Discover The Hague

About The Hague

The Hague (Den Haag) is the Netherlands' seat of government — the formal capital being Amsterdam but the actual administrative, royal, and diplomatic centre being here — and the world's official capital of international justice, with the UN's International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court, and Europol all headquartered in town. The Binnenhof, the 13th-century Gothic complex around a small lake that has been the seat of Dutch government for 800 years, is currently closed for major restoration (expected to reopen 2027); the dramatic Ridderzaal (Knight's Hall) and surrounding buildings will be reopened then. The Mauritshuis museum is the city's headline cultural draw — a perfect 17th-century mansion housing a small but extraordinary collection of Dutch Golden Age painting, including Vermeer's 'Girl with a Pearl Earring' (the painting that inspired Tracy Chevalier's novel and the film) and 'View of Delft', plus Rembrandt's 'Anatomy Lesson of Dr Tulp'. Don't miss the Madurodam miniature park (a 1:25 scale model of the entire country, surprisingly fun for adults), the wonderful Escher in Het Paleis (a museum dedicated to M.C. Escher in a former royal palace), and the wide North Sea beach at Scheveningen, the city's beach resort 4km away — a 15-minute tram ride from the centre.