Villas in Drenthe

Walking and cycling in Dwingelderveld National Park, which starts at the edge of the village. Giethoorn's canals are around 25 minutes away, and the old town of Meppel about 15. Kamp Westerbork and the Diever theatre are both within half an hour.

A prehistoric stone tomb, built from huge boulders left by the ice age, more than 5,000 years ago. Most of the Netherlands' hunebeds are in Drenthe. The largest, D27, is in Borger, beside the Hunebedcentrum museum.

Yes. It is flat, quiet and laced with signposted routes on the numbered junction network, many of them on car-free paths through heath and forest. Bikes and e-bikes are easy to hire locally.

Usually from early August to early September. Dwingelderveld, next to Ruinen, and the Drents-Friese Wold near Diever are the best places to see it. Weekends in late August are busy on the main paths.

No. Drenthe is inland and has no coast. There are swimming lakes and outdoor pools, and the nearest North Sea beaches are around two hours away by car.

Fly to Amsterdam Schiphol and drive about two hours, or take the overnight ferry from Newcastle to IJmuiden and drive around two hours from there. Trains from Schiphol reach Meppel and Hoogeveen, with a change, in about two hours.

Yes. The motorcycle Grand Prix at Assen, held in late June, brings large crowds, and houses across the province book up for that weekend. If you are not going to the race, choose another week.

Yes. The memorial centre near Hooghalen tells the story of the transit camp through which most of the Jews deported from the Netherlands passed. It is around half an hour from Ruinen and Zuidwolde.