8 Interesting Things to Do In and Around Lelystad

The city of Lelystad, located in Northern Netherlands, is the capital city of the Flevoland province. It is a relatively new city in relation to Dutch history, merely 55 years old. This being said, it is a rather unique city as it was built on reclaimed land that was once ocean.

Lelystad is named after Cornelius Lely who was responsible for the engineering of the Afsluitdijk, which made the reclamation of the Zuiderzee possible. This major dam and causeway, which translates to “closure dike”, runs from Den Oever in North Holland to the village of Zurich in Friesland and is an engineering masterpiece.

Aside from these engineering ties, there are many interesting things to do in Lelystad which you will discover in this article. There are plenty of unique activities to immerse yourself in and around Lelystad, tourist attractions not to miss, and plenty more. Let’s dive in!

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How to get to Lelystad

Lelystad is well connected by public transport with the other large cities in the Netherlands, but it’s not quite a popular day-trip destination. Not many know that it takes only 45 minutes from Amsterdam to Lelystad and Utrecht is at only a 50-min drive.

Tip: Read this post about using the public transport in the Netherlands. It’s packed with tips that only a local knows!

Pro tip: Buy your train tickets online with the Dutch Railways (NS) for hassle-free travel. On the website of NS you can also check for any discounts.

For international travel options, check out Omio, where you can also buy train and bus tickets.

Top Things to do in Lelystad

When you arrive in Lelystad you will quickly notice that Lelystad is not your average Dutch city. You won’t find there either the typical Dutch stepped-gable houses or any remarkable historical buildings. But the fact that in the 1950s this was still a sea bed, makes this place quite extraordinary.

Read further to find out which are the best things to do in Lelystad. On the handy map below I’ve marked all tourist attractions in the city. You can add the map to your Google Maps and use it even if you are offline.

1. Batavialand

Batavialand is one of the most interesting museums in Lelystad, demonstrating the continuous battle against water that the Dutch people face. It is here that you will learn all about the poldering and the dikes that are used to fight this battle in a unique and interesting way.

The interactive museum also shows the beauty of Flevoland, which was once sea, but is now an area where you can find beautiful nature.

Aside from the museum, there is a heritage park, a shipyard with a reconstruction of the 17th-century ship Batavia, and everything there is to know about water management. It is one of the top Lelystad attractions and cannot be missed when visiting the city.

2. Batavia

The replica of 17th-century VOC ship Batavia is perhaps the most popular attraction in Lelystad. You can’t visit the city without having seen this famous ship. VOC stands in Dutch for the Dutch East India Company – the company that was involved in the trade with the Asia, which brought enormous economic prosperity to the country and led to the so-called Dutch Golden Age in the 17th century.

The history of the ship is quite dark, involving a shipwreck, a betrayal, a mutiny, a massacre, a trial and an execution. Batavia was built in 1628 and sailed to Batavia Stad – the capital of the Dutch East Indies, today’s Jakarta. The ship never finished its maiden voyage but wrecked in 1629 at the Wallabi group of islands near the western coast of Australia.

From the 332 passengers on the ship only 122 made it to Batavia. Those who led the mutiny were executed in Australia, and some of the crew that we minor offenders were marooned on mainland Australia, which actually made them the first Europeans to have permanently lived on the continent.

Parts of the shipwreck of the real Batavia are exhibited in the Western Australian Museum in Perth. The replica that we can see today in Lelystad was built using the same materials and methods as 400 years ago.

You can tour the ship as a part of the visit to the Batavialand museum, but you can also see it from outside moored at the dock while taking a stroll along the water.

3. Luchtvaartmuseum Aviodrome

Another unique museum in Lelystad is the Luchtvaartmuseum Aviodrome is no different – an aerospace museum located at the Lelystad airport. The museum was previously located at Schiphol Airport, but since 2003 has made Lelystad its home.

There are more than 100 different aircrafts to discover as well as a state-of-the-art 4D movie theater in which you can experience everything to do with aviation. This is an experience for both the young and old, with an hour’s worth of entertainment for the whole family. The best part of it all – you can get your very own Aviodrome pilot’s license!

4. Batavia Stad Fashion Outlet

The Batavia Stad Fashion Outlet, named after the 1628 ship, is a fashion outlet center with more than 150 stores. You can find well-known brands such as Adidas, Puma, Boss, Nike, and many more at a fraction of the prices. Discounts range between 30% and a staggering 70% and this is a must for those fashion-loving people who can’t miss a good bargain.

