Why Zeeland and Middelburg offer the best 'alternative' wellness break

If you love the UK spa town of Bath, and windswept walking is your route to wellness, head to the Netherlands

Swap Tubes and trains for coastal plains with a wellness break in health-conscious Zeeland, the Netherlands' westernmost province. A more holistic approach to wellbeing is favoured by the Dutch, who consider a windswept bike ride or a meal with friends the equal of any fancy seaweed wrap or massage.

It's just two-and-a-half hours by car from Calais to Middelburg, Zeeland’s cosy capital, and the former trading post serves as an ideal base for exploring the wider area. If you’ve already visited a UK spa town such as Bath, broaden your horizons to northern Europe and see what the Netherlands has to offer.

A sense of equilibrium

Spanned by dams and flood-control barriers, Zeeland’s low-lying peninsulas are a magnet for walkers, cyclists, kiteboarders, surfers and nature lovers. It’s a stirring landscape made of sea, sky and sand, promoting a welcome sense of equilibrium.

Explore Middelburg (Getty Images)

In the heart of it all lies well-to-do Middelburg. Rising up from its ancient harbour and encircled by old moats, it’s a splendid place to spend a weekend.

A vast 12th-century abbey complex houses a cloister and a frescoed crypt, while alleyways lined with grand step-gabled houses recall the town's wealthy maritime past.

Some are now home to upmarket restaurants and pavement cafés, earning the town a growing reputation as a culinary destination.

Healing waters

From here it’s only a 20-minute drive to the popular beach town of Domburg on the North Sea coast, officially recognised by the European Spa Association as a “beneficial seaside resort” due to the quality of its seawater.

On the beach at Domburg (Getty Images)

Heaving in summer but serene out of season, the town has long been known for the quality of its light and bracing sea air, attracting artists, aristocrats and health-seeking tourists since the early 19th century.

It’s also the sunniest spot in the Netherlands, so soak it up with a stroll along the boardwalk, or hire a bike and ride into the Nature Reserve de Manteling with its oak forests, dunes and tree-lined avenues.

Any aching limbs can be sorted with a stress-busting session in Spa Domburg’s salt saunas and steam baths, before more adventures elsewhere.

Further afield

Picturesque Veere (Alamy)

Circle back to Middelburg via picturesque Veere, a former fishing village with a buzzy harbour on the banks of the Veerse Meer lagoon. It’s a pleasant spot for a coffee overlooking bobbing yachts in the marina, followed by a quick stop at charming Oma’s Snoepwinkel to stock up on old-fashioned sweets and stroopwafels to take home – not particularly healthy, admittedly, but you’ve probably earned it by now.

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Relax on a wellness weekend of your own in Zeeland and Middelburg. Take your car with Eurotunnel Le Shuttle and you can travel under the English Channel in just 35 minutes. Book tickets today at eurotunnel.com