EuroParcs De Woudhoeve

Every season has its charm at EuroParcs De Woudhoeve: enjoy bracing beach walks in winter, art markets and fun fairs in the summer months. And if you visit in spring, you can take guided tours of colourful bulb fields. And whenever you come to Egmond, the fabulous art museums, shops and restaurants of Amsterdam (45 minutes’ drive) make a great day out. If you’d rather stay closer to home base, hire bikes from the park and head to Egmond aan Zee (15 minutes’ cycle) to visit Abbey Egmond, the oldest monastery in The Netherlands, with candles and foods made by the monks for sale in the shop, or climb to the top of the 19th-century J C J van Speijk Lighthouse for views over the North Sea. Fans of World War II history can also visit a small underground museum at Bunkermuseum Jansje Schong to see military uniforms and weapons. It’s 25 minutes’ cycling to Alkmaar and its famous cheese market (open April to September on Friday morning), still run as it was when it opened in 1365. There’s masses more to do in this pretty town though, from taking a walking tour of the canals to seeing the stained-glass windows in the stately Grote Kerk, and visiting museums featuring cheese, beer and (rather oddly) The Beatles.