North Brabant

North Brabant (Dutch: Noord-Brabant, commonly called Brabant) is a province in the south of The Netherlands. It's bordered by Belgium in the south, the Meuse River (Maas) in the north, Limburg in the east and Zeeland in the west. == Regions == == Cities == === Baronie van Breda === 1 Baarle — a town with 22 Belgian enclaves, some of which contain 7 Dutch enclaves 2 Breda — an old garrison city having a historical and pleasant city cent === Kempen === 3 Eindhoven — the city where Philips Electronics was founded and Eindhoven still has a good reputation on technology and design 4 Geldrop — the Geldrop castle built in the 14th century === Hollands Brabant === === Langstraat === === Maasland === 5 Oss — a city that has been inhabited for an estimated 4,000 years 6 Ravenstein — you can see some of the remnants of the city's defensive === Markiezaat === 7 Bergen op Zoom — a mediaeval rivermouth fortified city 8 Roosendaal — the last railway stop before Belgium 9 Willemstad — Small fortified city at the mouth of the Hollandsch Diep. === Meierij van 's-Hertogenbosch === 10 's-Hertogenbosch (or Den Bosch) — the province's historic capital was founded as a fortified city, a heritage it retains 11 Tilburg — the erstwhile centre of wool processing, with a few surviving monuments and many cultural institutions === Peel === 12 Asten 13 Boekel 14 Boxmeer 15 Cuijk 16 Deurne — home a museum of impressionist art 17 Gemert-Bakel 18 Grave — a fortified city on the southern side of the river Meuse 19 Helmond — Eindhoven's largest satellite town with a long tradition of textile industry and a castle 20 Laarbeek 21 Mill en Sint Hubert 22 Nuenen — the village where Vincent van Gogh painted The Potato Eaters and hundreds of other paintings and drawings 23 Overloon — a village on the outskirts of the Peel, destroyed in 1944 during World War II 24 Sint Anthonis 25 Someren == Other destinations == 1 Efteling — officially opened on May 31, 1952, and has grown from a nature park with playground, rowing ponds and a teahouse into a full theme park for all ages including modern roller coasters 2 De Groote Peel National Park — A largely excavated bog area on the border of the province of Limburg. De Groote Peel has an area of approximately 15 km ² and is accessed by three routes for hikers. De Groote Peel is considered one of the richest bird areas of Western Europe. Visitors Centre: Moostdijk 15, Ospel-Nederweert, ☏ +31 0495 64 14 97. 3 Loonse en Drunense Duinen National Park — a nature reserve of over 4000 hectares and is a national park since 2002. The park is largely an alternation of dry sand dunes and pine forest. It has the largest off-coast sand dunes in the Netherlands. 4 Biesbosch National Park — the Biesbosch or Biesbos is the name for a number of river islands, sandbars and mudflats in the Dutch provinces of North Brabant and South Holland. It sits between the rivers Upper Merwede and Amer and bisected by the artificial river Nieuwe Merwede. It is a tidal with creeks, willows and tidal forests. In 1994 the area was granted with the status of national park. The park has many recreational opportunities but is also used for storage of drinking water. There are three visitor centres; in Dordrecht, in Drimmelen and Werkendam. == Understand == Until the 17th century a large part of the area, that today form the province of North Brabant, was part of the Duchy of Brabant. In the 14th and 15th century Brabant experienced its Golden Age. Especially true for the cities of Brussels, Antwerp, Leuven, Breda and 's-Hertogenbosch. During the Eighty Years' War between Spain and the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands, the area was a battle field. After the war in 1648 North Brabant became part of the Republic. Most of the erstwhile Duchy ended up in present-day Belgium, where it is now divided between provinces of Antwerp, Flemish Brabant and Walloon Brabant. Despite attempts by the republic, Brabant remained Roman Catholic and thus without rights. Only in 1795 it became a province and gained equal rights as the other Dutch provinces. This unequal treatment and the adherence to the Catholic Church ensured that Brabant (and Limburg) feel different than the rest of the country. However, these differences are smaller. == Get in == === By plane === Eindhoven Airport (EIN IATA) is an international airport located in Eindhoven. It is mainly served by European low-cost airlines. The country's major airport Schiphol (AMS IATA) is easily reachable by train. The city of Breda is connected by the Intercity Direct high speed service, and Roosendaal, 's Hertogensbosch and Eindhoven are connected via regular Intercity service. === By train === As with all of the Netherlands, North Brabant is very well served by the Dutch national railway company Nederlandse Spoorwegen. The main railway lines in North Brabant are: Rotterdam-Breda-Tilburg-Eindhoven-Venlo, with two trains per hour Trains traversing this line mostly originate at Den Haag Centraal and thus do not go directly to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol The exception is the bi-hourly premium Intercity Direct train (not counted above), calling only at Amsterdam Centraal, Schiphol, Rotterdam Centraal and Breda. Other high-speed trains from Rotterdam, like Thalys and other international trains to Belgium, bypass Breda and only some stop in Roosendaal Roosendaal-Breda-Tilburg-Den Bosch-Nijmegen, with two trains per hour This makes the number of Intercity services through Breda total 4x hour Those trains continue from Nijmegen to Zwolle, linking North Brabant with Western and Northern Netherlands Schiphol-Amsterdam-Utrecht-Den Bosch-Eindhoven, with four trains per hour This gives Eindhoven and Den Bosch more trains to Schiphol Airport than Breda Trains on this line continue to Limburg Further to the Intercities there are also slower Sprinter trains, stopping at every station along the way and mainly serving local traffic and as feeders from smaller stations to the abovementioned long-distance