More than a hundred historic ships tour the Dutch provinces for over a month

A fleet of 165 historic clippers, tjalks, tugs, and fishing boats will tour the Dutch provinces for the next month and a half. The so-called heritage tour starts on Saturday in Middelburg and meanders over 1000 kilometers through the country, ending on July 17 in Hasselt (Overijssel).

The historic ships will dock in fifteen places, where exhibitions can be seen on one of the ships and the shore. After Middelburg, the mooring places are Willemstad, Den Bosch, Maasbracht, Nijmegen, Vreeswijk, Rotterdam, Leiden, Amsterdam, Enkhuizen, Leeuwarden, Zoutkamp, ​​Groningen, Assen, Dronten and finally Hasselt.

The ships are currently used for residential, recreational, or charter purposes. Some of them belong to the so-called brown fleet. These historic sailing ships were the subject of a major investigation last year after two fatal accidents on such a ship occurred in 2022. All masts and rigging of the entire fleet were checked.

The heritage tour is being held because the National Association for the Preservation of Historic Commercial Vessels is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Private owners of such ships founded the association when they were all threatened with demolition. The association considers the ships to be cultural heritage that must be preserved.