General

Holidays by Destination Europe Netherlands General Attitudes to Children 

The northern European approach of treating children as fully paid up members of the human race is a real pleasure: not only are children accepted in all but the swankiest of establishments (places which are few and far between), their needs are almost always catered to. Public places frequently lay on something for children, even if it is only paper and pencils for drawing, and there are plenty of attractions specifically designed with children in mind.

Playgrounds

Found in almost all urban parks, usually featuring a sandpit and sometimes paddling pool. Some charge a fee but as they are usually well run with a resident caretaker/manager, this seems good value. In addition almost every town has a petting farm for children.

Buggies

Should be easy to use, particularly in view of the major efforts made to ensure that public places are wheelchair friendly. The only difficulty is likely to be in the old town centres such as on the cobbled streets alongside canals.

Breastfeeding

Oddly given its record on home births, Holland has Europe's lowest rate of breastfeeding. This means you are unlikely to see it out and about. However, the predominantly liberal attitudes should mean that you don't have too much of a problem if you do want to feed in public.

Babysitting

On the basis of our research, not offered by most hotels, though they are happy to have parents use baby listening systems.