The Kasteel de Haar makes a great day trip from Utrecht.

This Kasteel is a perfect castle, with everything you might expect from a castle.The doors entering into the castle proper are all in variations of red and white patterns.
There is a moat…
A guardian lion…Intriguing door knockers…
Magical vaulted ceilings…
The castle employs a lot of workers, most of them involved in the restoration, such as this tile layer.
And this woman, fine-tuning the gilding.
I wonder how many workers it took to keep this kitchen working.
There is a smaller castle, called the ‘Chatelet’, where the family lives part-time. This is the sitting room.
The family wellies all lined up in a row.The castle grounds are filled with statuary.
The entrance fees were a bit steep, but considering how many people they kept employed it was probably worth it.
More on our 2015 trip to Holland.