Zeeheldenkwartier: A Neighbourhood Guide to The Hague's Zeehelden Quarter
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The Zeeheldenkwartier is a residential quarter on the edge of The Hague's city centre, and it rewards half a day rather than a full sightseeing day. It suits travellers who want authentic small shops, friendly restaurants and cafés, sunny squares and handsome Art Nouveau buildings, exactly the mix that makes the district so popular with locals. This guide covers its streets and squares, where to eat and stay inside the area, the Thursday market, the Zeeheldenfestival and how to walk it.
Where the Zeeheldenkwartier sits
The district lies at the edge of the Haagse binnenstad, The Hague's city centre, close enough to walk in from the middle of town. Its boundaries are the streets themselves: Prins Hendrikstraat, Zoutmanstraat and Piet Heinstraat carry most of the shopping, with Prins Hendrikplein, Anna Paulownaplein and Piet Heinplein as the squares that hold the quarter together. Treat it as an afternoon appended to a city-centre morning rather than a separate excursion.
Several of the named cafés and shops sit on the two main shopping streets: Plenty, Bartine, Haley's Comet Breakfast Club and Single Estate Coffee Roasters on Piet Heinstraat, and Appeltje Eitje and Vincenzo's on Prins Hendrikstraat, so eating and wandering happen in the same few minutes of walking.
Is the Zeeheldenkwartier worth a visit?
Yes, if you enjoy shopping streets with independent character and a lived-in, local atmosphere; no, if you are chasing headline sights. The quarter's appeal is authentic shops, cafés and restaurants, sunny squares and Art Nouveau architecture, and that is a gentler pleasure than a museum morning. Travellers wanting the big-ticket circuit should look at The Hague Attractions: 12 Visitor Guides and slot the Zeeheldenkwartier in afterwards.
It is equally a good fit for people who have already done the city-centre museums and want a neighbourhood to wander with a coffee in hand. The district is compact, easily handled on foot, and best on a day when you are not trying to fit in three ticketed visits.
The three streets to walk: Prins Hendrikstraat, Zoutmanstraat and Piet Heinstraat
The neighbourhood association flags Prins Hendrikstraat, Zoutmanstraat and Piet Heinstraat as the main shopping streets, and that trio is the simplest walking plan. Expect a mix of interior shops, trendy design stores, galleries, vintage shops, supermarkets and plenty of specialist retailers with unusual stock. Walk all three and you have seen the commercial heart of the quarter without needing a map.
Prins Hendrikstraat holds several of the names worth knowing: Appeltje Eitje at number 69, Vincenzo's at 75, secondhand children's clothing at Achtung! Baby, number 97, with Achtung! Lady further along at 160. Piet Heinstraat carries Plenty at 37, Bartine at 72, Haley's Comet Breakfast Club at 133 and Single Estate Coffee Roasters at 15. Van Brakelstraat, off the same grid, has interior shop Atelier Cocotier at 108D.
The squares: Prins Hendrikplein, Anna Paulownaplein and Piet Heinplein
Prins Hendrikplein is the square for Gastropub Van Kinsbergen at number 15 and, alongside Anna Paulownaplein, the setting for the neighbourhood's summer terraces. Anna Paulownaplein is described as a green, unhurried square in the middle of the neighbourhood, and Bagels & Beans sits at Piet Heinplein 3. In summer the terraces around Prins Hendrikplein, Piet Heinstraat, Prins Hendrikstraat and Anna Paulownaplein fill mainly with locals, which is the tone of the whole quarter.
Use the squares as rest stops rather than destinations in themselves: sit on Prins Hendrikplein after Piet Heinstraat, then cut through to Anna Paulownaplein before heading back towards the centre. Prins Hendrikplein is also the square for the Thursday market and the Zeeheldenfestival, so it is where the district's calendar happens.
Shopping: interiors, design, galleries and vintage
This is a browsing district rather than a chain-retail one. The draw is a spread of interior shops, design stores, galleries, small clothing shops and speciality food shops, with secondhand children's clothing at Achtung! Baby and interiors at Atelier Cocotier as good examples of the independent end.
If you like discovering new shops, the quarter is worth building into a day for that alone; if you need a specific purchase, aim for the three main streets and work outwards. Similar browsing exists in the Statenkwartier, The Hague, where the shopping is concentrated differently.
The Thursday market on Prins Hendrikplein
The neighbourhood market, the ZEEHELDENMARKT, runs on Thursday on Prins Hendrikplein, which lets you combine a market browse with the streets around it. Plan the rest of the quarter around that day if a market is part of what you want from the visit, and treat the square as the start rather than the finish.
