The Best of Leiden: A Self-Guided Audio Tour

Overview

On this self-guided audio tour, you’ll discover how a medieval town transformed into a center of knowledge and culture that shaped global history. The tour begins at the Hartebrugkerk. You’ll weave through narrow alleys and alongside picturesque canals, exploring the Rijksmuseum Boerhaave, where medical science flourished. Along the way, you’ll discover how commerce, religion, and innovation shaped this influential Dutch city. You’ll climb the ancient Burcht van Leiden, a fortress that’s stood guard over the city for nearly a thousand years. Along quiet canals, you’ll find wall poems painted in dozens of languages and hidden hofjes (courtyard almshouses) that tell stories of charity and community. The tour ends at the ornate Renaissance façade of the Stadhuis. By the end of this tour, you’ll understand how this seemingly quiet Dutch city played an outsized role in science, art, and global affairs throughout history.

Itinerary

1. Hartebrugkerk

   This self-guided audio tour around Leiden begins at the Hartebrugkerk (Heart Bridge Church), a fitting starting point where a wooden bridge has connected the city since the 1300s.

   · Non-stop passage

2. Rijksmuseum Boerhaave

   You’ll weave through narrow alleys and alongside picturesque canals, exploring the Rijksmuseum Boerhaave where medical science flourished.

   · Non-stop passage

3. Museum De Lakenhal

   Visit the former Cloth Hall (Lakenhal) that showcases how textile trade brought wealth to Leiden

   · Non-stop passage

4. Marvel at the Morspoort, one of only two surviving 17th-century city gates

   · Non-stop passage

5. Walk along the prestigious Rapenburg Canal, often called one of Europe’s most beautiful waterways

   · Non-stop passage

6. Experience the vibrant Aalmarkt, once the bustling center of the city’s fish trade

   · Non-stop passage

7. Burcht van Leiden

   You’ll climb the ancient Burcht van Leiden, a fortress that’s stood guard over the city for nearly a thousand years.

   · Non-stop passage

8. Explore Pieterskerk, where the Pilgrim Fathers worshipped before departing on the Mayflower

   · Non-stop passage

9. Explore Leiden University, founded in 1575 as a reward for the city’s resistance during the Spanish siege, and where Einstein once taught as a visiting professor

   · Non-stop passage

10. Hortus Botanicus Leiden

    See the Hortus Botanicus, where tulips were first planted in the Netherlands, sparking the famous tulip mania

    · Non-stop passage

11. National Museum of Antiquities (Rijksmuseum van Oudheden)

    National Museum of Antiquities

    · Non-stop passage

12. The tour ends at the ornate Renaissance façade of the Stadhuis (City Hall), which has served as Leiden’s administrative heart for generations.

    · Non-stop passage

How to use your ticket

Ticket handed over by the operator on site

VOICEMAP CODE ─── Please check your email at the address you provided when you made this booking. You've been sent an eight character code you'll need to redeem your tour. This code can be used by every member of your party. If you've booked for three people, for example, three people can download this tour using the same code. DOWNLOAD INSTRUCTIONS ─── Once you've received your code, please follow these steps: Install the VoiceMap Audio Tours mobile app Create an account Select Tour Codes from the menu, then select Enter Codes Enter your code then select Download Now PLEASE NOTE ─── You can download the tour at any time, before or after your booking date. It’s best to download the tour before you set off for the starting point. This tour follows a set route and includes turn-by-turn directions. It works best if you start it in the right place and follow the directions from one location to the next. When the download completes, you’ll see a screen with a photo of the starting point and directions to it. The red start button will become active when you are at the starting point. Remember to bring your own headphones, unless you have booked a driving tour. SUPPORT ─── For technical support and other queries, please email support@voicemap.me

Meeting and end point

What to know before you go

• Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Travelers

Cancellation policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

• From 1 days before : 100% refunded
• From 0 days before : 0% refunded

Product code: 110804P1049

Activity offered by VoiceMap Audio Tours via Viator.