The Hague

Introduction

Den Haag

© Vize

Many international organizations and companies have their seat here and foreign lots of countries have their embassies here. You can visit this Embassy website for detailed information which is of interest for travellers. The Hague also houses the international court of Justice, which in the last decade was mainly busy with judging war criminals from the Yugoslavian war, including Milosevic and Karadzic. As a result of the many institutions and ambassies a lot of nationalities live and work in this city.

The Hague is also the home of many of the most famous Dutch music groups and artists. The most famous group to emerge from The Hague is probably the Golden Earring, who got world famous with their American No.1 hit: Radar Love. Also Shocking Blue (Venus, later covered by Bananarama), Q65, Anouk and Earth & Fire, and a whole bunch of others come from the Hague. That The Hague is a musical city is something you can see if you look at the many music festival and events in the city. Sadly enough the world famous North Sea Jazz Festival has moved a couple of years to ago to Rotterdam.

Neighbourhoods

The Hague has 8 neighbourhoods:

• Centrum (city centre)
• Escamp
• Haagse Hout
• Laak
• Leidschenveen-Ypenburg
• Loosduinen,
• Scheveningen (beaches)
• Segbroek

These neighbourhoods can in most cases be divided in several smaller areas.

Sights and Activities

The Hague offers visitors more than political interest. It is also an excellent place to browse great museums, or laze on the Netherlands' primary beach.

Political Attractions

The Hague is best known for the political and international organisations that operate there, including the Dutch royal family. Some of its most popular attractions are the Binnenhof, the national centre of politics (Parliament still meets there) and the Ridderzaal (Knights' Hall), where you can enjoy a guided tour of the Upper and Lower chambers where politicians meet.

Scheveningen

Sandcastels at Scheveningen

© RachMulder

Scheveningen (nowadays part of The Hague) is the main beach city of the Netherlands - and has been so for over 100 years. Hence The Hague can profile itself as City by the Sea. The beach is favourite place of a lot of people in the Netherlands. When the weather is good, the beach is packed with people. But when the weather is bad, and a strong wind is blowing it can be nice to be on the beach aswell. In Scheveningen you will find a lot of bars on the beach, as well as the two landmarks of this stretch of the Dutch coast: the Kurhaus, and the Pier.

Museums

The Hague boasts a number of internationally acclaimed museums, including

• The Mauritshuis - The Royal Picture Gallery has paintings from painters like Vermeer and Rembrandt.
• Another museum which is worth a visit is Panorama Mesdag in Scheveningen, which exposes the largest painting in the Netherlands with a 360-degree view. It is 120 metres long and 14 metres high and the view you will see here is one on top of a sand dune in the year 1881.
• Other interesting ones include the Museum of Photography and the M.C. Esher Museum.

Events and Festivals

Prinsjesdag

On every 3rd tuesday in September the Queen reads out her Speech of the throne (Troonrede) in the Ridderzaal. The speech itself is a dry piece of information written by politicians and not that interesting for visitors. What is interesting is the rituals surrounding the day. At 1:00pm the Queen gets into the Golden Coach, that will take her to the Ridderzaal. Along the route many people gather to grasp a glimpse of the Queen and the other members of the royal family. The route starts at the Palace Noordeinde and the goes to the Lange Voorhout and the Korte Vijverberg to the Binnenhof. It's only a short route and it takes about 15 minutes in total. After the speech, the Queen heads back to the palace, where she will appear on the balcony to say goodbye.

Parkpop

The Hague

© aniel

On the last Sunday of June, the biggest music festival in the Netherlands takes place in the Zuiderpark. On several stages in the park several bands are playing from young and local talents to big names of the international music business. On a good day it is possible that 350,000 to 400,000 people come to visit the festival. The line-up every year consist of a mix of Dutch bands and International bands, with a good mix of genres, so that everybody can find a band he or she likes. Besides the music, there are markets and of course food and drink stalls. If you plan to visit and you need to get out of The Hague by public transport, have some patience as the transport is somewhat overloaded, especially when the weather is good. And the best part of the festival is, that the entrance is for free.