Keep the market in proportion: it is a neighbourhood market on a square, not a full-day attraction, so pair it with the shops on Prins Hendrikstraat and a coffee on Piet Heinstraat.
Cafés and breakfast: Haley's Comet, Plenty, Appeltje Eitje, Bartine and Single Estate
Breakfast and coffee are the district's strongest suit. Haley's Comet Breakfast Club on Piet Heinstraat does all-day breakfast with a nostalgic 1980s interior and elaborate milkshakes, while Plenty, also on Piet Heinstraat, is a plant-based kitchen known for its cinnamon rolls and Middle Eastern-leaning dishes.
Appeltje Eitje on Prins Hendrikstraat is a lunch room with comforting plates such as pumpkin-chocolate pancakes and avocado toast, popular with locals. Single Estate Coffee Roasters on Piet Heinstraat is a speciality roastery bar for espresso and filter coffee, and Bartine on the same street is a bakery and neighbourhood shop for saffron buns, sourdough and almond croissants.
Lunch and dinner: the neighbourhood map
For a sit-down meal, Gastropub Van Kinsbergen on Prins Hendrikplein pairs a wide beer list with upgraded pub food, and Vincenzo's on Prins Hendrikstraat serves Italian cooking with a modern twist from large pizza ovens. De Sushimeisjes on Prins Hendrikstraat is small, with only a few tables, and works well for a quick bite after shopping.
Beyond those, the neighbourhood food list runs long and varied: Marius Wijnwinkel on Piet Heinstraat, HUMMUS on Prins Hendrikstraat, Curry & Cocos Thai Food, Mozza e Mezze on Prins Hendrikplein and Aleppo on Zoutmanstraat among them. That breadth is the reason to eat here rather than in the city centre.
The Zeeheldenfestival: four free days on Prins Hendrikplein
The Zeeheldenfestival takes over Prins Hendrikplein from Wednesday 8 to Saturday 11 July 2026, with free theatre, music, street performance and children's activities on and around the square. It has run for more than forty years and is staged by and for residents of the quarter, which is why it feels like a neighbourhood party rather than a ticketed city event.
The published programme splits across the Heldenpodium, Piratenpodium and Plein stages, with a mix of school performances, circus, puppetry, bands and a Saturday home-made market. The 2026 dates above are specific to that edition, and the festival publishes a fresh programme each year rather than repeating the same days.
Getting there and getting around
The quarter sits at the edge of the Haagse binnenstad, so the practical approach is on foot from the city centre. Once inside, everything is walkable: the three shopping streets and the squares sit within a few minutes of each other, and a bike makes short work of the wider neighbourhood.
Aim your walk at Prins Hendrikplein as the pivot, then branch along Piet Heinstraat and Prins Hendrikstraat, with Zoutmanstraat as the third leg.
How long to give the Zeeheldenkwartier
Budget half a day inside a one to four day Hague trip, or a full day if you hit Thursday's market or the Zeeheldenfestival. Half a day is enough for the three shopping streets, a square or two and one proper meal; a full day adds the festival programme or a slower lunch.
If you have only one free afternoon, choose the Zeeheldenkwartier when you want shops rather than a beach. The two work as a pair if you have a full day to split, with Scheveningen as the coastal district.
Is the Zeeheldenkwartier worth half your day?
Yes, for a half-day of shopping streets, square-side coffee and one good meal, and especially on a Thursday or during the Zeeheldenfestival. It is not a headline-sight district, so do not trade a museum morning for it unless you have already covered the centre.
Build the visit around Prins Hendrikplein and the three shopping streets, and let the eating follow naturally from the walking. That is enough for the quarter to earn its place in a short Hague break.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Zeeheldenkwartier?
The Zeeheldenkwartier is a residential quarter on the edge of The Hague's city centre, known for authentic small shops, cafés and restaurants, sunny squares and Art Nouveau buildings. The name belongs to the district as a whole, not to a single street or square.
Which day is market day in the Zeeheldenkwartier?
The neighbourhood market, the ZEEHELDENMARKT, is held on Thursday on Prins Hendrikplein. It is a neighbourhood market rather than a large event, so pair it with the shops on Prins Hendrikstraat and a coffee on Piet Heinstraat to fill the day.
When is the Zeeheldenfestival?
The 2026 edition runs from Wednesday 8 to Saturday 11 July on Prins Hendrikplein, and entry is free. It has run for more than forty years and is staged by and for residents of the quarter. The programme changes each year, so confirm the dates on the festival's own site before booking travel around them.