Tynaarlo is a municipality in the north of the province of Drenthe, in the Netherlands. Tynaarlo is named after a small village in the centre of the municipality, but the municipality also includes the larger towns Zuidlaren, Eelde-Paterswolde, and Vries. Many of the villages in the municipality are so-called brinkdorpen, which means they are centred around a brink or 'village green', and the eastern part of the region is part of the Drentsche Aa National Park. Tynaarlo is located between the cities of Groningen and Assen, and Groningen Airport Eelde is within the municipality.

Understand

Winde, a hamlet in the municipality of Tynaarlo.

Tynaarlo is in the north of the province of Drenthe, bordering Noordenveld to the west, provincial capital Assen to the south, Aa en Hunze to the southeast, and the province of Groningen (city of Groningen and Hoogezand) to the north. It is a rural area with dozens of towns, villages, and hamlets. The larger towns function as commuter towns for Assen and especially the city of Groningen.

In 2019, it was home to 34,000 people.

Tourist information

There are three tourist information points (TIPs) in Tynaarlo.

• 1 TIP Eelde/Paterswolde, Hoofdweg 179, Paterswolde, ☏ +31 50 309 4640. Tu-F 10:00-18:00, Sa 10:00-17:00. (updated Sep 2016)
• 2 TIP Zuidlaren, Verlengde Hondsrugstraat 12A, Zuidlaren (in Coffea Bar Zuidlaren), ☏ +31 50 364 1294. Tu-Sa 10:00-18:00, Su M 12:00-18:00. (updated Sep 2016)
• 3 TIP Vries, Schultestraat 4, Vries (in tea shop/café Het Koetshuis), ☏ +31 592 542 982. Tu-F 10:00-18:00, Sa 10:00-17:00. (updated Sep 2016)

Get in

By car

The municipality of Tynaarlo is traversed by the A28 motorway, providing quick connections to the north (Groningen city 10 minutes) and south (Assen 15 minutes, Zwolle 45 min). In addition, the N34 expressway leads to Tynaarlo from the southeast (Emmen 40 minutes). Amsterdam and Schiphol Airport are about 1 hr 45 min from Tynaarlo.

By public transport

Although the Zwolle-Groningen railway traverses the municipality of Tynaarlo, there is no railway station in the region. The nearest railway stations with intercity service are in Assen and Groningen. Both stations offer regular connections to and from the Eastern and Western Netherlands (including Amsterdam and Schiphol Airport), and Groningen station has more connections to and from Friesland province, other regions in Groningen province, and Germany.

The key bus routes to get into the municipality of Tynaarlo are listed below. All bus routes are operated by Qbuzz.

• Bus route 5 (1-6x/hour): from Groningen city via Haren and Tynaarlo (Zuidlaren) to Annen.
• Bus route 9 (1-2x/hour): from Groningen city to Tynaarlo (Eelde-Paterswolde, the airport, and De Punt).
• Bus route 50 (1-2x/hour): from Groningen city via Haren and Tynaarlo (De Punt and Vries) to Assen.
• Bus route 51 (0-2x/hour): from Groningen city via Haren, Tynaarlo (Zuidlaren) and Annen to Gieten, sometimes to Assen.

In addition, there is bus route 100 (AirportLink) from Groningen city, but within Tynaarlo this bus route only calls at the airport.

By plane

1 Groningen Airport Eelde (GRQ ^IATA) is located in the municipality of Tynaarlo. The airport offers (multiple) daily flights to and from Copenhagen, London-Southend, and Munich, and various other scheduled and charter flights to and from cities and holiday destinations in Southern Europe. Car rental is available at the airport, and from the airport there are fast road connections throughout the region. Bus route 9 provides connections from the airport to Eelde-Paterswolde and De Punt. To get to Vries, a change to bus route 50 at the village of De Punt is required, and to get to Zuidlaren a change to bus route 5 at Groningen city is needed.

Get around

The easiest and fastest way to get around in the municipality of Tynaarlo is by car. However, for shorter distances using a bicycle is recommended. Good cycling infrastructure is available, and all villages are clearly signposted with dedicated signposts for cyclists. The four key bus routes as mentioned above can also be used for travelling within Tynaarlo. However, the main towns are not well connected to each other. To get from Eelde-Paterswolde or Vries to Zuidlaren or vice versa, you will need travel via Groningen city.

See

Museum De Buitenplaats in Eelde.

