Zo­cher­park

The Zocherpark is the green city park that surrounds the historical city centre. Covering a distance of five kilometres, you can enjoy beautiful walks that will take you past various places of historical interest. The Zocherpark is one of the oldest public parks in the Netherlands and has been designated a national monument. There are many old trees in the monumental park. Some have been there since the construction of the park. More than 400 trees in the park are older than 100 years.

History
Until the beginning of the 19th century, Utrecht was surrounded by medieval city walls. Because the ramparts were outdated and had lost their military function for several centuries, the central government gave permission for them to be demolished. The old defensive structures were replaced with a long, narrow park along the canal of Utrecht, designed by architect J.R. Zocher. The total project took over 40 years to finish, but the end result is a green city park with footpaths, trees and an open space with a bandstand by the Lepelenburg.