Flevoland
Encyclopedia
Flevoland is a province of the Netherlands
. Located in the centre of the country, at the location of the former Zuiderzee
, the province was established on January 1, 1986; the twelfth province of the country, with Lelystad
as its capital. The province has approximately 387.881 inhabitants and consists of 6 municipalities.
started. In 1932, the Afsluitdijk
was completed, which closed off the sea completely. The Zuiderzee was subsequently called IJsselmeer
(lake
at the end of the river IJssel
).
The first part of the new lake that was reclaimed was the Noordoostpolder
(Northeast polder). This new land included the former islands of Urk
and Schokland
and it was included in the province of Overijssel
. After this, other parts were reclaimed: the Southeastern part in 1957 and the Southwestern part in 1968. There was an important change in these post-war projects from the earlier Noordoostpolder reclamation: a narrow body of water was preserved along the old coast to stabilise the water table and to prevent coastal towns from losing their access to the sea. Thus Flevopolder became an artificial island joined to the mainland by bridges. The municipalities on the three parts voted to become a separate province, which happened in 1986. At Flevoland there is a large mediumwave broadcasting facility called Mediumwave transmitter Flevoland
.
Flevoland was named after Lacus Flevo, a name recorded in Roman
sources for a large inland lake at the southern end of the later-formed Zuiderzee
. Draining the Flevoland polders found many wrecks of aircraft
that crashed into the IJsselmeer during World War II
, and also fossils of Pleistocene
mammals.
In February 2011, Flevoland, together with the provinces of Utrecht
and North Holland
, showed a desire to investigate the feasibility of a merger between the three provinces. This has been positively received by the Dutch cabinet, for the desire to create one Randstad province
has already been mentioned in the coalition agreement
. The province of South Holland, part of the Randstad urban area, visioned to be part of the Randstad province, and very much supportive of the idea of a merger into one province, is not named. With or without South Holland, if created, the new province would be the largest in the Netherlands in both area and population
.
, have peripheral lakes between them and the mainland: the Veluwemeer
and Gooimeer
respectively, making them, together, the world's largest artificial island
.
They are two separate polders that have a joint hydrological infrastructure, with a dividing dike in the middle, the Knardijk, that will keep one polder safe should the other be flooded. The two main drainage canals that traverse the dike can be closed by weirs in such an event. The pumping stations are the Wortman (diesel
powered) at Lelystad-Haven, the Lovink near Harderwijk
on the mainland and the Colijn (both electrically powered) along the northern dike beside the Ketelmeer
.
A new element in the design of Eastern Flevoland is the larger city Lelystad
(1966), named after Cornelis Lely
, the man who had played a crucial role in designing and realising the Zuiderzee Works. Other more conventional settlements already existed by then; Dronten
, the major local town, was founded in 1962, followed by two smaller satellite villages, Swifterbant and Biddinghuizen, in 1963. These three were incorporated in the new municipality of Dronten
on January 1, 1972.
Southern Flevoland has only one pumping station, the diesel powered De Blocq van Kuffeler. Because of the hydrological union of the two Flevolands it simply joins the other three in maintaining the water-level of both polders. Almere
relieves the housing shortage and increasing overcrowding on the old land. Its name is derived from the early medieval name for Lacus Flevo. Almere was to be divided into 3 major settlements initially; the first, Almere-Haven (1976) situated along the coast of the Gooimeer (one of the peripheral lakes), the second and largest was to fulfill the role of city centre as Almere-Stad (1980) and the third was Almere-Buiten (1984) to the northwest towards Lelystad. In 2003, the municipality
made a new Structuurplan which started development of three new settlements: Overgooi in the southeast, Almere-Hout in the east, and Almere-Poort in the West. In time, Almere-Pampus could be developed in the northwest, with possibly a new bridge over the IJmeer
towards Amsterdam
.
