Traditional Dutch landscapes: the Alblas-Giessen route

In the southeast of South Holland beyond Rotterdam lies a vast polder area with excellent cycling conditions: the Alblasserwaard. Here you can cycle through typical Dutch landscapes with grazing cows in green meadows, pollard willows, windmills, typical dike villages and historic farms. Time sometimes seems to stand still here. The Alblasserwaard has its own regional culture with regional customs, language and typical architectural style. A remarkable element in the polder landscape are the donkens. They look like bumps in the landscape. 

The dunes are dunes formed in the Ice Age. The landscape once formed by nature has been cultivated over time, resulting in the characteristic peat meadow landscape intersected by the peat rivers the Alblas and the Giessen that find their way in erratic bends through the polder land. While cycling you will pass through small villages such as Brandwijk and Wijngaarden, the Alblasserbos where you can take a short walk and if it is very hot you can take a refreshing dip in the water at De Donk. 

You can get a good impression of what the Alblasserwaard has to offer in the regional museum De Koperen Knop. This is located in a historic farm in Hardinxveld-Giessendam. Near Alblasserdam you have a beautiful view of the Kinderdijk mill area. More information about cycling in the Alblasserwaard can be found in the Cycling Guide South Holland South. This guide can be ordered online from the VVV via VVV Webshop .