Top Leiden Walking Tours

In the 1600s, a single tulip bulb sold for the price of a canal house - and the flower that started the famous tulip mania was planted right here in Leiden. This walking tour follows a trail that takes you to that spot at the Hortus Botanicus and through the streets where Rembrandt grew up, sketched his earliest works, and became the painter who would define the Dutch Golden Age. Along the way, you will hear how Leiden's canals were built as moats to stop invaders, why poems cover the city walls instead of graffiti, and how a group of English refugees, called the pilgrims, sheltered here before sailing - with nine future US Presidents among their descendants. Your local guide walks you through 12 stops, from the atmospheric Galgewater canal to the panoramic fortress of De Burcht. Along the way, you can get a Rembrandt-style portrait sketched and explore one of the city's hidden hofjes. Available in 9 languages. Works offline. No schedule, no group - just you and the city.

WHY CHOOSE US? More than an audio tour - your complete Leiden city guide in one app. Some audio tours cost a little less. With CityAppTour, you simply get more: 45 richly detailed stories, audio & written text, photos, spoken navigation, practical city information and carefully selected local tips. Follow our 4.9 km route through Leiden's historic centre and discover Rembrandt's birthplace, the Pieterskerk, Rapenburg, the Burcht, hidden courtyards and the university city from which the Pilgrims once departed. Our stories go beyond short facts, giving you the background, details and context that bring Leiden to life. - 45 richly detailed stories in audio & text - Spoken navigation between stops - Photos, city info & food and drink tips - Works offline - Yours to keep - the tour never expires - Explore at your own pace More stories. More information. More freedom.

We delve into the rich history and vibrant culture of Leiden's Golden Age on this ±90-minute free, tip-based, walking tour. Explore the picturesque canals, majestic mansions, and hidden courtyards while uncovering stories of the Pilgrims and the Dutch Masters. Your guide will lead you through 12+ significant stops, including the iconic Molen de Valk and the stunning Hortus Botanicus, where tulip mania began. Whether you're a local or a traveler, this tip-based tour offers a unique perspective of the city’s past and present. - This walking tour will cover 2-3 km in 90 minutes throughout the city's historic center, highlighting areas for your continued exploration. - Explore historic sites like the Molen de Valk and the Hortus Botanicus - Insightful narratives on Leiden's role in art, history, and culture - Available in English and Spanish with knowledgeable local guides - Suitable for all individuals comfortable with the walking distance, uneven cobblestone streets, and some stairs

On this self-guided audio tour, you’ll discover how a medieval town transformed into a center of knowledge and culture that shaped global history. The tour begins at the Hartebrugkerk. You’ll weave through narrow alleys and alongside picturesque canals, exploring the Rijksmuseum Boerhaave, where medical science flourished. Along the way, you’ll discover how commerce, religion, and innovation shaped this influential Dutch city. You’ll climb the ancient Burcht van Leiden, a fortress that’s stood guard over the city for nearly a thousand years. Along quiet canals, you’ll find wall poems painted in dozens of languages and hidden hofjes (courtyard almshouses) that tell stories of charity and community. The tour ends at the ornate Renaissance façade of the Stadhuis. By the end of this tour, you’ll understand how this seemingly quiet Dutch city played an outsized role in science, art, and global affairs throughout history.

Delve into the city of Leiden with the help of this self-guided game that takes you through town. Discover hidden gems and popular attractions alike as you work through the story of the game and solve its puzzles. In the game, a police officer has taken sensitive files away from the station. Before the information gets into the wrong hands, can you track him down to find out why?

This is the only Dutch landscape walking tour in the Leiden area, which is also close to the Dutch flower fields. This tour can be combined with a visit to the Dutch flower fields close to Leiden as well (in the vehicle)

Get introduced to Leiden in the most authentic way: through its highlights, history, local flavors, and with a trusted local guide by your side. Along the way, you will explore iconic landmarks such as Pieterskerk and the Burcht van Leiden, as well as local favorites and hidden corners loved by locals. Engaging anecdotes and personal insights from your local guide will connect Leiden history, culture, and tradition, bringing the city to life in an authentic and memorable way. To complete the experience, enjoy a tasting of a local specialty. Whether sweet, savory, or regional, you will taste a real part of Leiden everyday culture and traditions. By the end of the tour, you will have a great introduction to Leiden, its local culture, and how to explore it on your own. You will walk away with personal recommendations and local tips on where to eat and what to see next, helping you make the most of your time in the city.

