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City and municipality in Netherlands
Photo: nl:Gebruiker:Ellywa, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Gouda is a city in the province South-Holland in The Netherlands. It is a typical Dutch city with many old buildings, canals and pretty sights, and is a popular destination for a day trip. It is also a good base for exploring the rest of the Netherlands, thanks to its great rail- and highway connections. The city is famous for its cheese, its 15th-century town hall and the amazing glass windows in St. Janskerk, but there is a lot more to see and do.
From the travel guide. Select a place for details, a map and what is nearby.
Old Town hall
The old town hall on the Markt square is the oldest Gothic town hall in The Netherlands. Built out of sand stone between 1448 and 1450, it is now a museum and wedding location and is open to visitors.
Cheese Weighing House
Check out the cheese market, eat some cheese, see the old cheese weighing house, built by Pieter Post in 1668, now a museum to (you guessed it) cheese!
St. John’s Church
This church is famous for its beautiful stained glass windows and is a must see. It is the longest (not tallest) church in the Netherlands. The area around the church is the oldest and probably the most beautiful part of town.
Gouda Museum
Museum about the history of Gouda. There are displays of paintings, archaeology, old clay pipes and pottery. Information and guided tours are available in English. There is a massive scale model of the city in the 16th century.
Gouda Harbor Museum
This museum tracks the history of Gouda harbour and shipbuilding. There are also some old ships and buildings to see. All information is in Dutch.
The Resistance Museum
Museum about the Dutch resistance in World War II. Article info and guided tours available in English.
One of the oldest remaining brick houses in Gouda.
There are various canals in the city centre. They are lined by historic houses. A visit to Gouda is not complete without taking a relaxing walk along the canals!
This canal is actually an old river, the one that gave Gouda its name. The canal is dominated by the 80-m tower of the Gouwekerk (Gouwe church)
One side of the canal is called Oosthaven, the other is called Westhaven. The buildings along this canal were built by the patriarchy of the city in the 17th and 18th century.
The quays of this canal are extremely low. It is lined by interesting historic buildings.
Charming little canal lined by old warehouses that were converted to houses.
There are four windmills (two of them in the city centre) remaining in Gouda.
Possible to visit by appointment only.
In the 1970s, this graveyard was abandoned, but the graves are still there, covered in tall grass. It's a little bit eerie, but also a very beautiful place to visit.
Rederij de IJsel
There are not as many canal boats as in Amsterdam, but it's still possible to take a canal tour through Gouda. Tickets can be bought at the Tourist Office.
Goudse Gidsen Gilde
The Gouda Guides Guild offers a wide variety of walking tours through the historic city center of Gouda. They can show you the highlights of the city, or will base the tour on a certain historical topic, it's up to you!
Cinema Gouda
6-screen cinema next to train station. English movies shown with Dutch subtitles.
Filmhuis Gouda
Small arthouse cinema.
Goudse Schouwburg
Large theatre (1045 seats) with a diverse line-up.
Spa Gouda
An old public bathing house from the 1920s has been converted to a lush oriental spa, offering various massages, baths, saunas and beauty treatments.
Groenhovenbad
Large public swimming pool
Nine hole golf course, driving range, 18 hole putting green and restaurant. Equipment rental and lessons available.
Factory of traditional Dutch ceramics, including Delftware.
Gallery exhibitions of modern jewellery made by Dutch jewelly-designers. The gallery is open from Thursday till Sunday from 12:00-17:00.
Every Thursday between April and August, you can visit the traditional cheese market where farmers sell their cheese. It is located on the Markt square.
In the month of December, the city centre gets lit up in special ways. This also contains the Candlelight night on the second Tuesday of December.
During the summer season, there are open-air concerts at the Houtmansplantsoen (a park in the city center).
An annual event which revolves around food: Culinary Gouda. In September, Houtmansplantsoen in Gouda is transformed into the biggest and tastiest open-air restaurant for miles around.
The night before Kingsday, a large open-air music event is hosted on the Markt square. This is usually on April 26th.
King's Day
April 27th is the national holiday of the Netherlands. This is also celebrated in Gouda, with different activities and events each year.
In the northern part of the city centre, this charming coffee bar offers a range of coffees and teas, as well as pastries, sandwiches and soups.
Indian restaurant, cheap prices, good food.
In the western part of the city center, this small restaurant is considered the best place in Gouda to try traditional "Indische" (Dutch-Indonesian) cuisine. Take-away is also possible.