hubs. === By bus === Most communities with over 500 inhabitants are served by public bus companies. All of Netherlands is covered by a common fare system based on distance and served by the OV-chipkaart - proximity cards that need to be pre-charged with money for fares and used when boarding and alighting. See 9292nl for connections, timetables and fare calculation between any given stops in the Netherlands. === By car === All destinations in the province of North Brabant can easily be reached by car. == Get around == Road networks between the cities (40,000 inhabitants or more), except for road N65 Tilburg-'s-Hertogenbosch, are motorways. Around 's-Hertogenbosch and Eindhoven are local/express highways which can be confusing to foreigners. Roads to smaller towns and villages can be adventurous, not because of gaps in the road, but mostly of being small and winding. Another option to get around is by train. Trains serve the bigger towns and villages (60,000 inhabitants or more and villages between them). Trains serve also in the nights on Thursday/Friday, Friday/Saturday and Saturday/Sunday the cities of Eindhoven, Tilburg, Breda and 's-Hertogenbosch. Eindhoven is the terminus for both night train lines. A fast high-speed rail (300 km/h, 190 mph) connection with Rotterdam and Amsterdam is possible from Breda. Buses are a good way to travel to the villages. As North Brabant is flat consider to rent a bike. Alongside roads often special bicycle tracks are constructed that make biking less dangerous than in other countries. A lot of great numbered tracks lead through fields and forests. Maps are available at tourist information offices or can be downloaded from the ANWB [1] website (€1.30 per map). == See == The historic cities of 's Hertogenbosch (commonly known as Den Bosch) and Breda are well worth a visit for their historic city centres. The cities of Eindhoven (the largest city of the province) and Tilburg are also worth a visit, but the centres of these cities are not as historic. Modern architecture in Tilburg and Eindhoven Picturesque villages are spread over all of the province == Do == The yearly Carnival is widely celebrated in each city and town with parades and a lot of partying. Aquabest is a recreational lake and park with a sandy beach north of Eindhoven. It has a family park with amusements for children, a water ski centre, athletic programs for groups of 10 to 2000 participants, a beach pavilion for parties and yearly festivals like Lakedance and Extrema Outdoor. De Zoom – Kalmthoutse Heide is a cross-border nature area south of Bergen op Zoom. In the Netherlands the area belongs to the system of national parks. It was established in 2001 and is approximately 37.5 km². The diversity of plants and animals is great, as is the number of insects found in the area. Kampina is a nature reserve with forest, heathland and stream valleys near Tilburg. The Kampina is a popular hiking area, especially when the heather blooms. There are several hiking trails. Safari Beekse Bergen is the largest wildlife zoo of the Benelux, near Tilburg. == Eat == The Brabantse koffietafel (Brabant coffee table) is a lunch traditionally ushered in with a glass of brandy with sugar. The lunch is served with Brabant rye bread, white bread, gingerbread and raisin bread generously spread with butter or lard topped with fat cheese, fresh sausage or ham. Additionally, you can choose from a variety of sweet fillings, such as apple, honey, jams and sprinkles. And, as the name Brabant coffee table suggests, this feast will be washed down with a big ditch of coffee. The Bossche Bol, a pastry from 's-Hertogenbosch is a big puff cake filled with whipped cream and topped with melted chocolate. Popular is worstenbroodje, a 15-cm-long soft bread, filled with a sausage of minced meat. It distinguishes itself from the Belgian 'worstenbrood' and the Dutch 'saucijzenbroodje' by not being made of puff pastry. Traditionally, the worstenbroodje is consumed during Christmas and carnaval, though it has in modern times become an everyday snack. Brabant has its own variant of metworst, which is the focus of an annual tradition. During carnaval Monday, the town of Vortum-Mullem near Cuijk organises a horse race where local bachelors battle to become the Metworst King. The eventual king traditionally wins a metworst of seven el (4.9 metres (16 ft)), two white breads, two vats of beer and half a pig's head. == Drink == === Beer === Popular beers brewed in North-Brabant are: Bavaria, brewery in Lieshout Budels, brewery in Cranendonck (Budel) Dommelsch, brewery in Dommelen (Valkenswaard) La Trappe, one of two Trappist beers from the Netherlands. Brewery Koningshoeven abbey in Berkel-Enschot (Tilburg) Zundert, the other of the two Trappist brewers. Largely known for their quadrupels. Brewed in Abbey Maria Toevlucht Our Lady of Refuge in Zundert. After a period of merger and acquisitions a trend is going on of founding new local breweries that brew special beers with limited production. These are mostly top-fermenting beers and not common lager beers. Examples are Eijkenrode (Eindhoven), de Gouden Leeuw (Vessem), Liefde (Geldrop), de Markies ('s-Hertogenbosch) and Sint Juttemis (Tilburg). === Wine === Nowadays there are quite a few vineyards in the Netherlands and North-Brabant is no exception. Most of them produce white wines and a few noteworthy are: Bij Ypma, in De Rips in the east of the province. Hof van Baarle, in the famously fractured border town of Baarle-Nassau in the south west of the province. === Liqueur === Schrobbelèr is a typical drink from Tilburg. It is an herbal (and bitter) liqueur with an alcoholic percentage of 21.5%, although sweeter than most bitter liqueurs. The drink is sold throughout the year and is most popular during carnival. It's sold in many restaurants and liqueur stores. Brabant Bont is a soft and sweet coffee liqueur from Gemert. == Go next == Visit the province of Zeeland in the west for relaxing, historic villages, great beaches and the Delta Works (Deltawerken).