Leeuwarden

Understand

Leeuwarden was a "European Capital of Culture" for 2018, an honour it shared with Valletta.

Get around

As is the case with all old city centres in The Netherlands, the old centre of Leeuwarden is compact and can easily be explored on foot. The tourist information centre (VVV) has a number of walking and biking routes, if you want to make sure to catch all major sights. * is at the train station and rents out bikes for around €7.50 per day. Cycling is an excellent way to discover the city as well as the surrounding natural areas.

All city bus lines depart from the bus station, which is next to the train station. The bus station is divided in a (covered) part for local city lines, and one for regional lines. The city lines are operated by Connexxion but for some lines smaller buses under the name "Maxx" are used. Regional lines, which operate routes to and from villages and cities in the area, are also operated by Qbuzz.

See

thumb|The Fries Museum re-opened in 2013, after moving to an excellent new building on the Wilhelminaplein. thumb|The city centre with the late 19th century Bonifatius Church in the background. Just north of the railway station lies Leeuwarden's compact medieval centre, surrounded by defensive canals. With 617 buildings listed as national monuments, the city has no lack of heritage to see. The old town is small enough to easily explore on foot, with plenty of time to take in the many historic buildings. Among the most notable ones are: Other attractions include:

Do

Football: SC Cambuur were promoted in 2026 and now play soccer in Eredivisie, the top tier. Since 2024 their home ground has been Kooi Stadion (capacity 15,000) 1 km east of city centre; their old Cambuur Stadion has been demolished.

Buy

As it is the province capital, Leeuwarden is a regional centre for shopping and services. You'll find the range of shops and large chain stores you'd expect from any city its size but also a couple of cosy shopping streets and fun boutiques. The Kleine Kerkstraat is considered one of the most charming shopping streets in the country, with about 30 speciality shops. Good places in the Kleine Kerkstraat include Italian delicacy store Bellini or the Zuivelhoeve, with an excellent collection of Dutch cheeses and other dairy products, including many local goods. It also houses a design store and a couple of clothing boutiques. The Sint Jacobsstraat is another fun shopping street, with, among others, one of the best model cars and trains stores in the Netherlands, called De Treinenpassage. Both streets end in the Nieuwestad. which is pretty much the heart of the city's shopping area.

Thursday evening is so-called "koop-avond" or shopping night for Leeuwarden, with most stores closing at 21:00 instead of the usual 18:00.

Drink

A good beerenburg is produced by local brewery Boomsma, it is available in almost every liquor store.

Cafés are common enough and in summer, outdoor terraces pop up all around. Many double as restaurants, serving small menus. Some popular places are:

Connect

As of July 2022, Leeuwarden has 5G from all Dutch carriers.

Go next

There are plenty of good destinations in Friesland and in the rest of the Northern Netherlands. Just west of Leeuwarden lie Dronrijp and Franeker, both interesting and picturesque towns. Only slightly further are the harbour town of Harlingen and the water sports destination Sneek. Go sailing on the Frisian Lakes or hop on a train to bustling student city Groningen, to see its Martini-tower, the 15th-century inspiration for Leeuwarden's failed Oldenhove.