Maassluis and the water

Maassluis has a history as a fishing port and then as a tugboat town.
Icons of this can be found at various places in Maassluis. We definitely recommend a visit to the inner harbor at the end of the walk, where you can see the steam tug"Furie\\\" and the museum ship De Hudson.
The Furie played an important role in the book and the movie"Hollands Glorie\\\" and the Hudson played a very important role in the Second World War.
In the outer harbor you will see several tugs and the training ship of the sea cadets, MS de Rigel. This ship has an eventful history as a trawler, anti-aircraft ship in the war and later as a pilot boat.
The tugboat Elbe is moored in front of the hotel.
This ship came into service in 1959 as a sea tug, after which she sailed as a pilot boat and from 1985 to 2001 she sailed the world's oceans as an action ship Greenpeace.
It was then restored to its original state and is now used as a sailing monument. In the Elbe you can spend the night with a group or take a boat trip.

Start at Hotel Maassluis
Hotel Maassluis serves delicious coffee and from the conservatory you have a beautiful view of the Nieuwe Waterweg. Perhaps you will take some time for this.

From 1879, Hotel Maassluis housed the Loodswezen and the company L.Smit & Co, known for its tugs all over the world. If you look up at the entrance, you will see beautiful details from the past, including the sea god Neptune.
The building bears even more maritime decorations on the outside,
but the towage history of Maassluis can also be found in the hotel.
Every weekend a small exhibition by a guest artist can be seen in the Customs House. Next to the Customs House you will find the ship's crew artwork. The three figures symbolize fishing, ship salvage and sea towage. Over the centuries, many Maassluizers have lost their lives at sea while performing their work.

Turn right at the statue and follow the Koning Willem Alexander Boulevard, which runs along the Nieuwe Waterweg, or the Scheur, as this part is actually called. Next to the image are the letters that together form the word"Maassluis\\\". We invite you to take an original photo here and send it to welcome@ervaarmaassluis.nl

The Nieuwe Waterweg is the last part of the connection between Rotterdam and the sea and was established in 1872.
If you follow the Boulevard, you will also walk along the district"the Balcony\\\", where new houses are still being built. There is also a lot of attention for the decoration of the district, with the viewpoint in the shape of the bow of a ship and the street names all have a connection with the fishing industry and towage.

The longest poem in the Netherlands is on the nine plates with one line of poetry. The first letters form the word Maassluis.
At the end of this district you will pass the large nature playground of Maassluis"Avonturis,\\\"
This is a playground for young and old, where natural elements such as tree trunks, hills and streams form the basis of all kinds of fun.

Follow the boulevard all the way until you reach Poortershaven.
There you cross the metro rails and continue your way via the Schenkelsdijk, past the riding school, where you can turn right to walk through the small park and the sports fields to the Dr. Albert Schweitzerdreef.
Turn left here and follow this road until you reach the Maasdijk/Westlandseweg. Cross here and at the bottom of the dike turn right via the cycling/walking path with the name Weverskade.

On the Weverskade you will find a few historic farms. This is also the basis for Lely Industries, a company of which Maassluis is proud, because of the name they have built up in the development of agricultural machinery.
This part of Maassluis borders Midden Delfland, a special provincial landscape, where it is also wonderful to walk.
The Historical Association Maassluis organizes extensive organized walks along the Weverskade, where they tell more about the history of this part of Maassluis.
Halfway the Weverskade you will see the special Roman Catholic Church of St. Peter and Paul on your right; with the separate"bell tower\\\".
From the Westlandse road, this building looks a bit like the Sydney Opera House.
In front of the church you will find a statue of the Maassluis artist Dick Tulp, one of the artists you can find in Maassluis.

The new Wilgenrijk district is being built on your left. If you want to walk a little extra, go into the neighborhood and here you can also find the sheepfold. Then you come back to this point.
At the end of the Weverskade, turn right until you reach the dike at the bottom of the Westlandseweg. You go up the dike and cross the Westlandseweg and continue to the Noorddijk.

