The Durneys Go Dutch: Glamping in Petten Aan Zee

During the winter, I felt convinced that by the long Ascension weekend in May, we would be able to go abroad. So I put off booking anything in the hopes that would be true. As the weekend approached, even though we couldn't leave the NL, I was still itching to get away. I had my heart set on a beach trip, but last-minute options were very limited. On Booking, I found 2 available glamping tents an hour north and convinced Alya and Amine to join with the kids (or as they tell it, "Erin said to book it. So we booked it." ;)).

Petten looked tiny on the map so I wasn't expecting much of the area apart from the beach. Then we discovered that it is in one of the NL's largest tulip bulb growing areas so I couldn't wait to see it!

Our first and last days were the nicest, so we took off early and spent the day at the beach with the Nazlawys who drove up to meet us. Lots of fun in the sand!

Alya and family joined us by late afternoon and we left the beach to check into our tent. One of the two that was available only slept 4 so this was the one our family booked. It was basic, but brand new. I had worried all week about the temperature and it did get quite cold at night. There was electricity, but not enough to power a space heater we thought to bring. We had lots of duvets and our sleeping bags so we were comfortable the first night. Alya's family booked the luxury tent that slept 7 and had a private bathroom, heating, and more room inside. They invited our kids to sleep over the other two nights, which they happily did. Then the adults were able to hang out together in their warm tent after the kids went to sleep.

Two separate sleeping nooks, mini fridge, stovetop, indoor picnic table. Very cozy.

The tents (and also some teepees) are all brand new and are in an area of the established RV/tent campground, which is being rebranded as a luxury family glamping site under the name Laguna Beach Family Camp. Happy to break it in! All of the tents around us had families with small children. We kept with our company, but it would have been easy to make friends with neighbors had we been alone.

The campsite was next to the dunes by the beach so Pete and I snuck out to watch the sunset (9:45pm) after the kids were asleep.

On Friday we went off exploring the tulip fields by bike. Because it has been so darn cold this spring, there were many fields still in full bloom that would normally have been headed by now (silver linings!).

The colors were so vibrant!

We stopped in at a pancake restaurant for lunch where there were outdoor trampolines and mini golf. We left 4 hours later!! Savoring terraces finally being open!

Across the street from the pancake house was an entrance to a hiking area in the dunes. The kids were super enthusiastic for the journey out, return journey, not so much. As we gained elevation, we could see out over the tulip fields again! We will definitely plan to visit this tulip area again in the future!

Saturday was Maeve's 5th birthday (separate post to follow)! Pete made french toast for everyone for breakfast, then Maeve opened her presents and the kids spent the morning playing before we walked into town for lunch on the tiny town square. In the afternoon, we decorated and ate cupcakes and headed to the beach to play with her new sand toys and kite.

Art installation of trash found at the beach.

On Sunday, we checked out and drove to Schoorl, home of the largest sand dune in the Netherlands. I'd wanted to go there for some time and was glad we got the chance to see it! I had heard from a friend about an hour-long hike you can take to get to an isolated beach cafe. I really thought we had it in us, but quickly got both lost and discouraged by the whining of our kids after just 10 minutes. So we headed back down the dune instead (lots of falling involved!) and had a nice lunch in the sun at the bottom of the dune. Icecream, a short walk through town, and then, with the sun shining, a final stop in another beautiful beach town, Bergen aan zee for some more sand fun (at least it looks like they had fun, Alya and I promptly laid down on the sand and fell asleep!).