Veluwe Forest Loop

The Veluwe is the Netherlands' best-kept secret from international travellers, who tend to associate the country exclusively with flat, watery landscapes. This inland region of Gelderland, covering nearly 1,000 square kilometres, is the largest contiguous nature area in the Netherlands: an ancient glacially deposited landscape of forest, heathland, and shifting sand dunes that feels nothing at all like the polders and tulip fields of the west coast. The Hoge Veluwe National Park at its heart was a private hunting estate purchased by collector Helene Kröller-Müller and her industrialist husband Anton in the early twentieth century. Their gift to the nation included not just the land, but one of the world's finest collections of Van Gogh paintings.

The Kröller-Müller Museum, located within the national park with no visible urban surroundings, houses 278 Van Gogh works — the second-largest collection in the world after the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, but arguably displayed in a more contemplative and beautiful setting. The surrounding sculpture garden, with works by Barbara Hepworth, Jean Dubuffet, and Marta Pan, is exceptional. Entry to the park and museum requires a ticket, and the park loans free white bicycles to visitors — an unusual and charming system that encourages car-free exploration of the interior.

For classic and low-power campervans, the Veluwe route offers the mildest terrain challenge of any 'hilly' drive in the Netherlands. The gently rolling slopes — formed by ice age moraines — are modest by any European standard, but they add texture and drama to a country often characterised as uniformly flat. Radio Kootwijk, a bizarre Art Deco transmitter building rising from the middle of a sandy heath, is one of the strangest and most beautiful industrial monuments in the country. Paleis Het Loo in Apeldoorn, the former royal palace surrounded by formal Baroque gardens, is worth a half-day visit.

The heathlands are at their most spectacular in August and early September, when the heather blooms purple across vast open stretches of the park. The forest is beautiful in all seasons — the beeches turn gold in October, the pines hold their colour through winter, and the sand dunes are most dramatic in winter light. The park has excellent designated van and camper van areas, and the roads within are peaceful enough for slow travel at any time of year.

Park entry and museum tickets are separate from overnight stays — you cannot camp inside Hoge Veluwe. Otterlo and Hoenderloo campsites suit classic campervans; Arnhem and Apeldoorn have larger motorhome facilities. On heather weekends, arrive at opening time. The free white bikes make leaving the van at the gate the smartest move.

Otterlo is the usual park gateway; Hoenderloo and Apeldoorn bookend palace and heath. Radio Kootwijk's Art Deco transmitter rising from sand is worth the short detour even if the museum is closed. August heather draws crowds — weekday mornings keep the forest roads calm for a slow classic camper.

SlowRoads tip: buy park tickets online when possible, leave the van at the gate, and give the sculpture garden a full hour before the Van Gogh rooms.