Koningsdag (King's Day)

In 2013, the Dutch throne was passed on to King Willem-Alexander and what used to be Koninginnedag (Queen's Day) will from 2014 become Koningsdag (King's Day). The date will be changed to the 27th of April, which is the king's birthday. In 2014 however it will be on the 26th of April because the 27th falls on a Sunday. On this day the streets of almost every sizable town in the country come alive with activity.

Beatstad

Beatstad is a music festival that takes place at the end of August or beginning of September at the Malieveld. The festival started in 2005, as a festival with a line-up consisting of only bands from The Hague, but since a couple of years the headliner is an International group.

City-Pier-City Run

The City-Pier-City Run is a half marathon from the centre of The Hague to the Pier in Scheveningen, and back again. The fastest male runners run the distance in just under an hour. Besides a half marathon there are also runs of 5 and 10 kilometres, and runs for kids (1 kilometre and 2.5 kilometres). All the races finish at the Lange Voorhout. Along the route of the run several bands are playing, providing a good atmosphere for runners and spectators.

Weather

The Hague weather is typical of what you get in the Netherlands: mild winters (December - February) with rare snow, and reasonably warm summers (June - August). In general, The Hague is just bit cooler during the summer and a bit warmer during winter, meaning average temperatures of around or just above 20 °C in summer and several degrees above zero during winter.

Getting There

By Plane

Rotterdam The Hague Airport, formerly Zestienhoven serves The Hague. It's mostly used by Transavia, Correndon and VLM airlines. The first two are specialised in holiday destinations, and the last services a lot of the smaller airports in the Netherlands and Begium, and connects from Rotterdam to for example London City Airport, Manchester Airport, the Isle of Man, Hamburg Airport and Jersey. Skywork Airlines has a weekly flight to Bern in Switzerland (winter only).

By Train

The Hague has a couple of train stations, of which the Central Station and Holland Spoor are the most used ones. The Hague can be reached easily from other bigger Dutch cities. The line between Venlo and The Hague connects all the bigger cities in North Brabant and Rotterdam with The Hague.
A regional light rail system called RandstadRail connects The Hague to nearby cities, Zoetermeer and Rotterdam and was completed in August 2010. Check the map online.

By Car

The Hague can be reached by car along the A4 from Amsterdam and Schiphol, the A12 from Utrecht and the A13 from Rotterdam.

By Bus

Eurolines has international connections, sometimes stopping in other Dutch cities, like Arnhem and Breda first.
HTM provides bus and tram connections just outside The Hague, including a route to Scheveningen beaches.

By Boat

Although The Hague is located along the water, at least Scheveningen is, there is no regular transport for passenger by boat.

Getting Around

By Car

As roads, especially during rush hours and on popular shopping times (including Saturday), are congested, it's not advised to travel around by car. Parking is expensive as well, like most Dutch cities.

By Public Transport

HTM offers trams and buses in the city.

By Foot

Much of The Hague can easily be explored on foot, as it's not a very big city and the centre is relatively compact.

By Bike

Taking the bike is especially nice if you like to explore more of the outskirts of The Hague as well, including Scheveningen.

Eat

Just as Indian restaurants abound in the UK, the Netherlands has an excellent tradition in Indonesian and colonial Dutch-Indies cuisine. After Indonesia became independent from the Netherlands in 1945, the country received a large number of former colonials from Dutch and mixed descent who had been forced to leave the newly independent colony. The Hague received a relatively large number of these people and is still a centre of the Dutch-Indonesian community.

