Utrecht Heritage Day 2022: 900 years of Utrecht Heritage
This year Utrecht Heritage Day will take place on Saturday September 10th 2022. This day is dedicated to the celebration of 900 years of city rights. There is also attention for this year’s national theme: ‘Sustainability’. Utrecht Heritage Day also participates in ‘Rondje Singel’, a city festival that also takes place in the second weekend of September, in honor of the restoration of the city canal.
Utrecht Heritage Day celebrates 900 years of city rights by means of some striking Utrecht monuments. We tell you at a glance the story of 900 years Utrecht. From the moment when Utrecht was granted city rights in 1122 – in Lofen Palace, which can be visited for the first time this year – to the reopening of the canal in 2020. From the medieval city castles, such as Drakenburg and Rodenburg, to the modern homes of Gerrit Rietveld and Sybold van Ravesteyn: monuments bear witness to a fascinating past and bring the story of 900 years of Utrecht to life.
Sustainability
The national theme for 2022 is ‘Sustainability’. The preservation of monuments is sustainable in itself, because monuments sometimes last for hundreds of years, are often reused and are thus preserved for future generations. At the same time, it can be a challenge to manage or restore a monumental building in a sustainable way, without compromising the monumental value. Our cycle route leads you past monuments where challenges are encountered, including reused monuments such as the previous Lubro factory, BUNK hotels, library on the Neude and Slachtstraat Filmtheatre.
‘Rondje Singel’
The city canal was constructed as part of the city defenses and is as old as the city itself. With the demolition of the Utrecht city wall and the construction of the Zocherpark in the 19th century, a new period started. Nowadays, the canal is a green oasis that allows the city and its inhabitants to breathe. After some temporary changes, the city canal has been completely round again since 2020. Due to corona, this could not really been celebrated and therefore it is celebrated this year. A walking route from the Stadsschouwburg to the Gertrudis Cathedral leads you past special monuments in the Singel area, such as Leeuwenbergh and Sonnenborgh. As part of ‘Rondje Singel’, performances will be given in 16 monuments by Young Makers, up-and-coming Utrecht talent.
A total of eighty monuments can be visited this year. Also ten Dutch Waterline Forts, UNESCO World Heritage Sites since last year.
Most monuments organize on-site activities such as exhibitions, musical performances and guided tours. All monuments and activities can be found on our website or in the special Monumentnewspaper that will be distributed in the city from 2 September. Please note: most activities are in Dutch, translations cannot be provided.
Our English leaflet introduces 23 highlights in the city center of Utrecht. The numbers correspond to the number of the sites on the map. You can download the English leaflet here. Please note: University Museum/Oude Hortus (17) is not open to visitors on Utrecht Heritage Day this year.