The Oostvaardersplassen
is a landscape of shallow pools, islets and swamps. Originally, this low part of the new polder
was destined to become an industrial area. Spontaneous settlement of interesting flora & fauna turned the area into a nature park, of such importance that the new railway-line was diverted. The recent decline in agricultural land use will in time make it possible to expand natural land use, and connect the Oostvaardersplassen to the Veluwe
.
The centre of the polder most closely resembles the pre-war polders in that it is almost exclusively agricultural. In contrast, the southeastern part is dominated by extensive forests. Here is also found the only other settlement of the polder, Zeewolde
(1984), again a more conventional town acting as the local centre. Zeewolde became a municipality at the same time as Almere on January 1, 1984, which in the case of Zeewolde meant that the municipality existed before the town itself, with only farms in the surrounding land to be governed until the town started to grow.
. This runs from Weesp to Lelystad. The following stations are in Flevoland:
One more station is under construction, with the possibility of another:
A new railway line is also under construction, the Hanzelijn
. On this line there will be one new station in Flevoland:
Amsterdam
, Utrecht
, Hilversum
, Weesp
and Schiphol Airport, and many other places are accessible directly from Flevoland.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. Located in the centre of the country, at the location of the former Zuiderzee
Zuider Zee
The Zuiderzee was a shallow bay of the North Sea in the northwest of the Netherlands, extending about 100 km inland and at most 50 km wide, with an overall depth of about 4 to 5 metres and a coastline of about 300 km . It covered...
, the province was established on January 1, 1986; the twelfth province of the country, with Lelystad
Lelystad
Lelystad is a municipality and a city in the centre of the Netherlands, and it is the capital of the province of Flevoland. The city, built on reclaimed land, was founded in 1967 and was named after Cornelis Lely, who engineered the Afsluitdijk, making the reclamation possible...
as its capital. The province has approximately 387.881 inhabitants and consists of 6 municipalities.
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History
After a flood in 1916, it was decided that the Zuiderzee, an inland sea within the Netherlands, would be enclosed and reclaimed: the Zuiderzee WorksZuiderzee Works
The Zuiderzee Works are a manmade system of dams, land reclamation and water drainage works, the largest hydraulic engineering project undertaken by the Netherlands during the twentieth century. The project involved the damming of the Zuiderzee, a large, shallow inlet of the North Sea, and the...
started. In 1932, the Afsluitdijk
Afsluitdijk
The Afsluitdijk is a major causeway in the Netherlands, constructed between 1927 and 1933 and running from Den Oever on Wieringen in North Holland province, to the village of Zurich in Friesland province, over a length of and a width of 90 m, at an initial height of 7.25 m above sea-level.It is...
was completed, which closed off the sea completely. The Zuiderzee was subsequently called IJsselmeer
IJsselmeer
IJsselmeer is a shallow artificial lake of 1100 km² in the central Netherlands bordering the provinces of Flevoland, North Holland and Friesland, with an average depth of 5 to 6 m. The IJsselmeer is the largest lake in Western Europe....
(lake
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
at the end of the river IJssel
IJssel
River IJssel , sometimes called Gelderse IJssel to avoid confusion with its Hollandse IJssel namesake in the west of the Netherlands, is a branch of the Rhine in the Dutch provinces of Gelderland and Overijssel...
).
The first part of the new lake that was reclaimed was the Noordoostpolder
Noordoostpolder
Noordoostpolder is a municipality in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. Formerly, it was also called Urker Land. Emmeloord is the administrative center, located in the heart of the Noordoostpolder. The municipality has the largest land area in the Netherlands...
(Northeast polder). This new land included the former islands of Urk
Urk
Urk is a municipality and a town in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands.Urk is first mentioned in historical records dating to the 10th century, when it was still an island in the Almere, a lake that would become part of the Zuiderzee in the 13th century after a series of incursions...
and Schokland
Schokland
Schokland is a former island in the Dutch Zuiderzee. Schokland lost its status as an island when the Noordoostpolder was reclaimed from the sea in 1942...
and it was included in the province of Overijssel
Overijssel
Overijssel is a province of the Netherlands in the central eastern part of the country. The region has a NUTS classification of NL21. The province's name means "Lands across river IJssel". The capital city of Overijssel is Zwolle and the largest city is Enschede...
