Giethoorn Boating App

You’ve probably seen them: videos of overcrowded canals filled with boats in Giethoorn. Every year, thousands of tourists want to experience the unique atmosphere of this typical Dutch village, and we understand why. While this exponential growth in tourism is great for local businesses, it also brings the challenge of overcrowding on the waterways. For this reason, local entrepreneur Kris, owner of Giethoorn Village, took the initiative to develop and launch the Giethoorn Village boating app. The goal is to spread the crowds on the water away from the center of Giethoorn, improve the tourist experience, and reduce the nuisance for local residents.

Origin of the Boating App

Before the boating app was developed, you would receive a paper map of the sailing route when renting a boat in Giethoorn. With the paper map, almost all tourists took the wrong turns, and sometimes they even had to be searched for. At that moment, Kris knew things had to change. He got in touch with a route app developer and explained the situation. This led to the development of the boating app, which was then introduced to customers. It quickly received a great response and plenty of positive feedback. Other shipping companies in Giethoorn took notice and soon joined the app as well. Currently, 12 of the 35 shipping companies are connected to the app. Kris is still in talks with others to get them on board. Only by working together is it possible to spread the crowds in Giethoorn as effectively as possible. He hopes that in two years, about 25 shipping companies will be participating.

How does the boating app work?

Using GPS technology, the app shows your real-time location so you can see if you’re still on the right route. If you deviate, you’ll see the orange dot (representing you on the map) move away from the path. This way, you know exactly which way to go. You can compare it to Google Maps, but specifically designed for the waterways in Giethoorn. This system ensures that tourists easily stay on the correct route.

Additionally, the app uses colors to indicate how busy it is at any given moment. If the route is green, it’s quiet. If it’s orange, it’s moderately busy, and if the route turns red, it’s very crowded. During busy times, the app encourages tourists to follow alternative routes that are quieter at that moment. This helps distribute the traffic effectively.

All participating shipping companies can add their own routes to the app. If you rent a boat from one of the other companies connected to the app, you’ll receive a unique QR code with a route starting from that specific departure point. This makes the app accessible to everyone, without any commercial bias.

The use of the boating app is also encouraged by the rental companies. People who have already downloaded the app on their phone don’t have to wait and can go straight through. They are also among the first to be helped into their boats. The app stores data, making it very low-threshold for people to download.

Follow real-time crowds in Giethoorn

The plan is to display all this data, collected by GPS trackers in the boats, online on websites like Giethoorn Village so it’s accessible to everyone. Think of it as an overview where tourists can see for themselves which times of day are busy on the water. This allows them to decide, for example, to rent a boat in Giethoorn on a different day or time when it’s quieter. Many people don’t know that you can also cruise through Giethoorn in the evening. It’s important to bring more attention to this. This approach not only helps reduce pressure on popular spots but also ensures a better customer experience and benefits the residents in busy areas.

New service boats

To provide even better service on the water, we are currently working on a new project. A recovery boat is currently under construction and will be launched soon. It’s almost ready for use. This boat will be deployed as a service vessel for things like mechanical breakdowns. The boats Kris rents out himself will get priority, but it will ultimately be available to anyone who needs help.

In addition, several smaller boats are being deployed where staff are trained to assist people who get stuck. This happens more often than you think—for example, when people accidentally run aground, their battery runs out, or they deviate from the route to explore a nice spot. These boats will also be equipped with first aid kits.

Support from the municipality

The municipality is enthusiastic about the Boating App initiative and is working with Kris to find solutions to spread the crowds in the village as effectively as possible. The municipality has indicated they see a possibility to reduce taxes for entrepreneurs who actively contribute to spreading the flow of tourists in Giethoorn. This motivates business owners to work together and come up with joint solutions. Exactly what this will look like isn’t clear yet, but the plan is there!

Future vision for the boating app

It’s safe to say Kris is ambitious. He wants to expand the boating app to other areas. “If it works in Giethoorn, it will work in many other tourist spots,” says Kris. In the future, he wants to expand the app to the Weerribben, where about 250 boats are currently available for rent. He is also in talks for a similar app for Amsterdam. This would create a national network of boating routes in the Netherlands.

Kris also wants to share the real-time data with the municipality and other entrepreneurs to better predict crowds in the village. This allows for adjustments not just for the boating routes, but also for other tourist facilities in Giethoorn.