Villa Augustus
Botanical, design-conscious, and deeply independent. Think faded grandeur meets living kitchen garden. Handmade furniture, original iron reservoir floors, historical materials repurposed with real care. No corporate polish — this is a passion project that's become a Dutch institution, beloved for its food philosophy and its quietly theatrical spaces.
Book the restaurant table at the same time as your room — it's open to the public and fills up fast
Why It Matters
The water tower is the last remaining flat-bottomed iron reservoir tower in the Netherlands. In 2010, the garden was the first outside the UK ever selected as 'Garden of the Year' by Gardens Illustrated and the London Garden Museum. Taschen once named Villa Augustus one of the 72 most beautiful places in the world to spend the night (now sold out). The 8 floating rooms occupy a 1903 towing-company vessel that worked the Port of Rotterdam for over a century.
Built in 1881 as Dordrecht's drinking water tower — a red-brick castle-like structure that also housed steam engines and technicians' quarters — Villa Augustus has been reimagined as one of the Netherlands' most genuinely eccentric hotels. There are 45 rooms spread across four completely different environments: the original tower floors, the former iron water reservoir, a converted 1903 floating river office moored on the Wantij, and a secret walled garden. The restaurant, set in the old pump house in the middle of a working 1.5-hectare kitchen garden, is the anchor of everything here — wood-fired oven, seasonal organic menu, and an in-house bakery turning out sourdough and cakes from early morning.
Where You'll Stay
7 room types available
Attic Rooms
Four rooms in the first floor of the old boiler room, with the cozy feel of attic rooms complete with dormer windows. Charming and characterful but only accessible via stairs — not suitable for guests with difficulty walking. The boiler room building sits adjacent to the main water tower.
Floating Rooms
Eight rooms on a former floating office from 1903, moored on the Wantij river directly alongside Villa Augustus. This vessel worked for towing companies in the Port of Rotterdam for over a century before being converted. Accessible via the garden. Fall asleep to the constant gentle lapping of water against the hull — it's the most atmospheric option on the property.
Garden Rooms
Eight rooms on the ground floor of the former boiler house, each with direct step-out access to the garden. There are also five additional garden rooms including three family rooms, where two adults and two children under 12 can sleep on a large double bunk bed. The family rooms open onto a private veranda facing a grass field shaded by fig and quince trees.
Il Giardino Segreto
A room hidden inside a walled secret garden on the edge of the orchard. Inspired by the private gardens of Italian country estates — places owners retreated to for silence away from their guests. Step through a door in a garden wall and find yourself completely alone in roses, sunshine, and quiet. Also used as Villa Augustus's artist-in-residence space. The hotel declines to reveal too much else — hence the name.
The Lantern Room
The top floor of the water tower — and the crown of the whole property. Private access to the glass lantern at the very peak via a spiral staircase. The view is a full panorama of Dordrecht and the three rivers (Noord, Merwede, Oude Maas). On a clear day you can spot Rotterdam's Euromast, some 25km away. One of only two rooms described as 'extra special' by the hotel.
Water Reservoir Rooms
Eight rooms carved from the former water reservoir — the heart of the tower's engineering history. Four of them have the original flat iron bottom of the reservoir as their floor, meaning you are literally sleeping where the water used to be. Bathrooms for those four rooms are one floor below in what was the leak trap, accessible by internal staircase. The other four are built on the first floor of the old boiler room, with the feel of attic rooms with dormer windows. Not suitable for guests with mobility limitations.
Water Tower Rooms
Light and spacious rooms with high windows set in the upper floors of the tower, above the old engine rooms where the water company's engineers once lived. These are the most classic rooms in the property. All accessible by lift. Northwest-facing rooms look out over the Wantij river; the other side overlooks the vegetable garden.
The Property
Eat & Drink
3 venues on property
Restaurant
On Property
How you'll actually spend your days.
Bikes available for guest use to explore Dordrecht and the surrounding waterlands. Kinderdijk windmills are approximately 20 minutes by bike.
A one-hour boat trip from Villa Augustus's own landing stage on the Wantij river. The boatman navigates through Europe's busiest river junction and the historic Groothoofd quay (immortalized by Dutch Golden Age painters), past centuries-old canal houses with their feet literally in the water. Picnic baskets available to take on board.
A 2-hour or longer boat trip through the wetlands of the Hollandse Biesbosch — a green labyrinth of creeks and reed beds that is home to beavers, ospreys, white-tailed eagles, and hares. One of Europe's largest freshwater tidal zones, just a short distance from the hotel. Picnic baskets available.
Villa Augustus runs an ongoing cultural programme, particularly active in autumn. String quartets perform in the Limonaia greenhouse. 'Encounters' sees musicians, writers, architects, illustrators, and philosophers tell stories in the tower rooms. The pop-up gallery 'Herfst' (Autumn) occupies room 24 periodically for artist exhibitions. The Queens of the Secret Garden programme welcomes artists-in-residence to the Giardino Segreto.
A 60-minute guided walk led by a chef, gardener, or hotel/market staff member through the full property: the 1.5-hectare kitchen garden, the open restaurant kitchen, the bakery, the market, and the historic water tower. Stories about the tower's engineering history, how the garden inspires the kitchen, and what life at Villa Augustus actually looks like day to day. Max 12 people per group.
The 1.5-hectare garden is open to all visitors during restaurant hours. Walk through the vegetable beds, Italian garden with box hedges, the small wood, the canal with its cascade to the Wantij, the Limonaia, the orchard, and — if you can find the door in the wall — past the Giardino Segreto. Please keep to paved paths.
Amenities & Practical Info
The details that matter for planning.
280 square metres of event space including the Wantijzaal and Moestuinzaal. Seats groups up to 16 for private dining. Lunch and dinner served family-style in communal dishes on festively decorated tables.
Free Wi-Fi available throughout the hotel.
On-site playground for families with children.
A working 1.5-hectare kitchen garden encompassing vegetable beds, an orchard, an Italian garden, a small wood, a canal, and the Limonaia. Open to guests and visitors during restaurant hours.
Limited off-site parking spaces available at no charge, reserved for hotel guests only. Reservation not possible — first come, first served.
Villa Augustus does not have a swimming pool.
Dry cleaning and laundry services available for guests.
Hotel reception staffed around the clock.
Gift vouchers for any amount, valid for 2 years, redeemable in the hotel, restaurant, and market. Available at reception and by post or email.
Private landing stage on the Wantij river behind the hotel, used for Villa Augustus's own boat trips.
No spa or dedicated wellness facilities on site.
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Rooms, dining, spa, and resort experiences — organized into one trip plan.
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