. After this, other parts were reclaimed: the Southeastern part in 1957 and the Southwestern part in 1968. There was an important change in these post-war projects from the earlier Noordoostpolder reclamation: a narrow body of water was preserved along the old coast to stabilise the water table and to prevent coastal towns from losing their access to the sea. Thus Flevopolder became an artificial island joined to the mainland by bridges. The municipalities on the three parts voted to become a separate province, which happened in 1986. At Flevoland there is a large mediumwave broadcasting facility called Mediumwave transmitter Flevoland
Mediumwave transmitter Flevoland
The mediumwave transmitter Flevoland is a broadcasting facility for medium wave near Zeewolde on Flevoland, Netherlands, situated at 5°25' E and 52°23'N....
.
Flevoland was named after Lacus Flevo, a name recorded in Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
sources for a large inland lake at the southern end of the later-formed Zuiderzee
Zuider Zee
The Zuiderzee was a shallow bay of the North Sea in the northwest of the Netherlands, extending about 100 km inland and at most 50 km wide, with an overall depth of about 4 to 5 metres and a coastline of about 300 km . It covered...
. Draining the Flevoland polders found many wrecks of aircraft
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
that crashed into the IJsselmeer during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and also fossils of Pleistocene
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
mammals.
In February 2011, Flevoland, together with the provinces of Utrecht
Utrecht (province)
Utrecht is the smallest province of the Netherlands in terms of area, and is located in the centre of the country. It is bordered by the Eemmeer in the north, Gelderland in the east, the river Rhine in the south, South Holland in the west, and North Holland in the northwest...
and North Holland
North Holland
North Holland |West Frisian]]: Noard-Holland) is a province situated on the North Sea in the northwest part of the Netherlands. The provincial capital is Haarlem and its largest city is Amsterdam.-Geography:...
, showed a desire to investigate the feasibility of a merger between the three provinces. This has been positively received by the Dutch cabinet, for the desire to create one Randstad province
Randstad
Image:Randstad_with_scale.png|400px|thumb|right|Clickable schematic map of the Randstadcircle 528 380 26 Schipholrect 426 356 498 436 Haarlemmermeerrect 399 166 479 245 Velsencircle 250 716 32 Delftcircle 220 642 60 The Hague...
has already been mentioned in the coalition agreement
Coalition agreement
In multiparty democracies, a coalition agreement is an agreement between the parties that form the cabinet. It codifies the most important goals and objectives of the cabinet. It is often written by the leaders of the parliamentary parties.-Examples:...
. The province of South Holland, part of the Randstad urban area, visioned to be part of the Randstad province, and very much supportive of the idea of a merger into one province, is not named. With or without South Holland, if created, the new province would be the largest in the Netherlands in both area and population
Ranked list of Dutch provinces
thumb|300px|Map of the Netherlands, with provinces and capital cities-Population, area and density, sortable on each field:-By population:-By area:...
.
Flevolands, Zuiderzee Works
Eastern Flevoland (Oostelijk Flevoland or Oost-Flevoland) and Southern Flevoland (Zuidelijk Flevoland or Zuid-Flevoland), unlike the NoordoostpolderNoordoostpolder
Noordoostpolder is a municipality in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. Formerly, it was also called Urker Land. Emmeloord is the administrative center, located in the heart of the Noordoostpolder. The municipality has the largest land area in the Netherlands...
, have peripheral lakes between them and the mainland: the Veluwemeer
Veluwemeer
Veluwemeer or Lake Veluwe is a bordering lake in The Netherlands, between the provinces of Flevoland on the west side and Gelderland on the east side. It is a narrow lake that stretches from south-west to north-east...
and Gooimeer
Gooimeer
The Gooimeer is a bordering lake in the Netherlands between the southeastern part of North Holland and Flevoland....
respectively, making them, together, the world's largest artificial island
Artificial island
An artificial island or man-made island is an island or archipelago that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means...
