In the 17th century De Rijp suffered 3 terrible fires, the most serious one on 6th January 1654, when two thirds of the village was destroyed. As a result of the draining of the Beemster in 1612 and the Schermer in 1633, Graft De Rijp no longer had direct access to the Zuiderzee. Initially the wealth accumulated with whale hunting covered the costs of re-building, but in the 18th century the whale population had diminished drastically and the Dutch were at war with the English on the North Sea. This caused a great drop in income so there was no further modernization carried out, leaving us this jewel of the 17th century.
The boat and bike rental company Fluisterbootbedrijf de Gouw is based at the hotel, with not only small electric boats for hire but also a (wheelchair accessible) boot for groups. The captain takes you for a wonderful trip through the Eilandspolder and along the village houses and gardens.
De Rijper Eilanden is situated centrally in the province Noord-Holland, with possible day excursions in every direction: the North Sea coast and dunes, Amsterdam, the Ijsselmeer with Volendam and Marken or the island of Texel. At walking distance from the hotel you can visit the Unesco listed Beemster polder and the historical village centre of De Rijp.
De Rijp became very wealthy in the 17th century as a result of the herring fishing followed by whale hunting. The beautiful houses and other buildings dating from the 17th -19th centuries have been well protected and maintained. A visit to the museum ’t Houten Huis gives great insight into this special place, including the stories of the famous three Jans who were born in de Rijp and were of significant historical importance: Jan Adriaanszoon Leeghwater (engineer responsible for the draining of the polders), Jan Janszoon Weltevree (advisor to the king of Korea Korea) and Jan Boon (de last shipping merchant in de Rijp).
