INDEX travel
I wobble in convoy through the city, like a drunken caterpillar, stopping at strategically selected locations to collect local delicacies.
I discover that The Hague is a completely different creature from its more popular relation, Amsterdam. What it lacks in chaos and edginess, it makes up for in lush green space, 11 kilometres of coastline, and wide, sprawling streets lined with street cafés and boutiques. Instead of the 17th century renaissance architecture traditional in Holland, The Hague boasts baroque and
Fact Box
ARRIVAL: The city shares an airport with Rotterdam. The Hague’s Centraal Statione is easily reached from Rotterdam The Hague Airport by shuttle bus to Meijersplein Station, then RandstadRail (light rail) line E to Centraal Station. Several direct trains run every hour, connecting the city centre’s Hollands Spoor and Centraal stations with Amsterdam Schipol Airport. BA flies to Schipol from £49 one-way from London airports (
www.ba.com).
TRAVEL:
By public transport: There are efficient city-wide RandstadRail, tram and bus services. Tickets can be bought at machines or kiosks in train stations, and must be swiped in when boarding. By foot:
The Hague is a relatively compact city, so is easy to navigate by foot. It is a ten minute walk to the centre from Centraal Station.
WHERE TO STAY Stayokay den Haag, Scheepmakeisstraat 27, is
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classicist buildings, with huge, sheet-glass windows, allowing residents to survey the streets. At a tiny bakery we savour the softest, moistest brownies I have ever tasted. Rene describes them as “something for the ladies,” but I cannot imagine anyone failing to be seduced by their dark indulgence. We pause at a stall bearing
the words Hollandse Nieuwe Haring and enjoy a true delicacy – a cone of fresh, raw herring. To the vendors’ cries, I tip my head back and drop the tiny fish into my mouth whole. It feels bizarrely cold, but the strong,
a back-packing hostel with double rooms with individual toilet and shower facilities, as well as eight-bed dormitories. It is a five-minute walk from Hollands Spoor train station. ((00) 3170 3157888,
denhaag@stayok.com)
Mid-range:
Ibis Den Haag Centre, Jan Hendrikstraat 10, has rooms from £99 per night. ((00)3170/3184318,
www.ibishotel.com) Novotel Den Haag, Hofweg 5-7, is across the street from the Binnenhof and has rooms from E44 per night. ((00)3170 3648846,
www.accorhotel. com)
Splurge:
The Paleis Hotel, Molenstraat 26, where I stayed, is a luxury boutique 4* hotel next to the Palais Noordeinde in the heart of the Hofkwartier, or historic quarter. It has 20 rooms, featuring fabrics designed by the French designer Pierre Fey. It has featured in articles in Elle Decoration and Stylish Hotels and B&Bs. Rooms are available from E115 per night. ((00)3170 3624621,
www.paleishotel.nl)
www.indexmagazine.co.uk
oily taste is amazing. I swear I can feel instant health benefits as the fishy liquid runs down the cone and over my knuckles. Finally, in the royal gardens we unwrap our feast’s finalé. My stomach cries out in protest at yet more food, but the smell of still-warm bread layered with the nut king’s thick, salty peanut butter soon silences it. We sit on the grass, listening to a guitarist strumming, while Rene waves greetings to local residents, including a small, plump, silver-haired man, and his perfectly groomed horse on a leash, prancing together amidst the shrubbery. I laugh; it’s a sight you could only imagine seeing in The Hague. Sliding onto my back as the sun slips below the trees, I remember Elizabeth’s claim that, “even if you plant a tulip bulb upside down, it will find the light.” It strikes me that The Hague is not
unlike its famous export; despite competition from bigger, brasher destinations, it not only thrives, but blooms, beautifully.
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