Vechtstreek

In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries Amsterdam merchants who had made money in trade built summer houses along the Vecht, the river running north from Utrecht to the old Zuiderzee, because it was reachable by boat in a few hours and the ground was firm - and the result is a stretch of about thirty kilometres lined with buitenplaatsen, formal country houses with gardens running to the water, gate lodges, orangeries and above all theekoepels: small ornamental tea pavilions built right on the bank so the family could sit and watch the boats. Dozens survive. Most of the houses are private and seen from the road or the water, though a few open - Slot Zuylen, Gunterstein and others - and the whole stretch is best done by bicycle or by boat, which is how it was meant to be seen. Breukelen gave its name to Brooklyn.

What you actually see

• Merchant country houses - thirty kilometres of buitenplaatsen along the river.
• Tea pavilions on the bank - the theekoepels built to watch the boats from.
• Gardens running to the water - laid out to be seen from the river.
• Breukelen - the village that gave its name to Brooklyn.

When to go

April to October. A day.

Honest expectations

Most houses are private and viewed from outside; only a handful open and those on limited dates. The cycle route is busy at weekends. A boat gives the intended view but needs hiring.

Nearby

Slot Zuylen is at the Utrecht end; Muiden and Naarden are at the north.