Explore Leiden's historic canals, hidden gems and landmarks aboard your own private boat.
Discover Canal Cruises runs private boat tours through the canals of Leiden, one of the best-preserved medieval cities in the Netherlands. Every cruise is exclusively yours, just you, your group and a local captain-guide, with no strangers and no fixed script.
As you glide along the water, your captain will point out the city's trading history, hidden courtyards and best-known landmarks, with the kind of local stories you won't find in a guidebook.
If you're visiting Leiden as a tourist, a private canal cruise is one of the easiest ways to see the city without planning a route yourself. Step aboard, relax, and let your English or Dutch-speaking captain take care of the rest.
Beyond our cosy canal cruises, we also run private tours for bigger groups and private themed trips that combine a boat ride with a local beer tasting, a chocolate or gin workshop, or a visit to one of Leiden's museums, so you can build a tour around what interests you.
Your own boat: No sharing the experience with a large group of strangers.
A local guide: Your captain knows Leiden and can tell you about the city's history, stories and hidden gems.
Drinks & snacks: Enjoy refreshments while you cruise through the historic centre.
Your group, your experience: Whether you're travelling as a couple, family or larger group, the experience is built around you.
Flexible & personal: Want a special route, a particular occasion or something a little different? Let us know.
Escape to Leiden’s quieter side this autumn and winter. From October through February, glide along the canals wrapped in a heated blanket with a warm glühwein or hot chocolate in hand. Your captain shares the city’s best-loved sights and hidden stories along the way — or simply lets you enjoy the ride in comfortable silence, whichever you prefer.
This special canal tour is perfect for bigger groups that want to discover the city of Leiden within the privacy of their own group. During this 90-minute cruise, our true local captains will tell you all about the city’s rich history, showing you the city's sights and letting you in on some of Leiden's hidden gems. So settle in on board and enjoy the highlights of Leiden, with a drinks and snacks package available to add during booking.
Travel in style on a private boat with your own personal English-speaking guide and captain, and enjoy a deep dive into what the city has to offer. The tour takes you from the famous Hortus Botanicus, Holland's oldest botanical garden, to Leiden's best-known windmill, built in 1743.
In addition, you can choose between an active workshop at Leiden's artisan chocolate maker (morning tour at 10:00) and a gin tasting, where you'll learn about a fascinating piece of Dutch history (afternoon tour at 14:00).
On top of the drinks and snacks available on board, a leisurely lunch or dinner is included at the end of the tour to round off an amazing Leiden experience.
Just relax with the company of your choice, with all-inclusive drinks and snacks, on this private cruise through Leiden's inner-city waterways. In about 90 minutes, the captain will guide you through the most beautiful places of Leiden in a cosy canal boat. Along the way, we share tips from a local and tell you all about our favourite bars, restaurants, and other hidden gems in Leiden! This sightseeing adventure is sure to be one of the highlights of your visit!
Most people see Dutch windmills through a tour bus window or from a crowded footpath. The Dutch Windmill Tour takes you there by water. Over about three hours, your private boat leaves Leiden’s city centre behind and sails into the classic open Dutch countryside, passing nine windmills on its way to the Kagerplassen, a group of lakes just south of the Keukenhof.
It’s just you, your group and a local captain who doubles as your guide. Along the way, they’ll explain how windmills kept this low-lying land dry and show you the best spots for photos. Pizza, snacks and drinks are all included.
Prefer to explore Leiden without a boat? We've got you covered there as well.
Explore the city's culinary heritage on our tantalising Culinary Tour, sampling iconic Dutch delicacies, or delve into Leiden's rich history with our Cultural Tour, which includes visits to museums, windmills, and architectural marvels.
Seeking more of an adrenaline rush? Then opt for our Active Tour, where Dutch cycling is combined with thrilling activities like indoor climbing, paddleboarding, and virtual reality.
We had a private cruise for 6 people with Johnathan. Brilliant experience! Communication was easy and the boat trip was wonderful with lots of information about Leiden and even some snacks and drinks on board. If you’re in Leiden it’s definitely the best way to see the city. Highly recommend!
We booked the Discovery Canal cruise on the 7th of October. Martijn helped us to book the tour, and he nicely explained all the details. Also shared the Google map link of the boarding point beforehand that helped us to reach the spot without any hassle.
Jonathan was our captain for the trip, and he was right on time with the boat. The boat was nice and cosy, and it also had electric blankets that can be used during the trip if any one feels cold. He also arranged numerous food and drinks that we relished through out the trip. Hot Gluhwein( really enticing ), Stroopwafel named a few of many items that was available on board for us.
He sailed through the beautiful canals of Leiden with explaining all the details about different eminent places. We mesmerized by the scenic sights of the Lieden. We were so engrossed in enjoying the tour that couldn't realise when the 90 mins got over. It was a memorable and serene tour. Definitely we recommend this tour to all and will come back again.
Thanks to Jonathan for giving us such an unforgettable experience.
We enjoyed a picturesque day in Leiden on a private 4hr canal tour guided by Jonathon and Martijn. Both guides were very knowledgeable about the area and we enjoyed the land activities (windmill, Hortus Botanicus, chocolate workshop and lunch) as much as we enjoyed cruising the canals themselves.
We really appreciated the personalised nature of the private tour which made the day our extra enjoyable and special.
We had an amazing autumn–winter canal tour for my wife’s birthday. Everything was perfectly on time, and the route felt very private and special. The warm mulled wine, Dutch snacks and electric blankets were such thoughtful touches, cozy and romantic when the city lights came on. Martijn was incredibly professional, attentive, and kind, who also helps set up a surprise arrangement for my wife. Definitely the best private boat tour in Leiden.
Five stars, and we’ll be back again!
Highly recommend this company for a Leiden canal tour! We requested a custom tour for a group of nine with a focus on windmills. Jonathan delivered a perfect three-hour itinerary starting in the city center that took us out to see nine windmills. Our skipper was very hospitable and highly knowledgeable about the local area, and the team even provided packets with details about each windmill. We were looking forward to the included pizza, beer, and wine and were delighted to see that Jonathan included juices and soft drinks for those in our party who don’t drink alcohol and also surprised us with extra snacks and desserts.
We are a French senior couple. Yesterday we had a beautiful experience cruising with Discover Canal Cruises on Leiden city canals for 90 minutes. Just the two of us and our guide on a small electric boat. Martijn had even prepared a special information sheet in French so we wouldn’t miss any of his explanations. And special treat: we enjoyed some hot coffee with traditional waffles and licorice candies on the way.
I strongly recommend this company if you want a real personal experience.
Do you want to receive further information about the tours we provide or do you want to receive a tailor-made quote? Send us a message below and we'll get back to you!
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