For a general overview of Texel and how to get there you can go here. This post is only covering the beach areas, if you want to know more about the beach areas, then check out the page on Texel - Beaches. Once you are in the forest, either follow any of the marked routes, or just follow your nose and work your way through the maze of footpaths down south towards the viewing towers and the nature preservation areas where the leash free area ends.

For a general overview of Texel and how to get there you can go here. This post is only covering the beach areas, if you want to know more about the forest and dune areas, then check out the page on Texel - Forests. There are a number of all year round dog beaches on Texel where you can let your pup spend whatever energy he has.

Texels is the largest of the string of islands at the north of the Netherlands. Known for its brewery and beaches, it is a popular holiday resort for both dutch and visitors from over the border. It has to be one of the most dog friendly areas in a busy holiday location that you can wish for. It is a large and diverse island offering some extensive forest areas and, of course, lots and lots of beach.

Oudorperhout is a park in the north part of Alkmaar, inside the ring road, so very close by for anyone staying in or visiting Alkmaar. It is a well maintained and quite picturesque little haven within the city limits. It is quite a diverse park with a huge range of waterways, some forest areas and wide open fields, so there is something for everyone here.

This is a relatively large area of watery fields, combined with a kids play area. It is somehow not so busy for dog walkers and I don't understand why because it is just a 20 minute drive from Amsterdam, but it just seems to be one of those places that only the locals know about. Until now... Park at the Brasserie De Jutter (Weidelandpad 3, 1448 MB Purmerend), and walk over the little wooden footbridge to the back of the restaurant and into the fields.

Enkhuizen is a lovely little town and well worth the trip, and even if the off leash zones are limited there is simply something quaint and cosy about this town. Situated just at the end of the inner dyke that spans the IJsselmeer/Markenmeer, it's a convenient place to make a break if you are travelling to or from Germany. It is a fairly small town with some gorgeous old and historic buildings, excellent pedestrian shopping streets with boutique shops and some lovely little cafes, an enormous yacht harbour, a grassy dyke to walk along and a small park just off the waterfront that allows dogs to stretch their legs.

Scheveningen offers a vibrant promenade with bars, restaurants, and shops. While dogs must be leashed in summer next to the pier, two dog-friendly beaches are available year-round. Overall, it's a great spot for a day of leisure with your pup.

De Manteling is a large expanse of forest area that stretches along the coastline of Veere, a province of the island that houses Zeelands capital, Middelburg. Although Zeeland is well known for its summer towns and beaches, there are also extensive walking and hiking areas on all of the islands. De Mantling is, as with most coastal landscapes in the Netherlands, a mixture of dunes and forest path but one of the best parts of this walk is a dip into the all year round, dog friendly Berkenbosch Beach!

On the island Schouwen-Duiveland, at the Kop van Schouwen (the outermost headland of the island) is a large hiking area that has a small off leash zone in the middle of the dunes. As Zeeland caters mostly for tourists it is less open to free running dogs than other areas in the Netherlands. However although this whole dunes area may be mostly on leash walking, it is quite lovely so don't skip it just because your pup prefers his freedom, the pathways and sniffing opportunities are so extensive that your pup will come out feeling very enriched even without running free, and you can always reward his patience with a little leg stretch at the off leash zone.

Bergerbos is a lovely mixture of dunes and forest and is on the edge of the popular tourist town, Bergen. A huge part of the park allows your dog to roam off leash pretty much all year round, the only exception is during the bird breeding season which is 15 March to 15 June when you must leash your dog everywhere.

Waarderhout is a secret little gem of a forest just outside Heerhugowaard, a little north of Alkmaar. On first glance it just looks like a small park on the edge of town, and when you read that off leash dogs are only allowed on half of this park then you would be forgiven for thinking it is not worth the visit.

Diepsmeerpark is a decent-sized, well maintained park just north of Heerhugowaard and Alkmaar. It is a little maze of canals and open areas and if you walk up and down all sides of these canal "islands" , you can stretch your walk up to an hour or so. Technically the leash free zone is only at the north of the park, but I have to say it is not clearly marked, and most people just use the whole park to let their dogs run around.

Just outside Eindhoven is a lovely large hiking area that is predominantly a leash walk area, but also has a 4km long leash-free zone. Combine the two and you can have a full day of hiking with your hound in this beautiful heathland area. But since this website is all about leash-free areas we will focus on that. The path you want to take is the Heideroute, marked in yellow on the pathway signs.

Veerplas is a relatively small beach area, popular in summer as a play and swimming area for children. For that reason it is only open to dogs between 1 October and 1 April. However in winter it is a lovely little piece of the Spaarnwoude Park and apart from the beach area and cafe, it's pretty much empty to dog walkers after 1 October..