.
They are two separate polders that have a joint hydrological infrastructure, with a dividing dike in the middle, the Knardijk, that will keep one polder safe should the other be flooded. The two main drainage canals that traverse the dike can be closed by weirs in such an event. The pumping stations are the Wortman (diesel
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
powered) at Lelystad-Haven, the Lovink near Harderwijk
Harderwijk
' is a municipality and a small city in the eastern Netherlands.- The history of Harderwijk :Harderwijk received city rights from Count Otto II of Guelders in 1231. A defensive wall surrounding the city was completed by the end of that century. The oldest part of the city is near where the...
on the mainland and the Colijn (both electrically powered) along the northern dike beside the Ketelmeer
Ketelmeer
The Ketelmeer , is the tongue of the IJsselmeer into which the IJssel actually drains, it is situated between the polders Noordoostpolder and East Flevoland, and connects the river IJssel to the lake IJsselmeer...
.
A new element in the design of Eastern Flevoland is the larger city Lelystad
Lelystad
Lelystad is a municipality and a city in the centre of the Netherlands, and it is the capital of the province of Flevoland. The city, built on reclaimed land, was founded in 1967 and was named after Cornelis Lely, who engineered the Afsluitdijk, making the reclamation possible...
(1966), named after Cornelis Lely
Cornelis Lely
Cornelis Lely was a Dutch civil engineer and statesman. He first designed and then realised by a law the Zuiderzee Works, a major project that turned the Zuiderzee into a lake, and converting a huge area into dry land.-Career outline:From 1886 to 1891, Lely led the technical research team that...
, the man who had played a crucial role in designing and realising the Zuiderzee Works. Other more conventional settlements already existed by then; Dronten
Dronten
Dronten is a municipality and a town in the central Netherlands. Its population is 39,787 .- History :Plans for the municipality of Dronten were made in the early half of the 1950s; real plans for the town of Dronten were revealed in 1958.The foundations for the town were laid in 1960...
, the major local town, was founded in 1962, followed by two smaller satellite villages, Swifterbant and Biddinghuizen, in 1963. These three were incorporated in the new municipality of Dronten
Dronten
Dronten is a municipality and a town in the central Netherlands. Its population is 39,787 .- History :Plans for the municipality of Dronten were made in the early half of the 1950s; real plans for the town of Dronten were revealed in 1958.The foundations for the town were laid in 1960...
on January 1, 1972.
Southern Flevoland has only one pumping station, the diesel powered De Blocq van Kuffeler. Because of the hydrological union of the two Flevolands it simply joins the other three in maintaining the water-level of both polders. Almere
Almere
Almere is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland, the Netherlands, bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde. The municipality of Almere comprises the districts Almere Stad, Almere Haven, Almere Buiten, Almere Hout, Almere Poort and Almere Pampus .Almere is the youngest city in the...
relieves the housing shortage and increasing overcrowding on the old land. Its name is derived from the early medieval name for Lacus Flevo. Almere was to be divided into 3 major settlements initially; the first, Almere-Haven (1976) situated along the coast of the Gooimeer (one of the peripheral lakes), the second and largest was to fulfill the role of city centre as Almere-Stad (1980) and the third was Almere-Buiten (1984) to the northwest towards Lelystad. In 2003, the municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
made a new Structuurplan which started development of three new settlements: Overgooi in the southeast, Almere-Hout in the east, and Almere-Poort in the West. In time, Almere-Pampus could be developed in the northwest, with possibly a new bridge over the IJmeer
IJmeer
The IJmeer is a bordering lake in the Netherlands. It lies between the polder De Nes , Pampushaven, Hollandse Brug and the mouth of the IJ in IJburg, straddling the provinces of North Holland and Flevoland. It is an important habitat for birds such as the Tufted Duck and Scaup...
towards Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
.
