Texel
Discover Texel
Texel is an island in the West Frisian Islands region of the Netherlands. Tourists and birds are abundant. The tourists visit mostly in the summer. Texel is an island with four types of landscape: dunes and beaches in the west, flatland and polders in the east and hilly in the center of the island (the remains of the ice age). Inland you find the fourth landscape - wetlands - with beautiful walking trails in the centre west coast of the island, like The Slufter. Along the wadden-coast in the east there are comparably smaller Wetlands. In the dunes, valleys like The Muy are quite popular with tourists.
What to Experience in Texel
Taste of Texel...
Additionally, there are supermarkets on the island, there is one, albeit small, in nearly every village on Texel. As most travellers stay in De Koog, this is where the island's nightlife takes place. There are many bars and cafes, and it even feels a bit seedy at night. The island has a brewery, Texelse Bierbrouwerij, the beers of which are readily available both on and off the island. Its branding is proudly Tessels, with all beers being branded in the local dialect, and most ingredients being sourced locally. Its foremost beer is the Skuumkoppe, a dark, wheat-based beer. Another notable beverage from the island is the Juttertje spiced gin (bitter) made of fourteen spices, and with an alcohol percentage of 30%. Reflecting the traditional way in which gin was distributed, Juttertjes to this day are available in stoneware flasks. There is a post office in the centre of Den Burg, at the corner of the Burgwal and Parkstraat. During the summer a special touristic boat service to the neighboring island of Vlieland, is available. This boat leaves near De Cocksdorp. The Wadden Sea sealife is also seen on this trip. From the village of Oudeschild, which has a harbour that is mainly used for fishing, a boat called Texel 44 can take you to the island of Terschelling. You can go back to Den Helder by boat and explore the rest of the Netherlands from there.
Essential Information
Getting There
Multiple OptionsAs Texel is an island, the only realistic way to get to it is by ferry. Teso operates a 30-min ferry trip from Den Helder to Texel. Ferries depart from 06:30 until 21:30, every hour, with less departures on Sunday. In summer and on busy days, two boats are deployed. Ferries dock at 't Horntje along the southern end of the island. From there, buses bring you to the larger villages. Den Helder can be reached by train. The ride to Den Helder station takes 1 hour and 15 minutes from Amsterdam and 2 hours from Rotterdam. At the station, bus 33 takes you to the ferry pier, or you can walk the bit through town. Getting there by car is also an option. From the south (Amsterdam), take the A9 to Alkmaar. The A9 stops at the traffic lights in Alkmaar. From there, take a left at the roundabout as the road changes into the N9. Keep following the N9 till you arrive at Den Helder....
Getting Around & Staying
Getting Around
The island is best experienced by bicycle, especially in summer. There are many places to rent bikes on the island. Public transport busses run each hour to each village and connect to the hourly ferry services (but not to any additional sailings). You can buy tickets at the driver; a map of bus lines is available at the Connexxion website. For parking at paid parking lots or parking zones you can either pay individually (€2.50 per hour in 2014), but in case you stay for longer than over the weekend, purchasing a yearly parking vignette might be a good idea (€15 in 2014). Add the vignette to the collection of dozens of other vignettes on your front screen and you can park in designated areas without additional charges. There are however some time limitations at some of the parking lots, which are explained in the brochure that comes with the vignette and the signs at the parking lots.
Where to Stay
There is a post office in the centre of Den Burg, at the corner of the Burgwal and Parkstraat. During the summer a special touristic boat service to the neighboring island of Vlieland, is available. This boat leaves near De Cocksdorp. The Wadden Sea sealife is also seen on this trip. From the village of Oudeschild, which has a harbour that is mainly used for fishing, a boat called Texel 44 can take you to the island of Terschelling. You can go back to Den Helder by boat and explore the rest of the Netherlands from there.
Money & Budget
Additionally, there are supermarkets on the island, there is one, albeit small, in nearly every village on Texel. As most travellers stay in De Koog, this is where the island's nightlife takes place. There are many bars and cafes, and it even feels a bit seedy at night. The island has a brewery, Texelse Bierbrouwerij, the beers of which are readily available both on and off the island. Its branding is proudly Tessels, with all beers being branded in the local dialect, and most ingredients being sourced locally. Its foremost beer is the Skuumkoppe, a dark, wheat-based beer. Another notable beverage from the island is the Juttertje spiced gin (bitter) made of fourteen spices, and with an alcohol percentage of 30%.
Safety Information
Glimpses of Texel
Lighthouse in Texel
A path leading to a lighthouse on a beach
blue and white boat on water during daytime
green grass on white sand at daytime
brown wooden pathway between green grass field under white clouds during daytime
white and black concrete building on green grass field under white sky during daytime
Texel Beach
people in beach during daytime
white cruise ship on sea under blue sky during daytime
brown dirt road between green grass field under white sky during daytime
Lighthouse in Texel
A path leading to a lighthouse on a beach
blue and white boat on water during daytime