Kinderdijk Holland: A Day at the Windmills

Kinderdijk, pronounced Kinder (like the candy bar) dike (not dijek, like I was saying it), is a small village about 18 miles outside of Rotterdam in South Holland. Kinderdijk is unique in that it has 19 windmills concentrated in a very small area. Some of the windmills at Kinderdijk date back to as early as the sixteenth century.

Fun fact – the village gets it’s name from the “Cat and Cradle” riddle, that’s apparently popular worldwide, not just in America. Legend has it, that one night when the area flooded, a cat was seen hanging on to a cradle for dear life. The next morning when the land was dry, instead of a cat, a baby was found inside the cradle. The Dutch named the area Kinderdijk: Kinder means children, and djik means dike.

Why are there so many windmills in the Netherlands?

I am no windmill expert, but this is what I gathered from my visit to Kinderdijk and my time in South Holland.

The windmills were designed as draining stations in order to keep the land dry. They were built on large pieces of land surrounded by a dike. The land left is commonly called a polder. The polders were then used for farming or as industrial areas. The windmills would pump the excess water out of the area into a nearby reservoir. From the reservoir the water would drain into larger bodies of water, such as the Nord river.

At one time, Holland was cluttered with windmills. It is estimated that there were nearly 10,000 windmills on Holland soil. Unfortunately, for those of us who love to awe over them, as years passed and technology improved and the windmills were replaced with mechanical pumps that operated more efficiently. Now only about 1,000 windmills remain in the country. The mechanical pumps are still used today and utilize fuel and electricity instead of wind energy.

Should you visit Kinderdijk?

My visit to Kinderdijk was better than I expected. I assumed Kinderdijk would be like the majority of other tourist attractions I had visited in the weeks prior – overcrowded, overpriced, and unfortunately, underwhelming. I’m happy to say, this was not the case. Kinderdijk was not overcrowded, it wasn’t even busy.

The ancient machines and landscape were captivating. Locals biked through the area on their way to and from work, children were playing in the nearby fields, a Dutch family was dining outside of their windmill home and a young girl practiced horse back riding.

Although Kinderdijk is a UNESCO site and a popular tourist attraction, it is truly an authentic Dutch experience.

Don’t be fooled by the ticket booth. Only stop here if you’re interested in going inside a fully functional windmill. You get to see the machinery and learn more about the day-to-day life of the millers. The admission price is very reasonable and definitely recommended, but if you want to spend nothing, you can do that too.

How to get there

You can get to the windmills by bus, car or boat. The Waterbus #20 leaves from Rotterdam Erasmus Bridge every half hour Monday through Friday and operates on a slightly different schedule on the weekends. You get off the #20 Waterbus and transfer to another ferry at Ridderkerk De Schans. This ferry takes you five minutes across the water to Kinderdijk. The round trip cost of the journey is about 14 euro and comes with discounted entrance to the Museum Windmill and Pumping Station. From the ferry dock to the mills is about a 15 minute walk.

Warning: Don’t make my silly mistake on the way back! I took the wrong ferry and ended up having to pay an extra euro to go back and forth. A lady was nice enough to point me in the correct direction once I was on the other side. When in doubt, ask. Everyone speaks English in Holland.

Keep in mind. There are two bike rental shops in Kinderdijk that rent by the hour. I would recommend renting your bike in Rotterdam though. Generally, renting a bike for the day is a lot cheaper. This way you can also enjoy biking through Rotterdam once you get back. Ps, make sure you see the amazing markethal! Also important, bikes travel for free on the Waterbus.