Vlieland

Vlieland is the emptiest of the Dutch Wadden islands: about twelve hundred people in one village, Oost-Vlieland, at the eastern end, and then twenty kilometres of dune, planted pine forest and beach with nothing on it at all. Visitors may not bring cars, which is enforced rather than advisory, so the island runs on bicycles and a bus. A second village, West-Vlieland, existed until the sea took it in the eighteenth century; its site is under water off the western tip. The forest was planted from the 1900s to stabilise the sand and is now mature. The Vliehors at the western end is a vast sand flat used as a military bombing range and closed except on guided runs in a converted vehicle. The Wadden Sea between the island and the mainland is on the UNESCO list, but the island itself is not.

History

St. Lucia's flood of 1287 separated Vlieland for good from the mainland, and a storm surge in 1296 probably cut off Eierland, now the north of Texel. Erosion from the west led in 1736 to the loss of a second village, West-Vlieland, after its people had tried for decades to rebuild it after floods; the last native speaker of the island's own dialect died in 1993 at the age of 107 (Wikipedia, Vlieland).

What's there

• One village and nothing else - twelve hundred people at the eastern end.
• A car-free island - visitors barred from bringing vehicles, bicycles instead.
• Planted pine forest - established from the 1900s to hold the sand.
• The Vliehors - a vast sand flat used as a bombing range, visited on guided runs.

When to go

May to September. Two days.

Good to know

No cars for visitors, and the ferry is ninety minutes each way on a tidal timetable. The Vliehors is a live military range and access is only on the organised trip. Accommodation is limited and books far ahead.

Nearby

Terschelling is the next island east; Texel is south-west.

Key facts