For little explorers and big adventures
Out with kids in Drenthe
Head out together, discover new places and make lasting memories.
Children never get bored around Orvelter Hof. A short bike ride away is the low-traffic village of Orvelte, with Zoo Bizar, which calls itself the smallest zoo in the Netherlands, and an adventurous play trail through the woods. Fancy going further? In twenty minutes you're in the jungle, savannah and polar world of Wildlands, or climbing into the treetops on the Treetop Walk.
Raining? Then Plopsa Indoor in Coevorden, the Prison Museum in Veenhuizen and the indoor pools in Assen and Emmen come to the rescue. And if the kids still aren't tired in the evening, the play attic, the playground and the bouncy castle are waiting back at the house.
Zoo Bizar
Orvelte · 2 km · within cycling distance
Zoo Bizar is housed in the threshing floor of an old Saxon farmhouse in Orvelte. Small, often exotic animals live here in open enclosures, so children can see them up close. Several times a day a keeper tells you all about them in a hands-on senses presentation.
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Theodoor's Wooden Trail
Orvelte · 2 km · within cycling distance
Just outside Orvelte lies this play trail by Staatsbosbeheer, about 300 metres long. Children climb inside a hollow tree, balance between ropes, drum on posts and climb a lookout tower. Theodoor's storybook (also in English) is available at Zoo Bizar.
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Ellert en Brammert Open-Air Museum
Schoonoord · 9 km · 11 min by car
This open-air museum in Schoonoord turns the clock back a century, with 29 historic buildings: from a sod hut and a schoolhouse to a smithy and a sweet shop. In the schoolhouse you hear the legend of the giants Ellert and Brammert, after which the kids can run wild in the big playground and at the petting farm.
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Wildlands Adventure Zoo
Emmen · 20 km · 20 min by car
Over 250 animal species in three worlds: the Jungola jungle, the Serenga savannah and the Nortica polar region. Take the Rimbula River boat past the elephants, go on a safari ride past zebras and giraffes, and walk through a tropical butterfly temple with hundreds of butterflies.
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Treetop Walk (Boomkroonpad)
Drouwen · 20 km · 22 min by car
Through a tunnel among the tree roots you climb to 22.5 metres: the walk runs 125 metres through the treetops of the forest. Allow twenty minutes to half an hour. It can only be reached by stairs, so the pushchair stays below. Next to the visitor centre is the Lorken play forest.
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Hunebedcentrum
Borger · 20 km · 23 min by car
How did the builders of the dolmens live? In Borger, prehistory comes alive, inside the museum and outside in the Prehistoric Park full of glacial boulders. Next to the centre stands the largest dolmen in the Netherlands, and during school holidays children can try archery with 'prehistoric people'.
Visit website →Plopsa Indoor Coevorden
Coevorden · 22 km · 28 min by car
Kabouter Plop, Bumba, Vic the Viking, Maya the Bee and K3: here young children meet their TV heroes. The park has 8,000 m² indoors and 5,500 m² outdoors, so it works come rain or shine.
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De Drentse Koe
Ruinerwold · 43 km · 39 min by car
A bit further away, in Ruinerwold, but worth a whole day of play. Indoors there are play barns, a laser game course and a bowling alley, outdoors a zip line, trampolines and a pump track. To finish, there's ice cream, made on site since 1999 with milk from the family's own farm.
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Prison Museum Veenhuizen
Veenhuizen · 46 km · 43 min by car
Putting on handcuffs, hiding in an old cell, seeing a solitary confinement cell: at the National Prison Museum children are allowed in everywhere. There are treasure hunts by age, from 4 to 12, and a ride in a real old prison bus. In the courtyard they can climb in the 'klauterbajes'.
Visit website →Swimming pools nearby
Fancy a swim after a day outdoors? From the outdoor pool in Westerbork to the wave pool in Assen: these are the pools in the area.
- De Boskamp outdoor poolWesterbork · 7 km · 10 min by carOpen-air pool with a big slide and diving boards, open in the summer season.
- De Peppel swimming poolBeilen · 17 km · 18 min by carIndoor pool with a 46-metre tube slide, a pool with a movable floor and a toddler pool.
- AquarenaEmmen · 23 km · 25 min by carLeisure pool at 31 °C with an interactive slide, a family slide and a separate area for little ones.
- De Bonte WeverAssen · 27 km · 24 min by carIndoor swimming paradise with a wave pool, wild-water channel and slides, a toddler pool and, in summer, a heated outdoor pool.
Combine with your stay
After a day out, back home
Children who have been out all day sleep like logs at night. Read what a family weekend at Orvelter Hof looks like, or check straight away when the house is available.