Enjoy the greenery in Bloemendaal and the heart of Haarlem

This route takes you through the green and water-rich surroundings of Bloemendaal and Haarlem. While cycling you will be amazed: not only in Bloemendaal, but also in villages such as Driehuis and Velsen-Zuid, you will pass centuries-old farms, country houses and other monumental buildings. And what about Haarlem, the charming city that has almost 1200 national monuments! Soon after the start of your route you will pass the Ruins of Brederode, a remnant of the thirteenth-century Brederode Castle. Since the castle was burned down during the Eighty Years' War, it has not been restored. In the nineteenth century, the castle was restored as a ruin and became the first national monument. Just before Velsen-Zuid you drive through the park that surrounds Huis Velserbeek, an originally sixteenth-century homestead. The stately park was redesigned in the late 1930s by the famous landscape architect Leonard Springer. You feel like you're back in time here. Once you pass Velsen-Zuid, you will see a very modern image: you have a wide view of the North Sea Canal, the harbors and the polders behind it. A little further on you cycle into the Spaarnwoude recreational area. Here you drive through forests, peat meadow areas and polder landscapes bordering the water. Although this area was given a recreational function in the 1960s, subdivision patterns from the tenth and eleventh centuries can still be seen. These patterns were applied by farmers at the time when reclaiming the peat swamps. In the area you will see even more remains of the age-old battle against the water, such as dikes, mills and pumping stations. In Santpoort you cycle past De Zandhaas, a windmill built at the end of the eighteenth century. For a large part of your tour through Haarlem you will drive along the course of the river Het Spaarne. You automatically switch back here to enjoy the view as much as possible. Canals, monumental buildings, a relaxed and cozy atmosphere: Haarlem is an ideal city for cycling. At the Spaarne you drive past De Adriaan, a mill that was originally built in 1779 and was then still on the edge of the city. In 1932 the mill went up in flames. Only seventy years later - after much wrangling over money - did the mill rise from its ashes.