Noordwijk: village guide with museums & tips

The story of Noordwijk

Noordwijk is a seaside resort with a secret: behind the dunes lies ESTEC, the largest technical centre of the European Space Agency (ESA). At Space Expo you can see what happens there. And in spring the bulb fields colour the land behind the village.

From Leiden Centraal the bus takes approx. 20 to 30 minutes to Noordwijk. Start at Space Expo, ESA's visitor centre, with real spacecraft, satellites and the stories of Dutch astronauts. Then head to old Noordwijk Binnen, with the Jeroenskerk and Museum Noordwijk about the village, fishing and bulbs. End by the sea at Noordwijk aan Zee, with the promenade and the wide beach. In April and May a bike ride through the bulb fields is a must, with the Keukenhof around the corner.

1965ESTEC, the technical heart of European spaceflight, settles in Noordwijk
Aprilthe bulb fields are in bloom
2villages in one: Noordwijk Binnen and Noordwijk aan Zee

Your museum day in Noordwijk

One day, four moments. How to get the most out of your visit.

10:00MUSEUM
Space Expo Rockets, satellites and the work of ESA.
12:30EAT
Lunch by the sea A beach pavilion or the promenade.
14:30SHOP
Hoofdstraat Shops and cafés in Noordwijk aan Zee.
19:00SLEEP
Hotel on the promenade Stay with a sea view and watch the sun sink into the sea.

Noordwijk in six moments

Middle AgesAccording to tradition the priest Jeroen (Jerome) was killed here; the Jeroenskerk is named after him.
19th centuryThe fishing village by the sea grows into a seaside resort.
1965ESTEC, the technical centre of European spaceflight, opens in Noordwijk.
TodayNoordwijk is a seaside resort, a bulb village and a space centre all at once.

What to do in Noordwijk

Six places to complete your museum day.

01
Space Expo →

ESA's visitor centre, with real space hardware, satellites and the stories of European and Dutch astronauts.

Keplerlaan1 to 2 hours
02
Museum Noordwijk →

The story of the village: fishermen, bathers and bulb growers, in a historic building in Noordwijk Binnen.

Noordwijk Binnen1 hour
03
Museum of Comic Art →

Comics and drawing, with original artwork and changing exhibitions.

Noordwijk1 hour
04
Promenade and beach

A wide promenade with sea views, and a long beach with dunes behind it.

Noordwijk aan Zee1 to 2 hours
05
Bulb fields

In spring, cycle between fields full of tulips, daffodils and hyacinths.

Noordwijkerhout and aroundHalf a day

Museums in Noordwijk

Buy your tickets online and plan the rest of your day around them.

All museums in Noordwijk (3)

Museum Noordwijk

View Tickets & website ↗

Museum Of Comic Art

View Tickets & website ↗

Space Expo

View Tickets & website ↗

On the map

All museums in Noordwijk. Click a museum for the route.

Plan your trip to Noordwijk ↗

Hidden story

A piece of space behind the dunes

Satellites heading for Mars and Jupiter are tested in Noordwijk first.

Read the storyHide the story

Behind the dunes of Noordwijk lies ESTEC, ESA's largest site. Engineers from all over Europe design and test satellites and space probes here. Before a satellite goes into space, it has to prove that it can survive the launch and space itself. For that, Noordwijk has shaker tables, acoustic chambers and a huge vacuum chamber, the Large Space Simulator, which recreates the cold, vacuum and sunlight of space. Many well-known European missions were tested here. ESTEC itself is not open to the public, but Space Expo tells the story.

Where: Space Expo, Noordwijk

Beyond the city

Noordwijk sits between the North Sea and the bulb region, close to Leiden.

Bus to Leiden Centraal, approx. 20 to 30 min

Leiden

National Museum of Antiquities, Naturalis and the country's oldest university.

Route by public transport ↗

Bus via Lisse (in season)

Keukenhof

The famous bulb park, open only in spring.

Route by public transport ↗

Bus or bike along the coast, approx. 15 min

Katwijk

The neighbouring seaside village, with a white church on the beach and its own museum.

Route by public transport ↗

Travel times are indicative. Live times on 9292.nl ↗.

SLEEP

Stay in Noordwijk, between sea and bulbs

Noordwijk has many hotels on the promenade and in the dunes. Leiden is half an hour away by bus, and the Keukenhof and Haarlem are close too. In summer the terraces stay open late.

Find your hotel →