Skip to content
Visit Leiden
Leiden's Old Observatory beside the water in winter sunshine

Ten hidden gems in Leiden you would never find on your own

The Pieterskerk, De Valk and Naturalis are in every guide. These are the places that are not — quiet, mostly free and often a stone's throw from the busy shopping street.

The ten

  • Sint Annahofje (Hooigracht): Leiden's oldest hofje, from 1507, behind a door you would walk straight past.
  • The Clusius garden in the Hortus: the reconstructed 1594 garden where the first Dutch tulips bloomed.
  • Van der Werfpark: created by the 1807 gunpowder disaster, now the quietest spot in the centre.
  • The Burcht mound at sunset: free, and the only real view across the rooftops.
  • The Japanese wall poems around Nieuwsteeg, where the whole project started in 1992.
  • Rijnlandshuis on Breestraat: a 16th-century courtyard open during the day.
  • The Waag and fish market on the Nieuwe Rijn outside market days — empty and photogenic.
  • The Zijlpoort gate on the east side: less visited than the Morspoort, but better from the water.
  • The university library, with rotating exhibitions from the special collections.
  • The Kaag lakes, ten minutes by bike: water, reeds and windmills without a single tourist.

Turning it into an afternoon

Start on the Hooigracht with the hofjes, cross to the Burcht for the view, walk via the Nieuwe Rijn to the Rapenburg and finish in the Hortus. That is just over three kilometres, half a day with breaks, and free apart from the Hortus.

Frequently asked questions

Can you simply walk into a hofje in Leiden?
Usually yes during the day, if the gate is open. They are lived-in homes: keep quiet and do not photograph windows.