Did you know that over 900 of the Dutch windmills and watermills open their doors to the public on the National Mill Days this Saturday 12 May and Sunday 13 May? Millers go out of their way to decorate their mills with flags. Go on a tour with the miller and enjoy extra activities such as fairs and live demos.
There are around 1,050 windmills and 150 watermills left in the Netherlands. Most mills are operated by voluntary millers. An increasing number of people visit a windmill during the National Mill Days or on regional mill days.
Activities on the National Mill Days
- guided tours
- live demos
- baking bread and pancakes
- kids activities
- bicycle and walking tours
- storytellers
- exhibitions
- fairs
List of participating windmills and watermills
Click here for more info about participating mills and opening hours. The search tool is available in Dutch language only but it is quite easy to use.
Fill in either the name of a mill (‘Naam molen‘) or the location (‘Plaats‘), select a distance (‘Afstand‘) and tick the box which day(s) you would like to visit. Ticking boxes for activities is optional. Hit the red search bar (‘Zoeken‘) to get a list of windmills. When you see the search results and you click on the blue bar ‘op de kaart‘, a map of the listed mills will appear.
National Mill Days in short
- Some mills are open on Saturday 12 May, some on Sunday 13 May and some on both days.
- This is a free event, donations are appreciated.
- National Mill Day(s) = Nationale Molendag(en) in Dutch
- The National Mill Days always take place during the second weekend of May. Next National Mill Days: 11 and 12 May 2019.
Regional and local mill days 2018
Saturday 9 and Sunday 10 June
Groningen Province
Saturday 30 June
Westland (i.a. Delft, Rijswijk and Hoek van Holland)
Saturday 7 July
Leidschendam-Voorburg (South Holland)
Saturday 14 July
Goeree-Overflakkee (Zeeland)
Saturday 21 July
Voorne, Putten en Rozenburg (South Holland)
Saturday 25 August
Drenthe Province
Saturday 1 September
Zeeland Province
Sunday 2 September
Schermer Windmills (North Holland)
Saturday 8 September
Overijssel Province
Sunday 9 September
Kempen-Broek (Limburg)
Saturday 29 September
Zaan Region
Saturday 6 October
Alblasserwaard and Vijfheerenlanden (South Holland)
Sunday 7 October
Limburg and Peelland
Saturday 20 October
Hoeksche-Waard (South Holland)
Sunday 21 October
Zijper Windmills (North Holland)
Sunday 28 October
Rijnland Windmills (i.a. Leiden, South Holland)
Saturday 10 November
Tielerwaard (Gelderland)
Sunday 25 November
Súdwest-Fryslân (Friesland)
