Park van Luna, Alkmaar

Ever been to Alkmaar with visitors to see the cheese markets, or just to see a different town for a change? If you have taken your four legged friend with you, then why not give him a treat after hours of sight seeing, and take him to stretch his legs before you head back home.

Park van Luna is a huge area, however only about a quarter of it is an off-leash dog park. But it is enough space for a good hour run-around. The dog area is shared with a few mountain bike trails and a “disc golf” course, which looks more like frisbee throwing rather than actual golf! So if you want to treat your visitors (and your dog) to something a bit more unique, then check it out here: https://discgolfnoordholland.nl/home

If you are not inclined to be so sporty, then take a slow amble around the park instead. There are a few pathways crossing over each other that take you through lovely muddy and smelly spots for your hound to roll in. Some of it is wide open, there are shaded areas, and long grassy spots for a good sniff. There are about 3 reasonably sized ponds there that tend to dry out into sludge in the summer, and the rest of the water areas are really irrigation canals and not a through flowing water. But the ponds are clean enough to house frogs…

The park can get a little busy at the weekends but it’s spacious enough not to really get under each others feet. Walk around the perimeter of the park instead of sticking to the open play areas if you want to have a more solitary stroll. The canals around the edge of the park are a little cleaner for swimming and duck chasing.

In winter, if you do not stick to the paved or prepared paths, then the off-path areas can turn into an enormous mud pool, and you can find yourself ambling down what seems to be an okay path and suddenly you are almost knee deep in general wetness. Walk with wellies!

Parking is free next to the sports centre, and the foot path into the park starts right from that parking spot.

Pros:

Very clean park, lots of bins and the dog walkers there seem to be pretty good at picking up
Wide areas for running and ball chasing
Can duck out of the open spaces and into forest like areas for more sniffing

Cons: