Weekend Escape to Holland & Belgium

Just 22 nautical miles down river from the Tower Bridge in London, Tilbury is a popular turnaround port for cruises visiting Baltic and Northern European destinations.

In 1895 work began to construct a new seaport and harbour next to the tiny village of Zeebrugge, situated on the North Sea coast. Today the fast-expanding port of Zeebrugge is one of the busiest in Europe and its marina is Belgium’s most important fishing port. Many attempts were made to destroy this important port during both World Wars. Zeebrugge is ideally located for discovering the historic city of Bruges, and delightful seaside resorts with long sandy beaches can be visited by using the trams that run the whole length of the Belgian coast. Please note that no food may be taken ashore in Belgium. We shall not be offering shuttle buses to Bruges, but you may visit the city on an optional excursion: those visiting Bruges should note that there may be quite a long walk from the coach to the town centre.

North Holland’s ‘Gate to the North Sea’, IJmuiden has four harbours: the Vissershaven, Haringhaven, IJmondhaven and the Seaport Marina - the latter used by pleasure craft. It is the largest Dutch fishing port, but is a relatively young town: it grew up in the 1870s when the North Sea Canal was opened. During World War II, the German Navy demolished much of the town and built huge fortified concrete bunkers for their torpedo boats and submarines. After 1945, the town was rebuilt by the architect Willem Marinus Dudok. He designed IJmuiden’s most impressive building, the Stadhuis van Velsen, which houses local government offices. For cruise passengers IJmuiden is the gateway to Amsterdam, the Dutch capital and one of Europe’s truly great cities, where elegant canals are lined by old brick gabled houses, and superb art galleries and museums are home to some of the world’s best-known paintings. Please note that complimentary shuttle buses operate from the port to the centre of IJmuiden, not to Amsterdam.

Rotterdam is a city that's a long way removed from most people's stereotypical notion of the Netherlands. There are few, if any, canals to be found here nor are there any quaint windmills. There is, however, a thriving modern city which is one of the busiest ports in the entire world.

Just 22 nautical miles down river from the Tower Bridge in London, Tilbury is a popular turnaround port for cruises visiting Baltic and Northern European destinations.