Oostvaardersplassen
The Oostvaardersplassen is a nature reserve in the Netherlands, covering about . Despite having developed recently it already has international importance as a European wetland....
is a landscape of shallow pools, islets and swamps. Originally, this low part of the new polder
Polder
A polder is a low-lying tract of land enclosed by embankments known as dikes, that forms an artificial hydrological entity, meaning it has no connection with outside water other than through manually-operated devices...
was destined to become an industrial area. Spontaneous settlement of interesting flora & fauna turned the area into a nature park, of such importance that the new railway-line was diverted. The recent decline in agricultural land use will in time make it possible to expand natural land use, and connect the Oostvaardersplassen to the Veluwe
Veluwe
The Veluwe is a forest-rich ridge of hills in the province of Gelderland in the Netherlands. The Veluwe features many different landscapes including woodland, heath, some small lakes and Europe's largest sand drifts....
.
The centre of the polder most closely resembles the pre-war polders in that it is almost exclusively agricultural. In contrast, the southeastern part is dominated by extensive forests. Here is also found the only other settlement of the polder, Zeewolde
Zeewolde
Zeewolde is a municipality and a town in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. It has a population of approximately 20,000. It is situated in the polder of Flevoland with the small lake called the Wolderwijd to the east. To the south is a large deciduous forest called the Horsterwold...
(1984), again a more conventional town acting as the local centre. Zeewolde became a municipality at the same time as Almere on January 1, 1984, which in the case of Zeewolde meant that the municipality existed before the town itself, with only farms in the surrounding land to be governed until the town started to grow.
Municipalities
|
File:GemeentenFlevolandNrs.png>right|Gemeenten in Flevoland circle 67 36 4 Urk Urk Urk is a municipality and a town in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands.Urk is first mentioned in historical records dating to the 10th century, when it was still an island in the Almere, a lake that would become part of the Zuiderzee in the 13th century after a series of incursions... poly 70 32 63 28 62 19 68 3 79 -1 90 10 100 15 108 29 105 34 111 39 92 47 69 47 69 39 Noordoostpolder Noordoostpolder Noordoostpolder is a municipality in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. Formerly, it was also called Urker Land. Emmeloord is the administrative center, located in the heart of the Noordoostpolder. The municipality has the largest land area in the Netherlands... poly 66 48 72 53 90 57 95 67 88 88 64 101 67 94 61 93 62 86 58 80 63 76 60 72 63 65 59 55 Dronten Dronten Dronten is a municipality and a town in the central Netherlands. Its population is 39,787 .- History :Plans for the municipality of Dronten were made in the early half of the 1950s; real plans for the town of Dronten were revealed in 1958.The foundations for the town were laid in 1960... poly 18 85 40 72 42 62 51 60 56 53 60 70 63 76 59 79 59 86 61 93 54 97 41 87 27 94 Lelystad Lelystad Lelystad is a municipality and a city in the centre of the Netherlands, and it is the capital of the province of Flevoland. The city, built on reclaimed land, was founded in 1967 and was named after Cornelis Lely, who engineered the Afsluitdijk, making the reclamation possible... poly 23 97 41 87 55 100 61 94 65 94 66 103 57 103 53 108 55 114 52 122 38 124 26 116 35 114 Zeewolde Zeewolde Zeewolde is a municipality and a town in the Flevoland province in the central Netherlands. It has a population of approximately 20,000. It is situated in the polder of Flevoland with the small lake called the Wolderwijd to the east. To the south is a large deciduous forest called the Horsterwold... poly -1 99 15 87 30 93 24 97 33 113 27 117 13 108 2 110 0 102 Almere Almere Almere is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland, the Netherlands, bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde. The municipality of Almere comprises the districts Almere Stad, Almere Haven, Almere Buiten, Almere Hout, Almere Poort and Almere Pampus .Almere is the youngest city in the... desc bottom-right |
Rail Links
The Flevopolder is served by the FlevolijnFlevolijn
The Weesp–Lelystad railway, also known as the Flevolijn, is a Dutch railway line. It is operated by Nederlandse Spoorwegen. The line runs from Weesp, in the province of North Holland, to Lelystad, capital of the neighbouring province of Flevoland....
