The Louwman Museum is an automotive-themed museum with a wonderful collection of 275 historic and classic motor cars. It is owned by the Louwman family and is housed in a specially designed 16,000m² building with landscaped gardens which was opened in 2010 by Queen Beatrix.
The museum is located a little way (3km) outside the centre of The Hague on the former Reigersbergen estate but can be reached easily by bus or car.
The collection was started in 1934 with a Type 30 Dodge – as founder Pieter Louwman happened to be the distributor for Dodge cars in the Netherlands. It is no surprise that American cars are very well represented in the collection with 70 in total followed by France (44), Great Britain (38), Italy (33) and Germany (32).
The museum collection was previously on display at two former locations between 1969 and 2010.
Visiting the Louwman Museum
From the reception area you enter the museum into the impressive Great Hall which has a number of vehicles around its edges including a Citroen DS 19 (1956) and a Chevrolet Corvette (1963).
You can follow the museum route by taking the lift up to the 2nd floor. The collection starts with some rare veteran vehicles from the 19th century. One of the oldest pieces in the collection is the De Dion-Bouton & Trepardoux Steam Quadricycle which dates back to 1887.
Following that is a display of vehicles themed by decade of the 20th century.
Further highlights of the collection include
- electric and hybrid vehicles from the early 20th century
- an eclectic range of micro cars and concept cars
- the original Aston Martin DB5 from the 1964 Bond film Goldfinger starring Sean Connery
- a customised Cadillac Fleetwood (1976) owned by Elvis Presley
- the green Ferrari 500 Superfast Speziale (1965) once owned by Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands
- the six wheel March 2-4-0/771 Formula 1 racing car (1976)
- the Toyoda AA (1936), the only remaining pre-war Toyota which was found on a farm near Vladivostok, Russia
- the fully-restored Brooke Swan Car from 1910
There is also a range of racing cars on view including those from Formula 1, Indy 500, NASCAR and rally cars.
The museum also holds an extensive range of toy cars, automotive art, sculptures and memorabilia. Information labelling is given in both Dutch and English.
The atmospheric ‘Museumplein’ square at the end of the museum route features some traditional shop fronts and has a cafe-restaurant.
Guided tours are available on advance request and there is a free downloadable audio tour as well. There is a treasure hunt activity for youngsters.
The Louwman Museum is one of the finest automobile museums in the world and is an absolute-must visit to any motor-enthusiast. Even those who do not have a specialist interest in cars would still enjoy a stroll around the exhibits.
Louwman Museum Essential Info
| Opening Times | 1000-1700 (Tue-Sun), closed on Mondays. Open daily during July and August. |
| Admission Prices (2024) | €19.00 for adults, €10.00 for children/youths 5-18. Free for children 0-4 and Museumkaart holders. |
| Getting There | It is located about 3km north-east from the centre of The Hague off the N44 road. It can be reached by Arriva bus 385 from Den Haag Centraal which takes 11 minutes and stops outside the museum. The museum has an underground car park (€8) on site. |
Louwman Museum, Leidsestraatweg 57, 2594 BB Den Haag
T: +31(0)70 359 8070, louwmanmuseum.nl
Last update 12 January 2024. This article was originally published in 2022.
Links on AmsterdamTips.com may pay us an affiliate commission.