• Garoeda, Kneuterdijk 18 A, ☎ +31 70 3648175. Historic place (founded 1949) with waiters in traditional costumes, spread out over two floors.
• Poentjak, Kneuterdijk 16, ☎ +31 70 3600522. Next to Garoeda. Interior is a time-warp to the 1920s. ~€20 for dinner.
• Istana, Wagenstraat 71, ☎ +31 70 3600997. Small restaurant with somewhat minimalist decor. Excellent sateh.
• Bogor, Van Swietenstraat 2, ☎ +31 70 3461628. Known by the in-crowd as traditionally the best place in town. Simple but excellent food, has been around for over 40 years and has not changed.
• Tampat Senang, Laan van Meerdervoort 6, ☎ +31 70 3636787. Very colonial-style restaurant with waiters in traditional costumes. Beautifully decorated with indigenous art. Excellent garden for outside dining in summer.
• Palembang, Thomsonlaan 17, ☎ +31 70 3653881. Cosy place with excellent food. Lots of pictures on the wall with local celebrities who visited here.

Sarinah, Goudenregenplein 4, ☎ +31 70 3601585. A local institution, this place gets especially busy in the weekends when service can be a bit slow. Has a restaurant area and a take-away service.

• Keraton Damai, Groot Hertoginnelaan 57, ☎ +31 70 3639371. Small 'living-room style restaurant' with very personal and attentive service. Small but excellent choice of dishes.
• Isaku Iki, Anna Paulownastraat 17, ☎ +31 70 3920033. This place has restaurant area and take-away service.
• Le Haricot Vert - Molenstraat 9A-11. Good French-Dutch cuisine, friendly people. Three course menu for around €30.
• Hanting Cuisine, Prinsestraat 33, ☎ +31 70 3620828. Chef Han merges Oriental and French cuisines. Han uses famous ingredients from both worlds and combines traditional preparation methods and techniques.
• Seinpost, Zeekant 60, ☎ +31 70 3555250. This restaurant is very well located with a great sea view of Scheveningen beach, great service and excellent dishes, especially fish specialities.
• Calla's, Laan van Roos en Doorn 51A, ☎ +31 70 3455866. Modern and with painstaking preparation techniques. Shorter, concentration on cuisson, light sauces and rich in taste. Food at Calla's is in the classical French tradition stripped of all frills and furbelows.
• Chinatown. The town has dubbed the area around Gedempte Gracht and Wagenstraat as its local Chinatown, and added street signs in Chinese and all that. The area is not particularly spectacular, but good Chinese food is to be found around here. There seem to be three real popular Chinese restaurants in 'Chinatown'. Two of these restaurant have the same owner, but the restaurants are quite different. There is Fat Kee (preferred by Indian, Dutch and people from Suriname), which has a superb chicken and broccoli dish, though most 'local' Chinese people seem to go to the restaurants Kee Lun Palace and Restaurant Long Ting. Both have really good Chinese food for a relatively low price, though the service is generally rated below average. Another reasonable place is Harvest, which is in the heart of Chinatown; it's usually visited by Dutch people and Chinese people seem somehow to avoid it.

Drink

• Luden Café Den Haag - Plein 6-7, good drinks and food for affordable prices.
• Cafe Momfer de Mol, Oude Molstraat 19, ☎ +31 70 4278733, e-mail: [email protected]. Cafe Momfer de Mol is located in the centre of the old Hague a place steeped in history. The cafe in its present form has been in existence since 2003, and is one of the finest laid-back cafe-bars of the city. The warm interiors and the informal ambiance at the cafe, are ideal allies to its delightful snack menu.
• Cafe Madeleine, Valkenbosplein 10, ☎ +31 70 3630609. 08 am. Just outside the centre. Take tram 3 to Valkenbosplein and have a coffee and something sweet.

Sleep

Despite its size and international prominence, The Hague has relatively few hotels. Most of them are geared towards business guests, although there is a fair selection across price ranges. As the Randstad is very well connected with frequent train services, trams and buses, you may also consider accommodation in the neighbouring cities of Delft, Leiden, Zoetermeer, Rijswijk or even Rotterdam.

