Plan a route

The most beautiful windmills of the Netherlands

Few things are as Dutch as a windmill by the water, and few make a drive more beautiful. From UNESCO ensembles to the oldest windmill in the country, these are the 25 mills that passed our own vetting, spread across every province. At each mill you plan a scenic route there in one click, or let the planner build a round trip past windmills from your own doorstep.

What we weigh more heavily for a windmill stop: how good it looks from the public road or water, a safe place to stop, and a setting on back roads. Large ensembles like Kinderdijk count as one stop. A photo stop you admire from outside, a visit stop you can go inside. Measured and curated by Touren.app (July 2026). How we measure and check.

What we deliberately leave out, and why

The Netherlands has over a thousand windmills; we include only the finest and most accessible. A few examples of what we do not (yet) add:

  • Mill stumps without cap or sails: a bare stump is no longer a mill to stop for, however historic.
  • Mills permanently under restoration or closed: they return to the list once they turn again.
  • Mills deep in a housing estate with nowhere to stop: beautiful, but not usable as a driving stop.
  • The complete mill database: we pick the finest per province, not a list of all thousand.

If a mill is in our list, it is worth the detour.

Plan a round trip past windmills from your own start

Type your start town and we build a round trip of about two hours with windmills from our selection as stops. Then adjust everything: duration, number of stops, vehicle.

25 windmills approved as a stop, in every province. A place name is enough; no need to share your location.

The windmills that passed our vetting

This is the full, current selection the planner may pick as a stop, ordered by province. Not a list copied off the internet.

South Holland 4

Overijssel 3

Utrecht 3

Drenthe 2

Friesland 2

Gelderland 2

Groningen 2

North Brabant 2

North Holland 2

Zeeland 2

Limburg 1

Windmill route, mill tour or just spotting mills

Whether you drive a windmill route, go mill-spotting or catch one along the way, the reward is the same. The polder mills of the low west, the corn mills on a mound in the east, the saw and oil mills: together they tell the story of how the Netherlands stayed dry and grew rich. We line up the finest per province.

Frequently asked questions

Can I plan a route past windmills from my own address?

Yes. Type your start town above and we build a round trip with windmills as stops; or click "plan a route here" at a mill and fill in your start.

Which windmills can you visit and which are a photo stop?

That is shown per mill in the list. A visit stop has an open interior, a photo stop you admire from outside. Many mills turn only on mill days; check opening times before you set off.

Why are not all the windmills of the Netherlands included?

Deliberately not. The country has over a thousand; we pick the finest and most accessible per province, not a complete database. What does not clear the bar, we leave out.

Are these windmill drives free?

Yes. Viewing, generating from your own start, downloading the GPX and roadbook and sharing are free, with a small Touren.app mark.

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