Japanese restaurant with good reviews.
Asian take-away restaurant. It's also possible to eat inside.
Thai cuisine
Modern French restaurant on a beautiful street.
A traditional grand cafe in an old Dutch building with art deco interior at the Markt square. Open throughout the day, with good food and drinks, friendly staff and plenty of space. Renowned for its apple pie.
means "the Salmon"
A somewhat upmarket restaurant/bar at the Markt.
A great cozy Dutch feeling restaurant with great food (especially steaks). The menu is written on a blackboard on the wall. Very popular.
Restaurant that combines local/regional food (cheese, steak, etc) with international cuisine.
Local cuisine, with steaks and cheese as a specialty.
Beautiful, more upmarket restaurant, with lots of pictures of ships on the walls.
French cuisine.
"Pannekoe", previously named "In de Salon", is the oldest and one of the best pancake restaurants in Holland, the decor hasn't been changed in 150 years which gives it a very homely old fashioned feel, their pancakes however are made from the freshest ingredients and the poffertjes are baked on their 150 year old wood fired stove, a can't miss when going to Gouda.
Italian restaurant
Italian restaurant
Italian restaurant, with outdoor terrace
Tapas bar
Mexican restaurant running for 18 years in Gouda.
Real Dutch "patat" (fries).
A nice and friendly place with a stage and a bar in the centre of Gouda. Perfect to get a drink and go dancing during the weekends. National bands are playing regularly.
Underground stage and alternative club.
De Zalm is probably the most well known bar/bistro in Gouda.
Modern bar on the Markt. Popular with the younger crowd, especially on weekends.
Busy bar, many young people, music and dancing.
Live music on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Free entrance. Minimum age 21.
Pub focusing on Spanish drinks and tapas.
Modern hotel with 101 rooms, part of the Best Western chain in the historic centre.
75 rooms with satellite TV and Wifi. Restaurant with buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Budget hotel, right in the centre of town.
Characteristic family hotel in the centre of Gouda. Breakfast included.
This traditional hotel on the River IJssel, is about 5km from Gouda, in the small town of Haastrecht. It's an easy cycle to Gouda. There is a pub/restaurant. Free Wi-fi and parking.
64 rooms all with balcony. There are two restaurants and a bar.
This world famous cheese gets its name from the town. It's been made locally with cow's milk since the middle ages. The cheese isn't made in the town itself, but the surrounding area. Real Gouda cheese is made on the farms, and is not pasteurized so it retains much more flavour. As a result of this, the cheese is not exported and can only be bought in the Netherlands. Check out the Cheese market or some of the amazing cheese shops in the town. There are several cheese shops in Gouda.
Exclusively sells Gouda cheese.
Sells Gouda cheese, other cheeses, wine, sauces, etc.
Sells cheese, poultry and eggs.
Cheese museum and store.
These traditional Dutch cookies were invented in Gouda in the 19th century. Two thin wafers with a caramel filling. Yummy! You can buy tins and packs of waffles in various shops around town.
For a warm, fresh waffle, try 'Het Stroopwafelwinkeltje', hidden next to the Hema entrance at the Agnietenstraat, just north of the Markt and the Waag.
The De Vlaam bakery bought the original stroopwafel recipe when the descendants of the inventor retired.
Traditional Dutch candles that light up the room.
Independent record store, selling vinyl, cd's and hi-fi equipment.
Urban fashion, sneakers, apparel.
Design and home decoration.
Fashion by small brands and labels, for both men and women.
Biggest LEGO store in the Netherlands.
By bus
Buses stop at the train station. Most of them are operated by Arriva, some of them by Connexxion.
By car
80 per hour, max €8-10 per day). They are called Klein Amerika, Schouwburgplein and Vossenburchkade and are well indicated.
By plane
The nearest airports are in Amsterdam (Schiphol Airport) and Rotterdam (Rotterdam The Hague Airport).
By boat
There are no ferry or waterbus services to Gouda, but when you own a boat, there are facilities to stay in Gouda. More information can be found at Welkom in Gouda.
By foot
The centre of Gouda is easy to walk around. Most of the streets are pedestrianized. The main shopping street, Kleiweg, is pedestrianized and bike free.
By bike
If you want to travel outside the centre of Gouda, biking is a good option.
By taxi
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Rotterdam · International · RTM
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