• easyHotel den Haag. easyHotels are a sister hotel chain to the no-frills airline easyJet, and run along similar principles - only the accommodation in the (very simple) rooms are included in the base price, and everything else is charged extra. The location, however, is really central. The front faces the busy Parkstraat with trams. edit
• Holiday Inn Express The Hague - Parliament. The HIExpress is right off the Plein and has breakfast and WiFi included in the room prices. Be aware that some rooms face the rather small inner atrium rather than the outside. edit
• Ibis Den Haag City Centre (Jan Hendrikstraat 10). A fairly standard ibis hotel with a central location, with some rooms overlooking the busy Jan Hendrikstraat with trams, while others the peaceful courtyard garden (Nutstuin)
• Stayokay Den Haag, Scheepmakersstraat 27 (tram 17 (Rijswijkseplein stop)), ☎ +31 70 3157888, e-mail: [email protected]. This standard but relatively soulless and uninspiring backpacking hostel has double rooms with individual toilet and shower facilities, and 8-bed dorms. It is huge, quite corporate so don't expect too much of a personal touch here. The hostel has a good location, being close to the Hollands Spoor train station (a 5 minute walk). Hostelling International members get discounts at Stayokay, and you can get a one-year membership card that is useful if you're staying at other HI Hostels. There are internet facilities available to lodgers at a reasonable fee.
• The Golden Stork, Bierkade 22 (tram 16 (Bierkade stop)), ☎ +31 70 415 8959, e-mail: [email protected]. Check-in: 15:00 to 23:00, check-out: 11:00. A newly opened hostel which began operating in June 2017 from Bierkade, a riverfront area in The Hague. Has a variety of mixed dorm facilities, 8, 9 and 15 bed, as well as a cafe and locker area for your valuables. Breakfast available at €4.50, bedding and towels are thrown in free of charge (deposit required for towels, returned when you leave). You need to pay a deposit of €5 also for your room card (the door keys are RFID based) which is returned upon departure. If you book, remember that The Hague charges a tourist tax (Toeristenbelasting) of €3.35 per night, which is not included in the cost of your stay - you have to pay that on arrival. 20 - 30€ per night.
• Mercure Den Haag Centraal, Spui 180, ☎ +31 70 2039002, e-mail: [email protected]. The main upside for staying at the Mercure is actually not having to see the outside of the building, which is an ugly block clad in blueish plastic. Otherwise, this Mercure is a business-oriented hotel with very modern appointments and a brilliantly central location, not leaving much to be desired - and charging for that appropriately.
• NH Den Haag, Prinses Margrietplantsoen 100, ☎ +31 70 3812345. Located at the heart of the Beatrixkwartier business district and within some distance from the old town and most tourist attractions. That said, being right at the tram stop within the spectacular Netkous, getting from it to any place in the city should not be a problem. It is one of the few hotels in the city located in a tall tower, so you can choose a room on one of the upper floors and enjoy sweeping vistas. From €89.
• Novotel Den Haag Centrum, Hofweg 5-7. Located in the Passage shopping centre and right across the street from the Binnenhof.
• Novotel Suites Den Haag City Centre, Grote Marktstraat 46, ☎ +31 70 8505180, e-mail: [email protected]. Located in a funky-looking new shopping passage between the Spui and the Grote Markt, this Novotel is composed of single-room "suites" offering facilities for long-term stays, such as in-room kitchenettes and an extra "daytime" area in the room. There is a fitness room and a cosy lounge overlooking De Bijenkorf.
• Novotel The Hague World Forum. The other Novotel in The Hague is within the World Forum Convention Centre, away from the main centre but close to the cluster of museums around the Gementemuseum. Most of its rooms have been renovated to the new Novotel standards.
• Hotel des Indes, Lange Voorhout 54-56. A former residence of a seventeenth century aristocrat, this über-luxury hotel opened its doors in 1881 and has been serving artists, musicians, and other celebrities ever since. It is located down the street from some of the major diplomatic missions such as the American and French embassies, and has also hosted heads of state such as Dwight Eisenhower and Jacques Chirac. Be sure to check out the ultra-luxurious bar and lounge.
• Hilton The Hague, Zeestraat 35, ☎ +31 70 7107000. Check-in: 02:00 pm, check-out: 12:00 pm. The Hilton’s 195 rooms are the most spacious in the city (minimal 32 m²). This Hilton is located in the historic centre, right next to the Panorama Mesdag.
• Carlton Ambassador Hotel, Sophialaan 2, ☎ +31 70 3630363, fax: +31 70 3600535, e-mail: [email protected]. Like Hilton The Hague, this hotel is located in the Willemspark, a fitting environment for this quiet, elegant boutique hotel with its tasteful interior and superb service.
• Crowne Plaza The Hague - Promenade, Van Stolkweg 1, ☎ +31 70 3525161, fax: +31 70 3541046, e-mail: [email protected]. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: noon. The Crowne Plaza is in the middle of the woodlands separating The Hague proper from Scheveningen, and thus a tram ride from either, but a short stroll from most of the international institutions located in The Hague and the Madurodam.

