Castles & Moats

In earlier times, the territory southeast of Amsterdam was a place of strategic importance, as evidenced by the grand constructions still standing today, such as the 13th-century Muiderslot moated castle in Muiden -- itself a handsome village of gabled houses along the waterfront at the mouth of the Vecht river -- and the star-shaped fortifications of Naarden.

Muiden

13km (8 miles) SE of Amsterdam

A 14th-century, fairy-tale-princess castle, with a moat, turrets, and stout walls with crenellations, Muiderslot, Herengracht 1 (tel. 0294/261-325; www.muiderslot.nl) perches on the bank of the Vecht River just outside the small IJsselmeer harbor town of Muiden. Count Floris V of Holland, who in 1275 granted toll privileges to the vibrant new settlement of Aemstelledamme (Amsterdam), built the castle around 1280, and was murdered here by rival nobles in 1296.

Muiderslot is where poet P. C. Hooft found both a home and employment when he served as castle steward and local bailiff for 40 years in the early 17th century. The castle is furnished essentially as Hooft and his artistic circle of friends -- known in Dutch literary history as the Muiderkring (Muiden Circle) -- knew it. You'll find distinctly Dutch carved cupboard beds, heavy chests, fireside benches, and mantelpieces. The castle is open April to October, Monday to Friday from 10am to 5pm, Saturday, Sunday, and holidays from 1 to 5pm (last tour 4pm); November to March, Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 4pm (last tour 3pm). Admission is 7€ ($8.75) for adults, 5€ ($6.25) for children ages 4 to 12, and free for children under 4. By car from Amsterdam, take A1/E231 east.

Naarden

19km (12 miles) E of Amsterdam

This small town doesn't have too much to recommend it, other than one of Holland's best-preserved rings of old military fortifications.

Getting There--Trains depart every hour or so from Amsterdam Centraal Station for Naarden. By car from Amsterdam, take A1/E231 east.

Visitor Information--VVV Naarden, Adriaan Dortsmanplein 1B, 1411 RC Naarden (tel. 035/694-2836; fax 035/694-3424; www.vvvhollandsmidden.nl), inside the walls of the old town. The office is open May to October, Monday to Saturday from 10am to 5pm, Saturday from 10am to 3pm, and Sunday from noon to 3pm; November to April, Monday to Saturday from 10am to 2pm.

What to See and Do--Much in the spirit of locking the barn door after the horse was gone, the surviving inhabitants of Naarden erected their beautiful star-shaped double fortifications after the town was brutally sacked by Don Frederick of Toledo and his Spanish troops in 1572. They might have spared themselves the trouble, since the French were able to storm the works in 1673.

Beneath the Turfpoort, one of six bastions, you can visit the casemates (artillery vaults) which house the Nederlands Vestingmuseum (Dutch Fortification Museum), Westwalstraat 6 (tel. 035/694-5459; www.vestingmuseum.nl), filled with cannon, muskets and accouterments, and documentation. The museum is open March to November, Tuesday to Friday from 10:30am to 5pm, and Saturday, Sunday, and holidays from noon to 5pm; November to March, Sunday, and Saturday before Christmas to Sunday after New Year, from noon to 5pm, and from; closed January 1, December 25 and 31. Admission is 5€ ($6.25) for adults, and 3€ ($3.75) for children 5 to 16, and free for children under 5.

Also take in the town's 15th-century late-Gothic Grote Kerk (Great Church), Marktstraat (tel. 035/694-9873), noted for its 45m-high (148-feet) tower, fine acoustics, and annual performances of Bach's St. Matthew Passion. The church is open June to September daily from 1 to 4pm. Admission is free.