Parc Bûten

Walking is a favourite pastime in these parts, and there are plenty of lovely trails around, from long hikes to shorter routes where kids can keep their eyes peeled for gnomes living in the woods. You’ll also have a choice of national parks for more outings: De Alde Feanen, Drents-Friese Wold and Dwingelderveld are all about half an hour’s drive away. If museum time is a little more your thing, pay a visit to the National Prison Museum (25 minutes’ drive) for a look behind the bars or to Villa Rams Woerthe (half an hour), a stately home where you’re encouraged to feel the curtains and sit on the sofas. The art-filled walls of Museum Valse Kunst in Vledder (25 minutes) are also worth a look. Stepping away from the rural air, you may like to take a day out in Groningen (45 minutes), for a canal boat trip, visits to Groninger Museum, Northern Shipping Museum and the huge Martinitoren tower, and a sip of the local beer at the Martinus brewery.