebration in the Netherlands.
Church of St. John
Across from the Markt is the city’s main place of worship, the Sint Janskerk (Church of St. John). The stained-glass windows are wonderfully detailed and colourful, including beautiful depictions of scenes from the life of Jesus. They were installed between 1555 and 1571 by the brothers Dirk and Woulter Crabeth.
The Sint Jans church itself is a large, Gothic building, built in the 15th and 16th centuries. In fact, at 123 metres it is the longest church in the Netherlands!
Gouda Stadhuis (town hall)
The 15th century town hall in the market square is an icon of Gouda, and one of the oldest gothic city halls in the Netherlands. It dates back to 1448, and has been through many modifications, including the removal of the moat that initially protected the hall.
It's also striking on the inside, and visitors are free to wander through the halls, looking at the open rooms and snapping pictures (without a flash) of the art and interior decorations.
Molen De Roode Leeuw (Red Lion Windmill)
Standing proudly on the edge of one of Gouda’s canals is the Red Lion Windmill, a fine example of a working mill dating from 1727.
The Red Lion windmill has been lovingly restored in recent decades. Although no longer producing flour, the windmill still works and you can see the sails turn and the mechanical parts of the mill are on display. You really get a sense of how these marvellous structures operate.
De Waag
To learn how the production of Gouda cheese put the city on the map, visit the De Waag (the weigh house). Farmers used to come here to have their cheese weighed and inspected before being sold. It is now the Goudse Waag, a museum about Gouda and its cheesy past.
The museum doesn't just focus on Gouda's cheese history, but the history of Dutch cheese too. Cheese and wine and cheese and beer tastings are also available most days at the museum between March and November, but should be pre-booked.
Visit the Cheese Experience
It’s more than just cheese, but cheese is still pretty big in Gouda. You can find out all about the history of cheese making in the city by visiting the Cheese Experience, an interactive museum in Agnietenstraat.
Discover more about how Gouda is made, why cheese sellers and buyers clapped each other’s hands before they agreed on a price, virtually milk a cow or step into a huge roundel of cheese. It’s great fun for kids as well as adults, and there is plenty of cheese for everyone to taste afterwards.
Discover Gouda with LeShuttle
If you’re planning a trip to the Netherlands, put Gouda on your itinerary. It’s only four hours from LeShuttle’s Calais Terminal. Remember, we can get you from Calais to Folkestone in just 35 minutes.
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