Museums

• 1 Museum De Buitenplaats, Hoofdweg 76, Eelde, ☏ +31 50 309 5818. Tu-Su 11:00-17:00. Museum on contemporary figurative art. Adults €9. (updated Sep 2016)
• 2 Molenmuseum De Wachter (windmill and craft museum), Havenstraat 36, Zuidlaren, ☏ +31 50 409 0308. W 13:30-16:30, Sa 10:00-16:30. Museum including a 19th century grist mill, with expositions on old crafts and steam machines. Adults €6. (updated Sep 2016)

Dolmen sites

Just as in the other parts of Drenthe province, there are several dolmens (megalithic tombs) in Tynaarlo.

• 3 Dolmens D3 and D4, Midlaren. (updated Sep 2016)
• 4 Dolmen D5, Zeijen (easy to access from the Witteveen road). (updated Sep 2016)
• 5 Dolmen D6, Tynaarlo. Small but complete dolmen site. (updated Sep 2016)

Do

Tynaarlo is along the route of the most famous long distance walking route of the Netherlands, the Pieterpad. Stage 3 ends, and stage 4 starts, in the town of Zuidlaren.

Outdoor recreation and water sports

The western shore of the Paterswoldsemeer lake is in the municipality of Tynaarlo (the remainder of the lake is in Groningen city and Haren), and so is the southern part of the Zuidlaardermeer lake (with the remainder being in Midden-Groningen). The lakes have facilities for swimming and water sports such as sailing and kayaking.

• 1 Zeil-Surfschool Zuidlaardermeer, De Bloemert 1, Midlaren, ☏ +31 50 409 2379. High summer season daily 09:00-18:00, low season weekends 09:00-18:00, winter closed. At the Zuidlaardermeer lake. Sailing and surfing school, and rental of boats, surf boards, kayaks, etc. (updated Sep 2016)
• 2 Jachthaven Zuidwesthoek, Meerweg 247, Haren (behind Groningerweg 1, Paterswolde), ☏ +31 50 309 4444. Daily 9:00-17:30. At the Paterswoldsemeer lake. Marina and rental of sailing boats, motor boats, and canoes/kayaks. (updated Sep 2016)

Eat

• 1 Restaurant 't Huys van Bunne, Donderenseweg 1, Bunne, ☏ +31 50 309 2275. W-Su 17:00-24:00. Restaurant in the tiny village of Bunne, with seasonal meat and fish dishes. Main courses are about €20. (updated Sep 2016)
• 2 De Rooie Kater Eelde, Hoofdweg 87a, Eelde, ☏ +31 50 309 2868. Tu-Su 17:00-22:00. Varied menu with many meat and fish dishes as well as a large selection of pizzas. (updated Sep 2016)
• 3 De Rooie Kater Zuidlaren, Hogeweg 17, Zuidlaren, ☏ +31 50 409 2121. Tu-Su 17:00-22:00. Second restaurant of the same owner, with the same menu as De Rooie Kater in Eelde. (updated Sep 2016)

Sleep

Hotels

There are a few hotels in Tynaarlo. Additional hotels can be found nearby in the cities of Groningen and Assen.

• 1 Fletcher Familiehotel Paterswolde, Groningerweg 19, Paterswolde, ☏ +31 50 309 5400. Well-known hotel on the northern outskirts of Paterswolde, near the Paterswoldsemeer lake and the city of Groningen. (updated Sep 2016)
• 2 Fletcher Hotel De Zeegser Duinen, Schipborgerweg 8, Zeegse, ☏ +31 592 530 099. In the national park Drentsche Aa. (updated Sep 2016)
• 3 Brinkhotel Zuidlaren, Brink O.Z. 6, Zuidlaren, ☏ +31 50 409 1261. Double rooms from €59.50 per night. (updated Sep 2016)
• 4 Hotel De Vriezerbrug, Vriezerweg 20, Tynaarlo, ☏ +31 592 543 626. Double room €61.50 per night. (updated Sep 2016)
• 5 Herberg Tió, Oude Rijksweg 1, Vries, ☏ +31 592 268 850. Small hotel in Vries. Double rooms from €64.50 per night. (updated Sep 2016)

Go next

Routes through Tynaarlo

Utrecht ← Assen ←	S  N	→ Groningen → END
Emmen ← Aa en Hunze ←	S  N	→ END
Pieterburen ← Groningen ←	N  S	→ Rolde → Sint-Pietersberg