The first free walking tour I ever did ended at a nightclub in Lisbon. Our tour guide, an ex-UN employee who got tired of her job, invited me and my two friends back to her house for an authentic Portuguese dinner. After some boisterous conversation and a few bottles of Portuguese wine, my friends and I continued on to the after-party with our new Portuguese friends. That was April 2016.
The second free walking tour I attended ended at an Indonesian restaurant with a recently published teen fiction author. Before making it that far, I had befriended a motley crew of New Englanders that included a middle-aged lesbian couple, two college-aged guys on a Eurotrip, and this teen fiction writer. Our crew slowly assembled during our walking tour of Amsterdam, after which we had to continue the conversation over Boswandeling (vodka, triple sec, and bitters) at a landmark bar in Amsterdam: De Drie Fleschjes. That was five days ago.
Naturally, I had very high hopes for my third walking tour in Utrecht, Holland last Wednesday.
In case you are unfamiliar with the concept, “free” walking tours are designed to make tours more accessible to all travelers. Most of these tours are through some reputable organization that has a series of strict requirements to become tour guides. The guides are often locals, who receive their full-time compensation from these tours.
Now, how do the guides make money if they’re free?! If you want to be that stingy, awful person who doesn’t tip at restaurants, then yes; they are free. However, the premise is that you pay however much you think the tour is worth. And 10 times out of 10, this will be more than $0.
Tim, a masters student at the University of Utrecht and Netherlands native, led my “free” Utrecht walking tour. He greeted us in front of the main square in typical Dutch fashion: with a friendly smile and impeccable punctuality. I, however, was not quite as punctual, as I prioritized eating (and finishing) my chicken kebab purchased around the corner.
As I was chewing my delicious lunch, I looked around my group and noticed yet another odd mix of people: one retired American couple (we started talking immediately...I guess Americans seek each other out), an Australian family of plus or minus seven (mom, dad, three kids, and MAYBE the two grandparents), a friendly sunburned British couple, and some quiet guy with designer sunglasses.
With our team assembled, we began the tour in Domplein (the main square in Utrecht). Utrecht’s history revolves around Domplein, which has transformed from a Roman fortress to a headquarters for Christianity to a tragically unlucky meteorological location.
Tim explained that Utrecht was first founded as the Northern border of the Roman reign. The Romans built an (albeit rather flimsy) wall around Utrecht and stayed until they realized that there was nothing but wind and water here. Frustrated by invasions of neighboring tribes and the lack of natural resources, the Romans left and abandoned the town.
A few hundred years passed and eventually, a British monk and missionary named Willibrord went on a quest to convert European heathens to Christianity. Somehow (Tim didn’t explain this part) he stumbled upon Utrecht, and build back up the abandoned town church by church. Willibrord’s legacy continued and with each succeeding generation, more churches were built. Utrecht quickly became the religious capital of The Netherlands with Saint Martin’s Cathedral as its beacon.
Pause. At about this point in the tour, the Australian children (ages 9ish, 7ish, and 2ish) were really starting to lose interest. The 2ish year old nearly ditched his overalls and submerged himself into the fountain at Saint Martin’s Cathedral.
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| The kiddie pool for the day at Saint Martin's Cathedral |
Yet, Tim (bless his heart) continued.
The current Gothic-style of Saint Martin’s Cathedral began construction in 1254 after a fire burned down the first structure. The building’s tower, the Dom Tower, was constructed years later and was one of the tallest towers built during the 14th century. Yet, it would have a tumultuous future. Upon completion of the tower, the principle architect was so overwhelmed with awe that he dropped dead from a heart-attack (I wasn’t quite sure how to fact check Tim on this one).
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| The Dom Tower, visible from nearly any point in town |
The omen remained until 1674 when a tornado (yep, a tornado) came through town and went right through the church. Apparently, tornadoes only happen in Holland about once every 200 years, and coincidentally it happened to destroy the mid-section of Saint Martin’s Cathedral. As a result, Dom Tower is now separated from Saint Martin’s Cathedral by Domplein, the main plaza.
Tim continued explaining the town’s development from tragic Roman fortress to bustling university town. The University of Utrecht is now one of the largest universities in The Netherlands and consequently draws not only thousands of students, but great bars, restaurants, and activities.
Tim led us through the canals, into tunnels, around charming neighborhoods until two and a half hours later he stopped. “Would you like to keep going, or should I end the tour?” Tim asked.
My teammate and fellow American, Tom, quickly jumped in and encouraged us all to wrap up and grab drinks. Tom had a knack at rallying people, so we acquired the troops (minus the Australian family of +/- seven that had gotten distracted by a bunny statue at a children’s museum) and made our way to the nearest bar.
A round of drinks later and we were all exchanging travel and hometown stories. Tim traveled through Argentina, the sunburned Brits recently drove along the coast of California, Tom and Phyllis frequented house exchanges around the world, and the quiet guy with designer sunglasses was Dutch (he was pretty quiet, after all). We stayed laughing and chatting until it was time for us all to diverge. Tom and Phyllis gave me their business cards and even offered up their house in San Francisco as a landing pad if ever I made it that way.
While we didn’t end up say on a Utrecht houseboat eating edibles (...a bizarre but not impossible turn to a walking tour), the Utrecht tour with Tim—and my third walking tour—was wildly successful, informative, and comfortably memorable.
Without a doubt, there will be a fourth free tour...even if it technically costs me 15 euros.
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