The second Saturday of May in Holland is always National Mills Day. This event is also linked with National Cycling Day; the two are combined like some Dutch conspiracy to make you enjoy the Netherlands in the best way possible way.

Around 600 windmills and watermills will be open to the public for tours and a chance to look around areas not normally open to the casual passerby. The mills are all decorated with the flag of Holland and activities are organised to honour the heritage of Holland.

Mid May is a great time of the year to do a tour of the Dutch landscape; although we don’t advise you try and cycle to all of the mills in Holland, you will certainly get some wonderfully scenic views of Dutch country. A family bike ride on what will hopefully be a beautiful day with some light education on the history of mills in Holland will, we think, make for an absolutely great trip.

The mills are free to enter, though a donation is always appreciated, and with P&Os Hull to Rotterdam ferry you are just a short drive away from the scenic splendour of the Netherlands. There are hundreds of cycling tours of Holland, so have no fear about not being able to find a bike.

You can get the Hull to Rotterdam overnight ferry service starting from £149 each way and from here it is just a short train or car ride to Breda.

Image credit: sydandsaskia

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