The Dutch love it: hiking. Wear sturdy shoes, map out a route and go. Fortunately, it is not difficult to find beautiful hiking routes in the Netherlands. We are spoilt with beautiful landscapes, where you can make both challenging trips and short detours. What motivations do Dutch walkers have? Where do they like to stretch their legs and what do they find important when they go for a breath of fresh air? Colombus Travel surveyed these questions among its readers and those of Roots. The answers reveal several key hiking trends: interesting findings for destination marketing. In this trend tip, copywriter Jeske highlights some of the findings and tells how to capitalise on these trends with catchy copy.
Trend 1: we like to take our time
A short walk around the block? We prefer to make it a walk of at least half an hour. Colombus Travel's survey shows that only 7% of respondents take walks of 30 minutes or shorter. 42% hike at least 30 minutes to an hour, 32% go for walks of one to two hours and 19% prefer to plot walks of at least two hours.
Here's how to apply this in your content: choose words and phrases like 'an hour in nature', 'get away from it all', 'a nice lunch walk', and 'recharge for an hour in the greenery'.
Trend 2: we prefer walking in nature
Do we go for a walk? Then we prefer to go into nature. With 77% of the votes, the forest is by far the most popular walking environment. Beach and dunes (44%), heathland (38%) and hills (23%) follow.
Here's how to apply this in your content: if it applies to your destination, actively position your destination as 'wooded', 'hilly' or 'grand'. Describe natural landscape elements in a lively way, such as 'flowering purple heather', 'meandering rivers' and 'flora and fauna'. And especially support this with stunning seasonal images, where beautiful autumn colours and that wonderful flowering heather are in the spotlight.
More than three-quarters of walkers choose the woods as their favourite walking environment.
Trend 3: variation, tranquillity and clear signage are important to us
We walk to enjoy. This enjoyment works best when we are in an area with varied nature and landscapes (53%) and in quiet surroundings (50%). But we also find practical matters important, such as clear signposting (35%), good accessibility (29%) and enough rest points (23%). If we are then also treated to photogenic spots, we are totally in our element.
Here's how to apply it in your content: use vivid, visual language to describe different types of landscape. Not just 'beautiful green area', but also 'undulating dunes, cosy forest paths and open heathlands'. Sketch a rich picture; by doing so, you also show that places are photogenic. Also put the focus on tranquillity: 'escape the crowds', 'enjoy the silence', 'whispering forests' are terms that work well. Finally, share plenty of practical information. 'Follow the purple posts', 'here you will find benches to rest' and 'a forest restaurant is a 15-minute walk away' are examples.
Trend 4: these are the most popular national parks
National parks are ideal hiking locations. They are rich in (varied) nature, have plenty of walking (and often cycling) routes and usually good facilities. The Hoge Veluwe is a clear favourite: 81% of hikers prefer to go here. The Utrechtse Heuvelrug (65%) and the Veluwezoom (57%) follow.
This is how you apply this in your content: emphasise the icon status ('Not for nothing favourite among 8 out of 10 hikers'), but also look at how you can highlight unique plus points from the area. Bucket list items in the form of to-do lists work well: 'The five most beautiful viewpoints' or '10 ideal hiking routes for the tranquillist'. Surrounding regions can benefit from the prominence of these parks. 'Just 10 minutes away from...' or 'De Hoge Veluwe is just around the corner' are content items you can use.
Revealed: these are the Netherlands' most popular hiking provinces
The Netherlands has twelve provinces: enough choice for the hiker to hit the road. And we are quite spoilt in that respect. We have beautiful coastal provinces, but also provinces rich in forests and even hilly provincial regions. When we put on our hiking boots, which provinces do we prefer to head to?
- Gelderland: 28% - Naturally known for the Veluwe, and how about the Betuwe?
- Limburg: 16% - We love the Limburg hills!
- North Brabant: 11% - Popular among other things for the vast Loonse and Drunense Dunes, a beautiful mix of sand drifts and forest.
Curious about the entire top 10? You can read the complete research and article by Colombus Travel editor Mark Mackintosh at columbusmagazine.co.uk.
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