Where to Stay in Alphen aan den Rijn, Provincie Zuid-Holland

What is Alphen aan den Rijn known for?

Alphen aan den Rijn is known for Archeon, the archaeological park, and for the Vogelpark Avifauna. The town sits in the Groene Hart, the open peat-meadow country between Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam, Den Haag and Leiden. The Oude Rijn cuts straight through it.

What are the main landmarks in Alphen aan den Rijn?

Archeon reconstructs the Dutch past on the ground, and the Vogelpark Avifauna keeps the birds. The Oudshoornse kerk, the Adventskerk and the Sint-Bonifatiuskerk are the churches on the monument list, and De Tol stands with them. Castellum theatre stands on the Roman fort Albaniana.

What is the history of Alphen aan den Rijn?

Rome fixed the frontier here. In AD 12 the general Tiberius, later emperor, made the southern bank of the Rhine the northern edge of the empire, the Limes, and from Caligula's reign watchtowers and forts went up along it. One of them, the castellum Albaniana, stood opposite the mouth of the Aar, where the Castellum theatre stands now.

The Hof van Alfen appears in 1250, a country estate with a castle on the southern bank of the Molenvliet, held by the Counts of Holland and got from the Bishop of Utrecht; the Hoflaan and the Hofbrug still carry the name. A pastor was appointed in 1273 and a small church raised on the castle's remains, dedicated to Boniface. Jacob Coppier van Kalslagen took the Ambachtsheer rights in 1494.

The municipality of Alphen aan den Rijn was formed in 1918 out of Alphen, Aarlanderveen and Oudshoorn.

Where is Alphen aan den Rijn?

Alphen aan den Rijn lies at the junction of the Aar with the Oude Rijn, which runs from Utrecht to Leiden and cuts the town in two. The Gouwe and the Aarkanaal bound it on the east, the Heimanswetering on the west. It stands in the Groene Hart, peat-meadow country of grazing and small dikes, of ditches and streams and open water.

Park Zegersloot lies on the north side.

What is the climate of Alphen aan den Rijn?

Alphen aan den Rijn has the temperate maritime climate of the Dutch lowland, with mild winters and cool summers and rain spread through the year. The Groene Hart around it is wet ground, cut by ditches and open water. Sea air reaches it easily across the low country.

How do you get to Alphen aan den Rijn?

The station area sits between the Hoge Zijde and the Lage Zijde, and the Koningin Julianabrug carries the road over the Oude Rijn towards the Rotterdam-Amsterdam route. Seven bridges cross the river in all. Business harbours, marinas and a container terminal work the water.