Vredespaleis

Den Haag


Home to the UN's Permanent Court of Arbitration and International Court of Justice, the Peace Palace is housed in a grand 1913 building donated by American steelmaker Andrew Carnegie. Its visitor centre has multimedia exhibits detailing the history of both the building and the organisations within; these are enjoyed in a free 30-minute audioguide tour. Hour-long guided afternoon tours of the palace in Dutch and English are offered on weekends; these should be booked ahead on the website.

Twenty places on each tour are kept for walk-in visitors on the day – turn up at 10am if you are keen to score one. A passport or an EU identity card or driving licencxe must be shown on entry.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Den Haag attractions

1. Panorama Mesdag

0.36 MILES

Home to the Panorama (1881), an immense, 14m-high, 360-degree painting of the sea, dunes and fishing village of Scheveningen, this museum is one of Den…

2. Paleis Noordeinde

0.6 MILES

The king's and queen's official quarters at Paleis Noordeinde is not open to the public. The Renaissance formality of the structure is fittingly regal,…

3. Kunstmuseum Den Haag

0.66 MILES

Known predominantly for its De Stijl exhibit, this museum is housed in an unusual art deco building designed by HP Berlage. It opened in 1935. The De…

4. Fotomuseum Den Haag

0.73 MILES

Adjoining the Gemeentemuseum and sharing a building with GEM, Den Haag's excellent photography museum mounts several major exhibitions a year. The ground…

5. GEM

0.73 MILES

One of the contemporary wings of the neighbouring Gemeentemuseum, this fine art museum shares a building with the Fotomuseum Den Haag and stages a…

6. Grote Kerk

0.78 MILES

Dating from 1450, the Great Church has a fine pulpit that was constructed in the following century. If you're here outside its limited visitor season …

7. Museum de Gevangenpoort

0.79 MILES

A remnant of the 13th-century city fortifications, the Gevangenpoort functioned as a prison from 1428 to 1825. Guided tours (30 minutes) run hourly on…

8. Galerij Prins Willem V

0.79 MILES

Sharing an entrance with the Gevangenpoort, this was the first public museum in the Netherlands when it opened in 1774 as a showcase of William V's art…