Sailing Friesland style

What is there to see in the Frisian Maritime Museum? Well, obviously lots of ships, but you will also learn a lot about fishing, inland shipping (in skûtsjes), shipbuilding and sailing as a sport. One thing is certain: you will leave knowing a lot more about Frisian shipping.  

“From skûtsjes to tjotters: the Frisian Maritime Museum explains everything about the history of sailing in Friesland.”

The Frisian Maritime Museum tells the history of Frisian shipbuilding and shipping using countless model ships, paintings, ship interiors, instruments, tools and curiosities. If you’ve an appetite for more, the museum also has an ice room explaining all about ice skating and the Eleven Cities Race. For the kids, a room has been turned into a children’s museum where they can build a boat in the boat lab and launch it in the museum’s pond.

Hey, did you know?

A skûtsje (Friesian flat-bottomed boat) is a barge-like freighter that was used as an inland waterway vessel in the 20th century. Their shallow hull made them ideal for the Friesian lakes and sluices. If you want to see a lot of skûtsjes together, go to Skûtsjesilen. This is an annual sailing race for skûtsjes that is held on the Friesian waters each summer.

  Fries Scheepvaart Museum
Address: Kleinzand 16, Sneek
Open: see website
Online: friesscheepvaartmuseum.nl

Fries Scheepvaart Museum