Kasteeltuinen Arcen

Kasteel Arcen is a moated seventeenth-century house on the Maas in northern Limburg, and from the 1980s the estate around it was developed into one of the larger garden complexes in the country - about thirty-two hectares laid out as a sequence of distinct gardens rather than one scheme. There is a rosarium with several thousand plants, a Mediterranean casa, a Japanese-influenced water garden, an eastern garden with Southeast Asian pavilions brought from Indonesia and Thailand, a lake with a wooden walkway, greenhouses, and a large collection of hydrangeas and perennials. The mix is eclectic and deliberately so, and it works better than a description of it sounds because the planting is good and the scale allows each section its own space. The castle itself holds events and a brewery is on the estate. Peak is May to July.

What you actually see

• Thirty-two hectares in sections - distinct gardens rather than one scheme.
• A rosarium of several thousand plants - the largest single section.
• Southeast Asian pavilions - structures brought from Indonesia and Thailand.
• A moated seventeenth-century castle - at the centre of the estate.

When to go

May to July for the roses; April to October otherwise. A day.

Honest expectations

Seasonal opening, closed in winter. It is large and involves a lot of walking. Busy in the rose season. The castle interior is generally not part of the visit.

Nearby

Venlo is south; De Maasduinen national park is around it.