Plan ahead or get carried along by the wind
Netherlands – Land of water: discovering the origin together
The Wadden Sea – UNESCO World Heritage Site
The mudflats are gorgeous!
On the Wadden Sea, high and low tide alternate every 6 hours. From the North Sea, the water flows in with the tide and out with the ebb. Due to the tides, winds, water, mud and sand, this area is always in motion.
Everything is constantly changing and small tideways, channels and sandbanks that are dry at low tide appear. If we are lucky we can admire the resting seals here.
The Wadden Sea is full of life and has a great biological diversity. There is plenty to discover both under and on the sand. Marine plants, crabs, mussel and oyster beds, cockles, fish and much more.
As soon as we set sail from Harlingen harbor we are directly in the most extraordinary nature reserve in the Netherlands.
The Wadden Sea area was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2009 and has a surface area of 10000km². The area extends over the coasts of Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands.
In the Dutch Wadden Sea, from west to east, there are five inhabited islands (Texel, Vlieland, Terschelling, Ameland and Schiermonnikoog) and three uninhabited islands (Griend, Rottumerplaat and Rottumeroog). The final dike separates the salty Wadden Sea from the sweet Ijsselmeer.
IJsselmeer – the former Southern Sea
From salt water to fresh water
In 1932, the last hole in the final dike was closed. The Southern Sea was thus finally separated from the North Sea. The area north of the closing dike was called the Wadden Sea, the southern area the Ijsselmeer. Separated from the tides of the North Sea, the Ijsselmeer was fed by the fresh water of the river Ijssel and was first brackish water. 10 years later it was called fresh water.
In 1976 the Ijsselmeer was separated again between Enkhuizen and today’s Lelystad. Since then, the part south of the so-called Houtrib dike is called Markermeer.
Our home port Harlingen is located on the Wadden Sea. Through the locks of Kornwerderzand and Den Oever we can reach the Ijsselmeer.
On the Frisian and North Holland coast there are numerous historic and cozy harbor towns of the former South Sea, which invite you to visit.
Netherlands – Land of Water
There is something to discover everywhere
Although the Poseidon normally only cruises in the northern part of the Dutch waters, there is also the possibility to discover other areas. However, for this we need more time (minimum 2 weeks) and it also requires more extensive planning and discussion before booking such a tour.