Things to Do in The Hague

The Hague is home to the International Court of Justice and the Permanent Court of Arbitration, making it the 'city of peace and justice' despite not being the official capital of the Netherlands.

The city's beach pavilions (strandpaviljoens) along Scheveningen are uniquely Dutch social spaces where locals and visitors lounge on sand in front of restaurants and bars year-round.

Mauritshuis, The Hague's most famous art museum, hangs Vermeer's 'Girl with a Pearl Earring' in a single intimate room that draws queues of thousands daily.

The Hague was heavily damaged during World War II and much of its current cityscape is post-war reconstruction, yet it retains grand 18th-century architecture in its historic centre.

Peace Palace, built in 1913, was funded by industrialist Andrew Carnegie and sits in a meticulously landscaped park that is closed to public tours but visible from outside.

The city's name 'Den Haag' derives from 'des Graven Hage' (the Count's Garden), referring to the hunting grounds of medieval nobility.