Section 3: Harlingen - Dokkum | Eleven Cities Bicycle Route
On this third stage, you leave the west coast and head north, where the skaters faced the “Hell of the North” — here, you can truly experience the vastness of the Frisian landscape, with its long dikes and quiet polders.
During this stage, you’ll cycle through the Wadden Sea area and Northern Friesland. From Harlingen, you’ll follow quiet roads past fields, villages and dikes towards Franeker. Through the fertile Bildt region, with its characteristic farmhouses, you’ll reach Dokkum, the northernmost city of the Eleven Cities Tour.
This is the third stage of the 260 km-long Eleven Cities Cycling Route. The other stages are:
- Stage 4: Dokkum – Sneek (53 km)
- Stage 1: Sneek – Stavoren (75 km)
- Stage 2: Stavoren – Harlingen (51 km)
Find tips and tricks for planning your trip here: Cycling the Eleven Cities Tour | Friesland.nl
Three of the Eleven
On thi…
On this third stage, you leave the west coast and head north, where the skaters faced the “Hell of the North” — here, you can truly experience the vastness of the Frisian landscape, with its long dikes and quiet polders.
During this stage, you’ll cycle through the Wadden Sea area and Northern Friesland. From Harlingen, you’ll follow quiet roads past fields, villages and dikes towards Franeker. Through the fertile Bildt region, with its characteristic farmhouses, you’ll reach Dokkum, the northernmost city of the Eleven Cities Tour.
This is the third stage of the 260 km-long Eleven Cities Cycling Route. The other stages are:
- Stage 4: Dokkum – Sneek (53 km)
- Stage 1: Sneek – Stavoren (75 km)
- Stage 2: Stavoren – Harlingen (51 km)
Find tips and tricks for planning your trip here: Cycling the Eleven Cities Tour | Friesland.nl
Three of the Eleven
On this stage, you’ll discover three beautiful Eleven Cities: Harlingen, Franeker and Dokkum. Harlingen welcomes you with its nautical atmosphere and characteristic warehouses. Franeker, once a university town, boasts a rich heritage, including the famous planetarium. Finally, you’ll reach Dokkum, the northernmost city of the Eleven Cities Tour and an iconic point on the skaters’ route. Discover our tips for visiting these cities here.
Eleven Cities icons
The Eleven Cities Tour also lives on beyond the cities, in villages such as Vrouwenparochie and Alde Leie. Here, you can discover monuments commemorating participants and winners. In Dokkum, at the end of the stage, you’ll find the famous turning point. This is where the skaters turn towards the finish in Leeuwarden.
Locations on this route
Start point:
Waypoint bike 51
Harlingen
Navigate to starting point
11Fountains Harlingen
Harlingen used to be all about whaling. Nowadays we no longer kill these big and grandiose animals, but prefer to conserve them.
Eleven Cities Tour sculpture Aukje in Harlingen
The Eleven Cities skater Aukje in Harlingen by Evert van Hemert. Aukje is part of a series of eleven sculptures donated by the artist to the Eleven Cities, as a tribute to the women who took part in the “Tour of Tours.”
Franeker (Frjentsjer)
The Elfsteden city Franeker is a captivating town with its rich university history. For many years, this city was home to numerous students, including well-known names such as Descartes.
11Fountains Franeker
The fountain is an ode to the world-famous astronomer Jan Hendrik Oort, who was born in Franeker. His assumption that a ‘cloud’ of billions of comet-like objects is moving around our solar system was a breakthrough in astronomy
Eleven Cities Tour sculpture Aukje in Franeker
The Eleven Cities skater Aukje in Franeker by Evert van Hemert. Aukje is part of a series of eleven sculptures donated by the artist to the Eleven Cities, as a tribute to the women who took part in the “Tour of Tours.”
Eleven Cities Tour monument in Vrouwenparochie
The monument at the Vrouwbuurstermolen honours participants in the Eleven Cities Tour with tiles bearing their names and the years in which they took part. The idea came from Piet Bron and the monument was unveiled by Klasina Seinstra, the first woman to finish the tour.
The Eleven Cities skater
In Alde Leie, you’ll find De Elfstedenschaatsster, a tribute to the female winners of the Eleven Cities Tour.
11Fountains Dokkum
The Ice Fountain is a toy for the elements and no two days are the same. The ice draws patterns on the copper surface layer of the sculpture.
Elfstedentocht Turning Point - Dokkum
Sit on a bench shaped like a traditional Frisian ice skate next to the famous turning point on the Elfstedentocht route. This is one of Dokkum’s most popular Instagram hotspots!
Eleven Cities Tour sculpture Aukje near Dokkum
The Eleven Cities skater Aukje near Dokkum by Evert van Hemert. Aukje is part of a series of eleven sculptures donated by the artist to the Eleven Cities, as a tribute to the women who took part in the “Tour of Tours.”
End point:
Waypoint bike 01
Dokkum
Navigate to endpoint
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