This Noorddijk changes into the Hoogstraat in the centre, and was built on the medieval connecting road between Hoek van Holland and Rotterdam, the Maasdijk. This also formed the dike between the Scheur and the hinterland.
Turn left on the Noorddijk and walk all the way down until you reach the Veerstraat, at the stairs of the Monstersche Sluis.
The Monstersche Sluis plays an important role in the history of Maassluis.
It is around this lock, according to tradition, that the city was founded. In 1343 there were two huts made of reed and mud here.
At the top of the dike you have a beautiful view of one of the historic rivers that Maassluis has. In the Middle Ages, three streams were dug to discharge the excess water into the Maas via sluice gates. People settled at the locks and this became Maeslantsluys, now known as Maassluis.
After 50 years, the Monstersche Sluis has been restored to its former glory with donations and provincial support and is also navigable, which is fun to do. Beautiful boat trips can also be made from Maassluis to Midden Delfland.
The stairs were donated to the city by the famous Maassluis shipowner Govert van Wijn, who also donated the large and famous Garrels organ in the Groote Kerk to the inhabitants of Maassluis and played an important role in the care of the orphans in the old orphanage in Maassluis .

At the Monstersche Sluis you can turn right to visit the Groote Kerk of Maassluis, but you can also go straight through the Hoogstraat until the Wip (on your left).
You can make an extra trip to Schanseiland, where you get a beautiful view of the Stadhuiskade with steam tug Furie.

The Stadshuiskade is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful pictures of Maassluis.
The first house is the Coppelstockhuis.
Veerman Coppelstock played an important role in the capture of Den Briel on April 1, 1572.
In the middle of the quay the Gemeenlandshuis van Delfland. This used to be the base for the surveillance of the Maasdijk, as a lockkeeper's house and as a meeting room.
The building is now owned by the Hendrick de Keyzer Association and it is possible to spend the night there.
The last house in the row built in 1676 and is now the National Sleeping Museum.
It was originally built as a town hall. The museum has been located here since 1979 and is well worth a visit. As the name suggests, the National Towage Museum tells the history of the national towage.
In the harbor basin you can visit steam tug Furie and sea tug Hudson on Wednesday and Saturday afternoon. Sea tug Hudson, launched in 1939, is a museum ship and accommodates

an exhibition about the history of towage in the years \\'40-\\'45.

You will find the booklet at Experience Maassluis and at various places in Maassluis
"Maassluis Maritiem\\\", with more details about all ships in
the port of Maassluis.

The Groote Kerk of Maassluis was built on the Schanseiland, which used to be an important defensive fortress in the Eighty Years' War against the Spaniards.
The church was built between 1629 and 1639 with tax money from the herring fishery. De Groote kerk was so named because Maassluis already had a smaller church that was built around the year 1500, and which was closed after the opening of the Groote kerk.
The special thing is that this is a Protestant church.
The church is open from May in the summer months on Wednesdays and Thursdays afternoons and Fridays and Saturdays from 11am to 4pm.

Back to High Street
If you turn left on the Hoogstraat at the Wip, you will arrive in the historic center of Maassluis. Here you will find plenty of options for a cup of coffee or a well-deserved lunch.

At the end of the Hoogstraat you are standing in front of the stairs of the National Sleeping Museum, which you have been able to admire from the Schanseiland.
Various rooms have been set up in the museum, which give you an idea of the development of towage from simple rowing boats to powerful ships that do the work today. An image of the sea towage history, which played such an important role for the development of Maassluis. The towage museum is definitely worth a visit!

If you want to continue your walk or want more information about the history of Maassluis, we advise you to walk from the Markt towards Nieuwstraat to purchase a historical city walk of Maassluis at Experience Maassluis Info. (Cost € 3.00) .

Back to Metro station or Hotel?
From the Markt you go up the Wip and walk straight ahead along the Haven
until you reach the Koepaardbrug again.
Here you turn left to the metro station or straight ahead over the pedestrian/cycling bridge to Hotel Maassluis.

We thank you for your visit and hope to see you again!