Admission ticket to Loevestein Castle

Become Sinterklaas’s Helper!
Sinterklaas is returning to Loevestein Castle. This year, he has an important mission: to train new helpers!

Delivering presents may sound simple, but a good helper needs to be able to do many things: climb, balance, aim, stack, wrap, search and, of course, know the recipe for kruidnoten. Come to the Sinterklaas Festival and join the Helper Training! First, write your name in the big book. Then put your detective skills to work, because Sinterklaas has devised a challenge for participants. He has hidden ten practice presents in the castle. Can you find them all? Then quickly head to the Helper Games, where you can practise throwing presents, shuffleboard with kruidnoten, sack racing, stacking presents and hobby-horse racing.

Complete the assignments, earn your Helper Diploma and become a real Sinterklaas Helper!

The Sinterklaas Festival at Loevestein can be visited from 15 November through 4 December. Sinterklaas and his helpers will be present on 15, 21, 22, 28 and 29 November.

Loevestein Castle

In the quintessentially Dutch river landscape, where the rivers Maas and Waal meet, knight Dirc Loef van Horne had his castle built in 1358. As part of the New Dutch Waterline, Loevestein has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2021. There is plenty to experience for young & old in the castle, outer bailey and soldiers’ village. With its earthen ramparts, double moats, bombproof shelter and lane lined with soldiers’ houses, the fortress still exudes the atmosphere of an eighteenth-century soldiers’ village.

Loevestein Castle served solely a military function and was never inhabited by noble families. However, innkeepers, soldiers and civilians did live there. Visit the permanent exhibition ‘Unearthed’, which reveals traces of their lives. Sometimes quite remarkable, sometimes surprisingly ordinary. The ‘Unearthed!’ exhibition is one of the few archaeological exhibitions in the Netherlands to take place at the actual excavation site.

Visiting the museum with children

When you visit Loevestein Castle with children, they will not be bored for a moment. They can explore freely, with plenty to experience in the castle, outer bailey and soldiers’ village. Learn about Hugo Grotius, the Middle Ages and the Dutch Waterline. Discover the most remarkable, interesting or surprising stories. Find out how people used to live here, who lived here and what took place within the fortress walls. Make gunpowder explode in the powder tower, fire muskets, make the cannon boom and flood the fortress with the water game. Fun workshops and extra activities are regularly organised. 

Food and drinks 

During your visit, you are very welcome to enjoy a cup of coffee or tea with a treat, apple pie, a delicious sandwich, soup or artisan ice cream at one of the catering venues. Within the castle walls, you will find the Taveerne, a museum café with a lovely terrace beneath the trees. A little further on is the Remise, a striking venue in the fortress rampart, built in 1883 as a concrete bombproof shelter. At the Remise, enjoy spectacular views of the castle while the children play on the obstacle course outside.

Nature

Loevestein is located in the floodplains of the Maas and Waal rivers, where nature is free to take its course. A beautiful river landscape has emerged, where herds of large grazing animals roam freely. There is a good chance you will encounter Konik horses or Red Geuzen cattle on your way to Loevestein Castle National Museum!

Accessibility

Loevestein offers free parking for up to 230 cars. Consult Google Maps for the exact route from your departure point and up-to-date departure and travel times.

For more information, visit the Loevestein Castle website