You may have seen this city’s apple-shaped bike shed while en route to Utrecht or Den Bosch from an NS carriage. If you’ve never made it further than its train station, there’s plenty in Alphen aan den Rijn that’s worth sinking your teeth into. Alphen aan den Rijn’s first inhabitants arrived about 2,000 years ago, but things really started taking off once the Romans showed up.
Albaniana, a large fort once located in what is now the city centre, was constructed around 40 AD. It helped defend the empire’s northern border. Gradually, a community of civilians and former soldiers emerged around the edges of the fort.
This era was relatively peaceful and the Romans built the first bridge over the Oude Rijn as Albaniana became an increasingly vital trading centre for the region. That all came to an end when raiders came calling in 270 AD. Important archaeological artefacts were recovered in the nearby town of Zwammerdam in the late 1960s and 1970s, among them large portions of six ships dating back to the 2nd century AD.
Alphen aan den Rijn now celebrates the region’s Roman heritage with colourful signs in its shopping district and at Archeon, a ‘living museum’ that features daily gladiator battles. Located in the Groene Hart east of Leiden, it’s largely considered a commuter city, but there’s plenty to see and do. Along with Archeon and the Vogelpark zoo, there is an array of shops, eateries, and other attractions that merit a day trip or a longer visit, inclu.