After much mulling, DH and I have decided to spend our three nights in between Amsterdam and Paris exploring some of the central/southern parts of the Netherlands -- Brugge will have to wait for another time, I suppose. This is in September.

My questions are:

1) Is Utrecht a good base to explore this area? We know we want to go to the Kroller Moller museum (and maybe Het Loo Palace?). I would also like to be able to get to Biesbosch National Park above Breda -- it looks lovely and kayaking along the waterways seems like it would be fun. We really want this portion of our trip to be about unwinding in nature and perhaps visiting some small picturesque villages or castles, and less focus on cities/shopping/restaurants. Utrecht looks appealing as a base because I hear it is a laid-back college town and lots of trains come through their station.

2) If we decide to go with Utrecht, would getting to some of these outlying destinations be relatively painless by public transport or are we better off renting a car? It seems like the train would be the way to go, but I am worried about being able to combine different destinations in a day and still get back into Utrecht late at night. For example, if we want to do Biesbosch and then Breda in one day, will we lose a lot time figuring out the right train, transferring to the right bus, waiting around for various connections, etc? If we rent a car, will parking or driving be an issue?

3) Any thoughts on the Hotel Mitland in Utrecht? It seems quiet and green and I like the idea of a heated pool and bowling alley. The downside is that it seems like a sterile place geared towards business conferences and that it might be a hassle to and from the train station.

Thank you everyone! The advice on these boards have been invaluable -- I look forward to your thoughts.

Getting to Kroller Muller is easy by train - take the train to Arnhem or Ede-weningen (sp?) from where buses go regulary to the Van Gogh museum and outdoor statue park - i took train to Ede-W and bus was just outside station. From Arnhem i think you may have to change once.

I'm very familiar with Breda area, having led bike trips thru there for 10 years and i don't think you can reach that park by train - buses go everywhere however it seems from train stations.

Utrecht is a fairly large town - i would not call it laidback at all but a vibrant commercial town and a lovely one. Yes the epicenter of the Dutch Railways - crossroads to anywhere.

I'd look at a car for Breda park type places. Breda itself is a typical nice regional town but with a paucity of sites to sightsee.

For water sports you may also investigate the area just to the east of Gouda - many waterways, nature preserves, swamps, etc. kayyaking, etc.

Perhaps it's called the Wadden - but it's very famous in Holland and close to Utretch - Gouda but a few minutes away.

Utrecht is ideal for exploring both Hoge Veluwe ( Kroller Muller museum etc) and Apeldoorn (het Loo) and the Biescbosch. Get the train to Ede Wageningen and then the bus for Kroller Muller,
a train goes to Apeldoorn, again you will need to get a bus to het Loo, I shall have to look into thte BiesBosch by public transport for you. The best place to start canoeing is in Dordrecht, which is easy agin by train.
Utrecht is the centre of the train network for the Netherlands. I'll look into it for you.

PalenQ the Wadden is the shallow sea between the mainland and the Frisian Islands and stretches all the way to Denmark. De Biesbosch is what you are thinking of - it stretches from Breda to Gouda sort of.

Ok the Biesbosch. Not so easy by public transport. If you hire a canoe at the visitors centre by Dordrecht then you get a train to Rotterdam then one to Dordrecht then a bus (which only runs until 7 september to the visitors centre. Later than that you need to phone 0900-1961 for a "beltaxi" at least an hour before you arrive.
The other visitors centre at Drimmelen doesn't hire canoes but offers advice on hire companies. You get there either by train and bus or by bus and bus.
If you find a company near there you want to use for the canoe hire I can help with directions to it.

If you want to explore more than renting a car would be an easier option - it would enable you for instance to get from Otterloo to Apeldoorn in one day if you want to, and mean you can explore the countryside more. You will need to check if the hotel you decide on has parking, but otherwise parking and driving shouldn't be too bad, just avoid the rush hour if you can.
I can't comment on the hotel, living only 20 minutes from Utrecht I have never stayed there! Let me know if I can help any moe.

Thanks so much for the info. It sounds like taking the train to Kroller will be pretty easy.

As for Biesboch, maybe we should just rent a car for that day? Their website only offers one publication in English and it doesn't give any info about where to park, what entrances to use, where to rent kayaks, etc.

If Beisbosch doesn't work out, can you recommend another nearby nature area that offers kayak/canoe that can be easily reached by train?

Most of the suitable areas are hard to get to by public transport. I have looked into it a bit more and for experienced kayakers the Drimmelen area is better. You could try e-mailing them
[email protected]. Other areas to look at are the Weerribben in Overijssel, but you will need a car to get there, and Waterland above Amsterdam. You can hire canoes in Oostzaan for a trip, but it doesn't look at good as the biesbosch or Weerribben. Also have a look at http://www.kanoweekend.nl/daytripsnl.php.

Just found a couple of websites for places that hire out kayaks in Drimmelen:
http://www.drima.nl/2007/content.php

http://www.zijlmans.nl/bootverhuur.html

Both in Dutch I'm afraid but it gives you an idea of the prices.