About: On this DIY walking route you will go through the historic city center of Leeuwarden. You walk along the biggest sights, hidden alleys and most beautiful street art. Almost every sight has a sign with information in Dutch and English. The walking route is about 6 km long. In addition, you can take a number of trips along the route if you want to see even more.
Available: This map is for sale at Hotel Post-Plaza, Van der Valk Hotel, Oranje Hotel, WTC Hotel, Hotel Stadhouderlijk Hof (and when open again Visitor Center Leeuwarden, Ut Streekie and Grand Café Friesche Club) . The card costs only 1.5 euros.
Get yourself something to eat or drink along the way. Drink a cup of coffee at Barrevoets. Or a get a Vietnamese sandwich with a bubble fruit tea at Bahns & Coffee (Mon-Sat). At Post Plaza you can go every day for drinks to-go with something delicious. Or get a fresh waffle with Choco dip at Brasserie de Spiegelaar. You can of course also go to the Bajes Beach in the Blokhuispoort. That is not only very tasty, you also support the local catering industry!
– The municipality of Leeuwarden has placed signs at most of the sights with information in Dutch and English. In addition, we have placed a number of videos below with stories from our guides with additional information. The video’s are in Dutch, but will try to add English Subtitles to all of them. Click on the titles below to watch the videos
Watch the video below with our guide Henk to hear the story behind this mural. Turn on the subtitles!
The masterpiece of sculptor Pier Pander (1864-1919) is located in this temple. In the summer months you can visit it via the Pier Pander museum. If you can’t get in, you can watch the Cosmic U music video below. They recorded a live session in the temple.
On the window of Bij de Put 9 you can read a poem (in Dutch) by Judith Nieken about the former Jewish quarter.
Watch the video below with our guide Henk to hear the story behind this mural. Turn on the subtitles!
Watch the video below with our guide Zenon to hear the story behind this mural by Roy Schreuder. He also tells you where to spot another hidden mural that is not listed on the map. And he tells you about his favourite place to get lunch in Leeuwarden.
Watch the video below with our guide Henk to hear the spectacular story about the former postoffice of Leeuwarden, nowaday the Hotel Post-Plaza.
Watch the video below with our guide Christina. She will take you through the Blokhuispoort and tells you what not to miss.
This statue was placed 100 years after the birth of Mata Hari. She was born in 1876 at the Kelders 33 (the house with the mustard yellow window frames). Continue your walk through Cyprianusstreeg one of the most beautiful alleys in the city.
At number 50 there was also a mural by Mata Hari. Unfortunately, it was removed in 2020 by the owner of the property. In the video, our guide Henk shows what that looked like and also tells you what you can still see.
In the Bollemanssteeg, many residents have pasted a poem by their neighbor Judith Nieken on the door. That’s why they put up a new street name sign at the end of the street: Poeziesteeg! (Poetryalley) They are currently renovating the corner building and the sign is hanging behind a cloth…
Watch the video with our guide Henk. He tells you another nice story about Maria Louise.
For anyone who is curious and wants to know more!
Join one of our walking tours with one of our guides. Every Saturday at 12 pm you can join a public tour in English. But you can also book a private tour on any day of the week.
Follow A Guide to Leeuwarden on instagram and watch some of our diy tours in the stories and highlights.
Check out the other Do-it-Yourself routes? Click here to see which other routes are available