During the Discovery Trip "The Stolen Keys", you will explore the city of Leiden during a 90-minute self-guided walking tour. In 90 minutes, you will see the most iconic places of Leiden while solving fun puzzles about the environment. Do your best and set a new high score for the trip together with your friends or family. As Discovery Trips is self-guided, there are no fixed starting times. You can pick whenever you want to start discovering. Furthermore, the trip is available in English, German and Dutch. So, what are you waiting for? Let's discover!

Discover two of the prettiest and most historically significant cities in the Netherlands on this private half-day tour, with a transfer between the cities included. In Leiden, your guide walks you through a city packed with stories: it heroically survived a Spanish siege in 1574, it is where Rembrandt was born, where the Pilgrim Fathers found refuge before sailing to America, and where the oldest university in the Netherlands was founded. In The Hague, you explore the political and royal heart of the Netherlands: the Binnenhof, Noordeinde Palace, foreign embassies, and the elegant streets that have been at the center of Dutch power for centuries. You can do this tour both ways: starting in Leiden or starting in The Hague. You can also choose to be picked up and dropped off at a location of your choice, like in Amsterdam. And remember: It is you who determines the pace of this tour.

Explore Leiden on a private walking tour through one of the most historically rich cities in the Netherlands. With your own knowledgeable local guide, you discover a city that played a key role in Dutch history, art, and science. Leiden is home to the country’s oldest university, beautifully preserved canals, and the birthplace of Rembrandt. During this guided tour, your guide brings the past to life with stories of painters, pilgrims, professors, and Leiden’s heroic resistance and relief during the Eighty Years’ War. The private tour of Leiden takes place entirely in the compact historic center and normally lasts about 1.5 hours. Because this is a private walking tour, the pace and focus are flexible and can be adapted to your interests. This tour is ideal for travelers who want insight, context, and stories rather than a simple checklist of sights.

Discover Leiden’s city center, without having to keep up with a large tour group, with this interactive, self-guided scavenger hunt. Simply download the app onto your smartphone, and set off as you solve clues and play games that guide you around the city. A unique alternative to a traditional walking tour that you can stop and start as you please.

Discover the hidden history of Leiden as you navigate its shadowy corners on this captivating 2-hour walking tour. Step away from the city's charming canals to explore tales of plague pits, public executions, and mysterious disappearances that shaped the city’s past. Knowledgeable guides will reveal chilling stories of crime and punishment that often go unheard. This atmospheric journey is designed for guests ages 12 and older, providing an intriguing insight into Leiden's darker side. - 2-hour walking tour exploring Leiden's dark history - Discover stories of plague, poison, and public executions - Led by knowledgeable guides for a deeper understanding of local lore - Recommended for ages 12 and older, perfect for friends, families, and history enthusiasts

Noordwijk aan Zee and Noordwijk-Binnen are neighboring communities with very different moods and histories. Discover them the fun way, with a treasure hunt app downloaded to your phone. Stroll among linden trees and historic pilgrimage sites; see museums, statues, and artworks; and learn about local fisherfolk traditions; all through the interactive fun of puzzles and quizzes. This is a self-guided app, meaning you can start and stop whenever you want.

Discover two of the most historically rich cities in the Netherlands on this half-day private tour, with a transfer between the cities included. In Leiden, your guide walks you through a city packed with stories: it heroically survived a Spanish siege in 1574, it is where Rembrandt was born, where the Pilgrim Fathers found refuge before sailing to America, and where the oldest university in the Netherlands was founded. In Delft, you step into the Dutch Golden Age: canals, churches, and the stories of Vermeer and William of Orange. Walk past the leaning Old Church and the towering New Church, discover lesser-known gems like the former Dutch East India Company office, and hear the stories of the city that shaped so much of Dutch history. The transfer between the two cities takes just 20 minutes. You can do the tour in either direction. This is a private tour. You set the pace, and if you have any special requests or an interest in a certain topic, just let us know.

Close your eyes. Can you hear the sound of young Rembrandt running around in the alleys? And the shouts of the children playing? Can you hear the carts on the cobblestones coming in through the White Gate? The loose women calling out to the militia men? The quiet steps of Rembrandt going to his art class? Step into the world of Young Rembrandt and see what shaped him as an artist. Hear the stories that he heard about the Siege of Leiden. Find out how the proud people made a living in the bustling new republic and see their legacy in the Renaissance town of Leiden. Feel the liberty that attracted the Pilgrim Fathers, and made some leave to America. Look up at the sky and see the light that sheltered it all. It is here that an artist was made that conquered the world.

