Never quite seen so many music makers…read more There is a good kids attraction where they can do a scavenger hunt There is a guided tour that looks interesting Took about one hour for us to go through and feel like we were able to see everything

I seriously can't fathom why this museum is so poorly rated. This was probably my favorite museum…read moreon our trip. If you are going, make sure to take the TOUR. We made the 10:30am one. It's free and the young man, in addition to explaining what the automatons and musical instruments were and the history behind them, actually wound up all the ancient relics so you could see them in action. Some of this stuff is really old, which is mind boggling. Exceptional museum and so much fun (and I don't have children and am not a child!). A must-visit in Utrecht. Also, a separate note about Holland for those planning their trip. Utrecht and The Hague were our favorite cities. We found Amsterdam to be touristy and overrated. Delft is a nice day trip (20 minutes from The Hague) but don't go to the Delftware factory, it is a tourist trap. Skip Leiden: university town but not that interesting and not much in it.

When something is called a festival you'd expect a bit more than just one small stage and a few…read morefood and drink stands. Sadly that's all the Utrechts Jazz Festival is. Don't get me wrong, I loved the music which is why I'm still giving the thing a second star, but it's really nothing to keep yourself busy with all day unless you're just their to drink cocktails or a few beers in the sunshine. The music itself seems to be a second rate attraction to the drink stands and fades into the background rather than being the star. To sum it up: nice to stumble apon and hang around for a few minutes, but not worth your time to specially come here. Make sure you have something better to do in the city as well. Or just enjoy the drinks all afternoon, you could do that too if you're not pregnant or breastfeeding like I am.

This was a pleasant surprise! From the ship to the diverse objects, I really enjoyed discovering…read morethis museum. Unfortunately didn't have the time to see everything, but that' just another reason to visit Utrecht again.

Nice-sized museum - you can pretty much see the whole thing in less than 3 hours…read more * Great 700- or 1000-year old ship in the basement * The Dick Bruna studio on the top floor is really great. * Manageable collection of art * Modern Furnishings collection Parking nearby is quite expensive.

The food took a while to get out but in the end we didn't mind at all because it's delicious and…read moregreat value and the concept of this volunteer run place is worth supporting. Plus they make their own vegan cheese! Yum! Really satisfying healthy meal. Would come back were we staying in Utrecht longer.

A couple years ago, the fiancé heard about this place from some locals. Apparently, the previous…read moreowners left the location vacant for a long time and the people who run this restaurant used to be squatters. After some difficulty, they were eventually able to purchase it. Very interesting. I was intrigued... So we wondered in to what felt like a dive bar, only to discover that it's a vegan restaurant and frequently hosts live concerts in the back, some for free. They state their mission on the menu: to serve yummy food free of animals and dairy products, and to expose their community of young college students to the idea of veganism, as it is not yet very popular. On the board above the bar, they list their specials, and I ordered one for dinner: the daily dish. It consisted of bean and vegetable stew, spicy rice (it wasn't really spicy), corn on the cob, guacamole, and a side salad... 7.5€! Even if it had cost me twice that amount, I would still be talking about it. It was delicious! It absolutely convinced me that vegan food can be pretty amazing. (I've certainly had my fair share of vegan food in Los Angeles, and it almost always had me wishing I chose something else: Elf Café, Cru, Real Food Daily... Gag me with a spoon.) I don't know what they did to those beans and that tempeh, but it packed a mighty punch of flavor and deliciousness! Bonus: it was super duper cheap! If I were sticking around for longer than a week, I would definitely come back.