Learn

• The Hague University

Keep Connected

Internet

Internet cafés are not as widespread as you would expect, but you can easily find one in the popular cities. Most hostels, hotels and camp sites have several computers, so you can keep connected with folk at home. Here is a list of internet cafés that could come in handy for travellers. Otherwise, most libraries have lots of computers and prices are around the €2-3 per hour range, although sometimes it can be even more expensive.

Wireless internet access using wifi is becoming more popular and is usually available at most hotels and increasingly at train stations. Also in trains (at least in most first class wagons, but also more and more in second class) and some buses you can use wifi. Finally, places like McDonald's and Starbucks have free wifi, and smaller individual business like cafés and restaurants are on the rise too offering these services. More often than not, these service tend to be free of charge, though there might be a limited time you can use the internet.

Phone

See also: International Telephone Calls

The country code for the Netherlands is 31. The outbound international prefix is 00. The general emergency number is 112, like many other countries.
0800 numbers are toll-free and for 09xx numbers are charged at premium rates. Mobile phones have numbers in the 06 range, and calls to cell phones are also priced at higher rates.

From internet cafés, it is also usually possible to make long distance international calls. Like in other countries, telephone booths have almost disappeared, though some are still found around public transport stations, where you can use a few coins to make calls. It is only recommended for local calls.

The cellular phone network in the Netherlands is GSM 900/1800. The main providers of cell phone networks are KPN (Dutch only), T-mobile and Vodafone, who cover the whole country. Other operators, like Hollandsnieuwe, Simyo or Tele2, use one of these 3 networks basically.

It is best to buy a SIM card when in the Netherlands for use in your cellphone, as this usually works out cheaper than using the one from home. If you are planning to study or work in the country and stay for several months, buying a cellphone is the best option. A simple one, sometimes with €10 worth on it, can be bought from around €25. The simplest smartphones are around €75.

Post

The rate for sending a postcard or letter up to 20 grams within the Netherlands is €0.64 (2014). Since 2010 there are stamps available for domestic post which no longer include the value in €. Instead, there are stamps available with either a '1' or a '2' as a substitute for value. The '1' can be used for letters and postcards up to 20 grams, while 20-50 grams require you to use the '2'-valued stamps (or two '1'-valued stamps of course).

Sending items to other EU countries and the rest of the world (there is one price since 2014) will cost €1.05. Stamps are sold at post offices, supermarkets and smaller shops/kiosks; often the place where you buy your postcards can also supply you with stamps.

Sending parcels abroad is more costly. A standard-sized parcel between up to 2 kilograms will cost you €9 for destinations within the EU and €18 (both without Track & Trace) to the rest of the world. Prices with Track & Trace start at €13 and €24.30 respectively. Parcel service is available from major post offices only; standard-size boxes are on sale there as well. For sending parcels, it might be just as competitive and fast to use a company like TNT, UPS or DHL.

If you need to receive mail while moving around, you can have it sent poste restante (to be called for) to a post office of your choice, where it will be kept for a month. If you come to claim it, bring a valid ID, and make sure to have told the sender that the name on the envelope must be an exact match with that in your passport. For addresses of post offices, as well as more information, consult the TNT website.

External Links

• Official Governmental Website
• Official Tourism Website