Cycling Texel Island: The perfect Dutch day trip

Can you discover Texel by bike in a day? Absolutely – although we quickly discovered that cycling around the entire island would take considerably longer than our fitness levels would allow! We took our bikes from Den Helder on the TESO ferry and spent a day cycling around Texel, stopping at Den Hoorn, Den Burg, the Texel Brewery and the beach.

I was super excited for this trip! I’d wanted to visit the Island of Texel for a long while. I’m fond of a Texel beer every now and then, so I thought the brewery would be fun and interesting. But I was keen to visit mainly because there just seemed to be so much to see and do on the tiny island. Photos that I’d seen from other people’s visits just made me all the keener to take a trip there myself. It just seemed so beautiful, clean, intriguing, and just so picturesque at every turn.

Texel is one of the largest islands off the coast of the Netherlands. It is made up of seven villages, with over a quarter of the island being made up of dunes of Texel National Park. There are literally miles and miles of cycle lanes taking you all over the island. There’s also a bus route, beaches, a town centre, and dune walking routes, to name just a few of the activities that the island has to offer.

However, before visiting, I had heard that Texel can be quite expensive to visit. When researching and planning our trip me and my partner discovered that the accommodation was a bit over our budget. We initially thought that this was partly due to us wanting to travel there at peak season and over a weekend. However, from looking into it further, we found that it was pretty much the norm pricewise throughout the year.

So, we opted to stay in nearby Den Helder in a self-catered apartment. We stayed at Hotel Studio Bosch Duin Strand. We chose this accommodation as we thought being self-catered, we could please ourselves in terms of when we ate. And also, that it would help to keep our costs down with there being a couple of supermarkets nearby. And, there was a really nice seating area outside where we could have a quiet drink in the evenings too. But also, it was close to the dunes and to the beach. We’d highly recommend a stay here. Not only was it ideally located, but it was comfortable, clean, and everyone was really friendly. Plus, breakfast was included at a time of your choice, conveniently delivered to your room.  

Our aim was to stay here for the majority of the weekend and do a day trip over to Texel with our bikes on the ferry.

The Lands End Hotel is literally right next to the ferry port, so is super convenient. Especially if you’ve been cycling all day and just want to step into the shower and then fall into bed! In fact, it is a 3 minute walk. Couldn’t be anymore convenient really!

If you’re looking for a centre location in Den Helder, which is a 6 minute bike ride to the TESO ferry. There is Forest Hotel, Long Stay Den Helder or Hotel Wienerhof. All of which are 3 star rated hotels. Or, the Cityhouse Vincent which is rated 4 stars.

For a beachfront stay, check out Apartment Boven Jan 572. It has 4 stars and a strong 9.2 rating on Booking.com. Or, for a nearby but still close-to-the-beach option, try this 3-star, top-rated hotel: B&B Hotel the Baron Crown.

If you’d prefer to stay on Texel Island itself there are also plenty of options…

We left super early in an attempt to get one of the first ferries of the morning, although, with my cycling skill and speed, it took slightly longer! Which wasn’t really a worry as the ferry left every hour from 6:00 AM to 09:00 PM. Plus, the ferry journey itself took about 20 minutes. But, the last crossing back was at 09:00 PM, so we wanted to make the most out of the time we had on the island. The ferry cost us 6 euros return each to take our bikes. Not bad at all, really!

As we disembarked, we decided to head along the cycle path towards Den Hoorn. One of the seven villages on the island, and only about 10 minutes by bike. Quaint and pretty. It was a nice sunny day to have a stroll around.

From there, we cycled over to Den Burg. Which was about 20 minutes by bike. A slightly bigger, busier place. This was one of my favourite stop-offs of the day. I could have easily stayed all day. Actually, we probably stayed longer than we should have! But it had such a relaxed, happy vibe. The locals were super friendly and they seemed to have a good sense of humour.

Given that it was Summertime it was busy, but you could still easily get a table on a terrace and walk around the streets easily enough. We managed to find one or two quieter streets to stroll along too. It was nice to have a stroll around in the sunshine and have a break from sitting on the bicycle saddle for a bit! And also, have a beer on the terrace with the sandwiches we’d brought along with us that morning.

A relatively short bike ride from Den Burg was the Texel Brewery. One of the highlights of this trip! We booked our tour beforehand. It cost 15 euros each for the tour and tasting, and lasted about an hour. I think my favourite was Zeebries Blond!

After the brewery, we decided to head to the beach for a bit. We grabbed a couple of beers from Albert Heijn before slowly making our way to the beach, with a couple of café pitstops along the way, to chill out for what ended up being the rest of the afternoon/evening.

There was such a calm, peaceful, and happy vibe that we just ended up chilling, going for a swim, and having a beer. It was just perfect, so lovely. But before long, we thought we’d better start heading back to make sure we were back in time for the last ferry of the day. And, with my cycling ability, it took pretty much double the time Google Maps had predicted!

We didn’t manage to complete cycling the whole island in one day! Partly because my fitness level was quite low! But I know of some people who have cycled the whole island in one day, so it is very doable. And also partly because we took our time to experience and enjoy the beach, Den Burg and the brewery fully. In my opinion, if you want to take your time at certain spots on the island and not feel rushed and to take regular breaks from cycling (like I really needed to!), then I would say 2-3 days are needed to fully explore and experience the island at a steady pace.

Having said that, a 1-day trip really gives you a feel for the place. But you can’t help feeling like you want to revisit and explore the parts that you missed!

~Don’t underestimate the distances! Allow more time than Google Maps suggests. Honestly, I really did wonder if we’d ever get to certain destinations! They’re a lot farther than you think!

~Don’t attempt to cram every village on the island into one day. Plan for a two or three day visit to explore the whole island.

~Be sure to check the ferry times to make sure you don’t miss the last one back if not staying on the island.

~And, leave enough time to get back for the ferry. We were chilling at the beach before realising we should start making a move back. Places really are farther away than you realise!

~Consider renting an e-bike (like I intend to on my next visit) if you’re not a very confident cyclist.

It really was a lovely day, and I’m so glad I finally got the chance to visit. But, one day really wasn’t enough! So, I very much intend to visit again sometime to explore the other half of the island! We only saw a few of the villages; I would have liked to have seen more of them. Along with the Shipwreck and Beachcombing Museum. We didn’t get to see the lighthouse either. Although I think I’d have to take a different mode of transport, as I’m not sure I could make it even halfway by bike!

Texel really is picturesque with happy, friendly locals. A feel-good vibe and some amazingly beautiful houses along the cycle routes. All in all, although a little expensive, an excellent spot to get away for a quiet, relaxed trip.

Staying in the Netherlands a few days and need some exploration ideas? You might also like a trip to Delft, Thorn or Roermond.