The fashion outlet is located just next to the Batavialand museum, so you can spend the morning learning about history and ships and in the afternoon you can go on a shopping spree. There are also a few cafes and restaurants at Batavia Stad Fashion Outlet, where you can get a bite and some refreshments.

There’s no entry fee to Batavia Stad but you can buy a VIP ticket, that will get you a free cup of coffee/tea and 10% discount coupon on most purchases. Not a bad deal at all I would say.

5. Tulip Route

Not many people know this but Lelystad is one of the places where you can see tulip fields in the Netherlands. This is also one of the top things to do in Lelystad in the spring, taking a tour of the tulip route.

Flevoland hosts the largest open fields of tulips in the entire Netherlands with more than 5,000 hectares of the famous Dutch flowers. There’s even a tulip island that extends from the coast of Zeewolde in the form of a tulip and planted in spring with more than 150,000 tulip bulbs. It is definitely worth a visit when touring the Flevoland tulip route, which is recommended to do so by hiring a car and exploring this amazing visual masterpiece.

The tulip route in Flevoland in 2023 will available from 15 April till 7 May 2023.

Tip: If you travelling to the Netherlands in spring and you love tulips, you should visit Keukenhof.

6. Archeological Open-Air Museum Swifterkamp

If, at this point, you’re still asking yourself what to do in Lelystad, fear not. There’s still an exciting list of things to do and see in the city. The Archaeological Open-Air Museum Swifterkamp (Archeologisch Openluchtmuseum Swifterkamp) is another of the unique museums in Lelystad that transports you back in time.

The village is made up of two farms, a hunter-gatherer type hut, and three additional outbuildings. The museums take you back to the Stone Age and show you what life was like back then. It also shows the era during which hunter-gatherers switched to farming and how life evolved from there.

There are exhibits in the summer and spring where you can see bread being baked, tools being made, food is cooked over open fire, and more. It is also possible to spend one or more nights in the village and live like the settlers that once called this place home. This is definitely one of the most interesting things to do in Lelystad.

A visit to Swifterkamp is free of charge. The Mesolithic area is open daily and the Neolithic area on Wednesday and Sundays from 11:00 till 16:00.

Address: Vlotgrasweg 15, 8219 PP Lelystad

7. Oostvaardersplassen

One of the nature-orientated Lelystad tourist attractions is the Oostvaardersplassen – a 56 square kilometer nature reserve in Flevoland. The area, run by the Staatsbosbeheer, is made up of reeds, rugged grasslands, ponds, and is surrounded by forests.

It is also a birders paradise – there are many species of birds to see in the wetland so be sure to pack your bird book and binoculars. You can also see red deer, Heck cattle, and Konik horses grazing as you walk through the reserve – a real natural wonder of Flevoland.

In 2018 when the newest Dutch National Park Nieuw Land National Park was established, Oostvaardersplassen became part of it.

8. Land art: Exposure, Observatorium

When it comes to things like what to see in Lelystad, land art is definitely top of the list. First on the list is Observatorium – constructed by Robert Morris and made up of concentric earth walls with openings, forming a natural-looking observatory. Observatorium is located just outside Lelystad but is definitely worth the short journey to visit it.

Address: Swifterringweg, 8219 PG Lelystad

Exposure, on the other hand, is a steel giant – a 26-meter-high statue of a crouching human figure. Distinct at first, it becomes increasingly more abstract the closer you get to it. It’s made up of 547 nodes, 14,284 bolts, and 5,468 pieces of steel!

Address: Houtribdijk (N302), Lelystad

Tip: You can see Exposure from the Batavia Dockyard, where the Batavia ship is moored.

Final Words

There are a number of unique things to do in Lelystad that are very different to any other Dutch city. While it’s not one of the commonly spoken about or visited cities in the Netherlands, it is a short train or car ride from Amsterdam and worth a visit.

It’s also a very popular venue for water sports such as sailing, and windsurfing given its proximity to the waterfront. There’s something for everyone, even if you’re not into these activities – there’s always a shopping spree or history museums in Lelystad.

Do you need some extra help to plan your trip to the Netherlands? Join the dedicated Exploring the Netherlands Facebook Group, where you can get tips from other travellers and locals. Or perhaps you have questions or comments? Join the group and I’ll be happy to answer them.