Discover Leiden like never before with the Secrets of Leiden City Game, a fun self-guided walking tour and city game packed with puzzles, riddles and hidden stories! This GPS-based exploration game lets you experience Leiden while exploring famous spots such as the Pieterskerk, Leiden University Academiegebouw, windmill Molen De Valk, the Engelse Poort and the historic canals. Play solo for a personal challenge or together with friends, family or colleagues. During the game you solve tricky questions, puzzles, riddles and creative photo tasks to score points, unlock extra clues and solve the final mystery. Pause whenever you want and continue later at your own pace. Compete for a place on the leaderboard or play competitively for team building, making this scavenger hunt and walking tour through Leiden perfect for every type of explorer.

Explore the rich tapestry of Leiden's history through a captivating 12-stop walking tour. Discover the medieval Burcht, the university established post-siege, and the iconic Pieterskerk. Each stop reveals fascinating stories and interactive quizzes that bring the Golden Age to life while you stroll along the scenic 2.4 km route. Perfect for friends and families, this GPS-guided adventure offers lifetime access to the tour, ensuring you can revisit the charm of Leiden anytime. - 12 intriguing stops highlighting Leiden's history and architecture - GPS-guided route with interactive quizzes at each location - Suitable for friends, families, and team outings - Lifetime access to the tour for endless exploration

Are you planning a day out or weekend trip to Leiden, then you can have a lot of fun with this city walk. An Escape game and a city walk at the same time. 3 kilometers long and over 2 hours of fun for the family or a group of friends. Meanwhile, during this game, there is plenty of time to sit on one of the terraces. A city walk has never been so much fun. The Leiden Lawbreaker man, himself a former professor, thinks that the IQ of Leiden residents is becoming so bad that he is threatening to blow up the university. Naturally, he must be stopped, but the police have so far been unsuccessful. The wait is for this unique team. Of those people who were planning to visit Leiden anyway and are good enough to help the city find this criminal.

There's more than just beach to Noordwijk aan Zee. Discover this seaside destination on a treasure hunt style walking tour, playing as a team or competing against friends or family. Learn about fishing culture, navigate a villa neighborhood that's hidden in the dunes, and solve clues, riddles, and quizzes to discover statues, artworks, quirky buildings, and more.

The people of Leiden believe that their city is the most beautiful one in the country, if not the whole world. It is hard to argue with that :). In fact, there is no other place on Earth, where stories from all over the world are intertwined in such a dense tangle. This is the birthplace of Rembrandt and genius mocker Jan Steen. It is where the origins of the modern Netherlands come from, as well as the United States of America and modern art. Einstein and Churchill walked on these cobblestone pavements here. All these stories are full of surprises, amusing paradoxes, and sometimes ridiculous tales or absurdities. Here, the subject of botany suddenly turns from a primary school class into a real detective story, physics - into tragedy, commerce - into philosophy and the rational organization of the urban environment - into poetry. After Leiden, your life will never be the same!

Leiden itself becomes the puzzle in this self-guided outdoor escape game - no venue, no host, just your team and the streets. Magnus has taken the formulas and scattered the proof across the old centre, past Vismarkt, and every location holds a code, a riddle or a photo task waiting to be cracked. Roles matter here: one player reads, another looks, and the team moves on only once you agree. Send two or more teams out at the same time and the hunt becomes a contest, which is what makes this city escape game work as well for a team-building afternoon as for a day out with friends. Reading clues while the city moves around you is part of the challenge.

Leiden becomes the crime scene in this self-guided detective game, where the clues are hidden in plain sight in the streets around you. The case is the murder of Balthasar, and the evidence is scattered across the old centre - past Burcht van Leiden, Leiden American Pilgrim Museum, Stadhuis Leiden and National Museum of Ethnology. You decode messages, photograph what does not add up and press digital witnesses whose stories never quite line up. Every puzzle you crack removes a name from the list of suspects. Play as a couple, bring the children along, or send two or three teams out at the same time and turn the investigation into a race - which is what makes this murder mystery game work as well for a team outing as for a day out. The last answer is waiting somewhere in the centre of Leiden.

On this full-day private tour, you will discover The Hague, Delft and Leiden. See the highlights of all three old cities together together with our passionate guide. Lunch and transfers between the cities are included. Forget about Amsterdam! During this tour, you will see three totally different sides of the Netherlands. From charming artistic Leiden and classy political The Hague to quaint old Delft. You'll dive into the Dutch Golden Age and get to know modern Dutch society at the same time. From Rembrandt to Vermeer and from William of Orange to Napoleon Bonaparte. Be prepared to learn a lot and to see some royal palaces, our parliament, charming canals, old churches, Delft Blue pottery, historical sites, an old university and more. See you soon! You can do this tour both ways: starting in Leiden or starting in Delft. You can also choose to be picked up and dropped off at a location of your choice, like in Amsterdam. And remember: It is you who determines the pace of this tour.