Biking at De Hoge Veluwe. (Courtesy De Hoge Velewue - hogeveluwe.nl)

Holland's biggest national park is no Banff. There's nary a hill, let alone a mountain.

But in one of Europe's most densely populated countries -- nearly 17 million people in an area just over half that of New Brunswick -- De Hoge Veluwe's 5,000 hectares of woodlands, moorland and sand drifts is something of a national treasure.

And Banff, last time I looked, didn't have one of the biggest collections of Van Goghs. De Hoge Veluwe has that plus a garden containing more than 100 sculptures, a fleet of 1,700 free bicycles and a restaurant where a craving for what the Dutch call "pannekoeks'' can be satisfied.

The Van Goghs --180 drawings and 87 paintings -- are in the Kroller Muller Museum, and include Cafe Terrace at Night, one of his better-known works.

The bikes are for pedalling along the park's 40 kilometres of paved paths. Two Japanese tourists were wobbling about them when I visited, but they're intended more for the Dutch. They seem to spend as much time on two wheels as Canadians do on four.

Which is why they can afford to load up on pancakes the size of a medium pizza and considerably heavier than flapjacks.

Ours came with toppings that included warm cherries, ginger, apple compote, raisins, mushrooms, bacon, and cheese. Oh yes, and syrup. Tip: Do not, as I did, roll your pancake up like a burrito. Just load, leave flat, and slice.

The park, near Apeldoorn, is one one of several major attractions that can be reached from Amsterdam in an hour or so.

Twenty minutes from the park is Palace Het Loo. It was used by the royal family as a summer palace until 1977, so most of the furniture is original. The gardens are newly planted each spring and summer in 17th-century traditional style, and fountains play continuously from April through November. Audio tours in English are available.

Enkhuizen has the Zuiderzee Museum, which attempts to preserve the fishing village culture that existed before the completion of a massive closure dike in 1932 turned a sea into a lake.

There's a sort of pioneer village, with 156 authentic buildings, footbridges and even a tiny canal. A bake shop sells pastries. The more adventurous can sample smoked herring and eel. Can't say I share the Dutch passion for herring, but I had seconds of smoked eel, which they consider a delicacy comparable to smoked salmon.

Docked near the village is part of the biggest collection of boats in Europe -- nearly 70 -- that also belongs to the museum.

Faced with a decline in visitors, the museum has begun shifting away from the past. So along with an exhibit about the long-defunct whaling industry you might find one on contemporary design or art. The goal, we were told, is to make it the Dutch version of London's famed Victoria and Albert Museum. Online, visit zuiderzeemuseum.nl.

In nearby Makkum is the factory of Royal Tichelaar, whose handpainted pottery is prized but whose prices are mind-boggling. A saucer-sized dish on a table of "seconds'' was 102 Euros (about $165). And that was two-thirds off the price of an unblemished one. One euro buys a postcard of one of their old tiles. There are tours at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. daily, and they're free.