. This runs from Weesp to Lelystad. The following stations are in Flevoland:
- Almere BuitenAlmere Buiten railway stationAlmere Buiten is a railway station which lies in Almere, in the Netherlands. It is located approximately 27 km east of Amsterdam. The station is located on the Weesp–Lelystad railway, which runs between Weesp and Lelystad Centrum. The station is on the newest polder in the Netherlands, the...
- Almere CentrumAlmere Centrum railway stationAlmere Centrum is a railway station in Almere, the Netherlands. It is located approximately 22 kilometers east of Amsterdam. The station lies on the Weesp–Lelystad railway. Almere Centrum is located in central Almere: a new town established in 1976 on land reclaimed from the sea...
- Almere MuziekwijkAlmere Muziekwijk railway stationAlmere Muziekwijk is a railway station which lies in Almere, in the Netherlands. It is located approximately 20km southeast of Amsterdam. It is on the Weesp–Lelystad railway. The station is on the newest polder in the Netherlands, the Flevopolder which is in the region Flevoland. The station was...
- Almere OostvaardersAlmere Oostvaarders railway stationAlmere Oostvaarders is a railway station in Almere, in the Netherlands. It is located approximately 29 km east of Amsterdam. It is on the Amsterdam - Almere - Lelystad main line. It is approximately 3 km north east of the Almere city centre. Almere Oostvaarders is the newest station in...
- Almere ParkwijkAlmere Parkwijk railway stationAlmere Parkwijk is a railway station which lies in Almere, in the Netherlands. It is located approximately 24 km east of Amsterdam. It is on the Weesp–Lelystad railway. The station is on the newest polder in the Netherlands, the Flevopolder which is in the Flevoland province. The station was...
- Lelystad CentrumLelystad Centrum railway stationLelystad Centrum is the current terminus railway station on the Flevolijn. It is the only station in Lelystad and is in the centre of the town. The station was opened on 28 May 1988 after the extension from Almere Buiten was completed. There are plans to build the station Lelystad Zuid by 2015. The...
One more station is under construction, with the possibility of another:
- Almere PoortAlmere Poort railway stationAlmere Poort is a railway station which is currently under construction. It will be located on the Flevolijn in the city of Almere and will be the sixth railway station of Almere....
- Under Construction - Lelystad ZuidLelystad Zuid railway stationLelystad Zuid is a railway station in the south of Lelystad, the Netherlands. While constructed, the station is not planned to open before 2015.The station is located in a currently unbuilt area of Lelystad...
- Under Consideration
A new railway line is also under construction, the Hanzelijn
Hanzelijn
The Lelystad–Zwolle railway, also known as the Hanzelijn , is a new Dutch railway line presently under construction. When completed, it will connect Lelystad, capital of the province of Flevoland, with Zwolle, capital of the neighbouring province of Overijssel...
. On this line there will be one new station in Flevoland:
- DrontenDronten railway stationDronten is a future railway station, to be built on the Hanzelijn from Lelystad to Zwolle. The station will be located in the town of Dronten.-Information:...
Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, Utrecht
Utrecht (city)
Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
, Hilversum
Hilversum
is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Located in the region called "'t Gooi", it is the largest town in that area. It is surrounded by heathland, woods, meadows, lakes, and smaller villages...
, Weesp
Weesp
Weesp is a town and a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It has a population of 17,533 .Weesp lies next to the rivers de Vecht and Smal Weesp and also next to the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal. It is in an area called the "Vechtstreek"...
and Schiphol Airport, and many other places are accessible directly from Flevoland.