Yes! KEEK! YES!!!!…read more KEEK brings the happy like you wouldn't believe! I am definitely in love with their cheese "scone" sandwich filled with seasonal grilled vegetables and pesto, yum. By no means is it a scone my friends, but it makes one hell of a delicious sandwich! Le husband had a regular sandwich with grilled Serrano ham, mozzarella and pesto with a cup of jasmine tea and I that wonderful grilled vegetable sandwich with a glass of hot chocolate. First of all, KEEK is an organic eatery but not just any organic eatery; one that truly cares about amazing quality in their products. Their tea is top notch and their hot chocolate (which I suspect they make themselves before service) is seriously the best pre-made hot chocolate I have ever had. So good! The next thing they do to ensure they have the best product is make everything from scratch in their own kitchen. Everything. Well, besides the bread for the sandwiches, they order those daily at another favourite of mine: de Veldkeuken. Can't blame them, I wouldn't want to stay up all night just for one menu item either and Veldkeuken is really good at baking bread. Back to KEEK. About a minute's walk from this location, you have Keuken van KEEK where you can get some simpler sandwiches and all of their baked goods to go. Yum, RUN! You won't be able to get the grilled vegetable sandwich from the to-go location which is a shame, but make sure you try it. So garlicky, so sweet, so delicious! I will probably have "adult dreams" about this sandwich for the next few weeks... Sorry, tmi. As for the vibe here, the interior is really nice, especially the "tea room" in the back which is so serene and full of light. Great for a happy afternoon catching up with friends. The front room is a bit more artsy and that shows in the crowd. I tend to ignore the people around me if the food is good enough to focus on, but le husband felt a bit out of place with some of the other customers which were: hippies, old people and loudly conversing women. Of which the first two were the most bothersome, I agreed on that but like I said, if the food is great, I don't give a shit who else is there. You could have probably placed my in-laws at the table behind me and I would have never noticed. So KEEK. I highly recommend it and I will definitely be back asap!

What a cute café in one of the oldest shopping streets in Utrecht. The rooms used to be a tailor…read moreshop run by the grandmother of Maria who is now the owner of Kunst en Eerliijke Koffie. Thus not only the street but also the café is full of history. Although the athmosphere is not that stunning, the menue definately is. Selfmade cheese scones, fresh tea and a great combination of sandwich ingredients. The scone made me super full and it is definately a full meal. The coffee was good, too. I really enjoyed my breakfast and the friendly stuff who made my stay a great experience.

Het Muzieklokaal is a music café in Utrecht that I heard about when it opened just over a year ago…read moreand finally had the chance to visit. Such a cool idea, it's a normal enough cafe but then with a grand piano in the middle. Why? Because they regularly have performances here by musicians and ensembles! I came on Sunday, where their regularly scheduled classical music hour happens from 16.00 to 17.00. My excuse for coming was that an old friend of mine was playing, but I was also curious to see the café. It was very busy but the waitstaff quickly came and took my order at my table. It took a while for my coffee to arrive but it was fine. A little before 16.00 the musicians appeared and started to tune their instruments. When they were ready to play the proprietor whistled to get everyone's attention and introduced the artists. The concert is in principle 2x20 mins with a 20 min pause in between. During the concert everyone stayed silent and listened (or continued to work on their computers) and the staff came around with drink orders for anything except coffee or tea - because the coffee machine makes too much sound to use during the concert! Overall I found the atmosphere really nice. I was really impressed how attentive the audience was, and it's such a nice relaxed and informal atmosphere to experience classical music in. Families came with their small children so they could look at the instruments close up, university students took a break from writing papers to listen to Bach, and there were quite a few people who came specifically for the concert. They have all sorts of concerts and activities so I highly recommend checking out the agenda on their website. But if you love music, coffee, and cocktails, then this is your place!!!!!

What a fantastic museum. It's free with the museum card. I was amazed at the quantity and quality…read moreof art here. There's really too much to mention- suffice it to say there are paintings, reliquaries, precious objects, textiles, statues, altar screens, movies of historic catholic celebrations- and so much more. It's a tremendous pleasure to visit a gem like this. My favorite pieces? The amazing Monstrans by the local Utrecht silversmiths and the wonderful portrait of Erasmus.

The current exhibit, MARIA, is well advertised but it's not terribly interesting. It's a bit…read moreconfusing to find the starting point, and the curation is clearly from a religious rather than an artistic perspective. But the buildings are very much worth seeing. The serenity in busy Utrecht is wonderful. I would like to see more of the gardens in better weather. The neighborhood is worth exploring further, Vaartsje Rijn with a new train station. Lots of vintage shops and small cafes.