Paleis Het Loo, Gelderland Province, The Netherlands

5StevenKolsteren 5:00 PM Jul 2, 2022

Great on a summer's day
Paleis Het Loo has reopened after restoration; it is still a work in progress. The French baroque garden and the English landscape garden are very attractive. On a summers day it looks like you are in France. The palace must be visited with two audiotours- there are no information texts in the rooms. The tour can be downloaded with a free app. The William and Mary tour offers the best experience. The rooms are elegant, the story of the Dutch / English king and queen who built this summer palace is poignant. The other tour through the rooms of the Oranje royal family shows they have no taste: sombre working areas, mad hunting trophies. The only exception is the Empire room, which was done when Napoleons brother ruled The Netherlands. He was a good king and obviously had taste. Although you have to choose one of the tours at the ticket office you can easily do both when it is not too crowded, for the same price. Also, the climb to the roof terrace offers great views. For the walk in the English landscape garden you need to scan your ticket; also on the way back because then you enter the palace area. It doesn’t work properly all of the time so they installed an intercom for help. The parking area is well indicated and spot on. You have to buy an exit ticket at the ticket office for visiting the palace- this is not indicated (7,50 for the day, one price). The shop and café are excellent.

5Eaton_Out 5:00 PM May 17, 2022

Great excursion when in Arnhem
Remarkable summer home of the Netherlands Royal family. As of April 2022 the palace is undergoing extensive restorations but is still open to the public and worth visiting. Some rooms were stripped to the sub-floor, etc. There is a rooftop viewing area open to the public but be aware that many steps have to be traversed to get there. The rooftop is worth the effort, We were with a group tour but tickets appear to be €19.50 as of this writing. The gardens are marvelous and well maintained. One garden remains under restoration. From the gift shop/entry there is a reasonable walk to the palace but golf carts are available for the handicapped. As you exit there is a transportation museum to the right in the old stables that houses vehicles previously used by the family.