Assen: museums, stories & tips for your day

The story of Assen

Assen is the capital of Drenthe, a province full of dolmens, heathland and old villages. The Drents Museum holds the Pesse canoe, the oldest boat in the world, and the Yde Girl, who lay in the bog for more than two thousand years.

Assen is approx. 20 minutes by train from Groningen and approx. 40 minutes from Zwolle. From the station it is a ten-minute walk to the centre. The Drents Museum is the heart of the town: archaeology, art around 1900 and major international exhibitions, in old buildings around a courtyard and a modern underground wing. The Drents Archief keeps the province's history and holds exhibitions. Motorbike fans know Assen for the TT, on the circuit just outside town. Rent a bike for the dolmens: they are not far away.

Approx. 10,000years old: the Pesse canoe
1809Assen receives town rights
54dolmens in the Netherlands, almost all in Drenthe

Your museum day in Assen

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

10:00MUSEUM
Drents Museum The Pesse canoe, the Yde Girl and the current exhibition.
13:00EAT
Lunch on the Brink Terraces under the trees, next to the museum.
14:30SHOP
Town centre Shops around the Koopmansplein.
19:00SLEEP
Hotel in Drenthe Stay in town or in a village among the fields.

Assen in six moments

Approx. 3400 BCFarmers build the dolmens of Drenthe.
13th centuryThe Maria in Campis convent is founded; Assen grows around it.
1809Assen receives town rights.
1925The first TT is raced in Drenthe.
1955The world's oldest boat is found near Pesse.

What to do in Assen

Six places to complete your museum day.

01
Drents Museum →

Archaeology with the Pesse canoe and the Yde Girl, art around 1900 and major international exhibitions.

Brink2 to 3 hours
02
Drents Archief

The memory of Drenthe, with exhibitions on the province's history.

Assen1 hour
03
TT Circuit Assen

The famous circuit of the TT motorcycle race, with a visitor centre.

De Haar1 hour
04
Asserbos

An old forest on the edge of town, ideal for a walk.

Assen-Zuid1 hour
05
Hunebedcentrum Borger

At the largest dolmen in the Netherlands, learn who built these tombs.

BorgerHalf a day

Museums in Assen

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

All museums in Assen (2)

Drenthe Archive

View Tickets & website ↗

Drents Museum

View Tickets

On the map

Plan your trip to Assen ↗

Hidden story

The oldest boat in the world

During the building of a motorway, a hollowed-out tree trunk turned up. It was about ten thousand years old.

Read the storyHide the story

In 1955 the A28 motorway was being built near Pesse, in the south of Drenthe. In the peat a hollowed-out Scots pine trunk appeared, about three metres long. Research showed that it dates from the Mesolithic, some ten thousand years ago. It is the oldest known boat in the world. Nobody knows exactly how it was used: for fishing, for hunting in the marshes, or for carrying goods. The canoe is now in the Drents Museum, in its own display case.

Where: Drents Museum, Assen

Beyond the city

Assen lies in the middle of Drenthe, among heath, peat and dolmens.

Train, approx. 20 min

Groningen

Student city with the Groninger Museum and the Martini Tower.

Route by public transport ↗

Bus, approx. 45 min

Hunebedcentrum Borger

The largest dolmen in the Netherlands and a museum about its builders.

Route by public transport ↗

Bus via Westerbork

Orvelte

A museum village with farms, crafts and a village green.

Route by public transport ↗

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

SLEEP

Stay in Assen, explore Drenthe

Assen has hotels in the centre and on the edge of the woods. Drenthe is cycling country: flat, quiet and full of dolmens, village greens and heath. Groningen is twenty minutes away by train.

Find your hotel →