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Day 4
Next stop: Rotterdam Previous stop: Amsterdam Return to full itinerary »

Though it has a reputation as Amsterdam's "prissy aunt," The Hague has many delights that are hardly fussy at all. From the marvelous Mauritshuis to the seaside pleasures of Scheveningen, it's a sweet spot just an hour outside of Amsterdam.

  • Art and Culture
  • Museums

Experiences

  • Vermeer's splendid Girl with a Pearl Earring is kept at the Mauritshuis, along with a collection of other famed Dutch works—14 Rembrandts and 2 additional Vermeers.
  • The Escher Museum incorporates the artist's aesthetic with an "Escher Experience" and disorienting rooms.
  • The Dutch seat of government is in the sprawling 13th-century Inner Court, restored to its former splendor in 1900.

Festivals

  • The International Sand Sculpture Competition is held in August.
  • The International Fireworks Festival also takes place in August.

Side Trips

  • The seaside town of Scheveningen, just outside the city, has been a popular Dutch resort for centuries.

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