Staying in a Church?!

Welcome – or Wolkom in Frysian - on our own Bookings Website of the Mauritius Church in Jirnsum! Part of the Frisian capital of Leeuwarden, our village Jirnsum is centrally located in the heart of Friesland (Fryslân), in the northern province of The Netherlands.

While staying at our church you can do whatever you want: relax, cycle, walk, go boating, swimming, have lunch or dinner in quaint restaurants and cafes, or cook for yourself using local Frysian products. You can also visit a museum, go shopping, stroll around parks or enjoy the nearby royal forests. All this and more is possible!

The church owners are expats themselves; they have lived and worked in cities such as London, Helsinki, Amsterdam, Utrecht, St. Petersburg, Moscow, Beijing, Grou and Jirnsum (Leeuwarden).

Our central location in the northern part of the Netherlands makes our church the perfect base to explore Friesland and to dive into a special part of Dutch culture. Founded in the 7th century, Jirnsum is a 90 minutes drive from the Dutch capital Amsterdam and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport.

According to the world’s leading travel guide, Lonely Planet, Friesland belongs to the Top 10 ‘Best in Europe’ spots’.* As they say, “The province is bursting with nature, places where you can unwind completely.’’ Jirnsum is only 14km from Leeuwarden city, the European Capital of Culture in 2018. Did you know that you can visit 5 UNESCO World Heritage attractions within 25m-45m from Jirnsum?!

Biking, Boating & Walking

In and around Jirnsum you can go on short or long biking, boating and walking tours. We, the church owners, know all of Friesland’s best museums and restaurants and will be happy to point you in the right direction.

Jirnsum is easy to reach by public transport, such as by train from The Hague and Rotterdam. The church even has its own bus stop! You also can get a taxi from the closest train station Grou-Jirnsum.

The Mauritius Chuch – in Dutch: Mauritiuskerk – is 'famous' for its rock-solid beds. Our church studios both have their own fully equipped kitchen, and their own picnic table in the church garden.

By booking a studio directly on our website, www.mauritiuskerk.nl, via our own booking system - you always get the best price.

Our guests often tell us that they enjoy the peace that our church exudes. From the convenience of the modern rooms and the authentic atmosphere of the building, you can relax, enjoy and marvel at all the beauty that #Friesland has to offer.

The surroundings of Jirnsum and Leeuwarden offer enough activities and cultural events to ensure that a stay of one week in Friesland might not even be enough! Local boating company Watersport Bauke Visser in Jirnsum is more than happy to rent his boats (sloepen in Dutch) to you. In winter times he even has a fishing boat for you, just ask for it!

Friesland for foreign travellers

We - Bonnie, Charles & Yara - bought the church in 2019. It had been empty since 2010 and the demolition permit had already been lodged. We decided to build and renovate it in a circular and sustainable way and to leave authentic elements of this former Dutch Reformed church where possible. This way you can enjoy the beautiful, original church pillars from your bed.

The three of us lived abroad – in the UK, the Baltics, Russia and China – and we know what foreign guests and expats are looking for. We are the founders of the Eastern-Europe travel guide In Your Pocket Russia in 2003 and know what foreign travellers want to experience. Here with us you can be who you are.

Church garden

Step-by-step, we are turning the bare church garden - with a warm view from the south - into a real, wild church garden where you can sit and relax. Guests can also pick complimentary herbs (laurel, thyme, etc.) or tea (mint, lemon) for cooking here. If you are garden lovers and have good tips, we are always interested to hear what you think. And if you are relaxed and ready to roll up your sleeves - just ask us. There’s always plenty to do. Everything is allowed, yet nothing is required.

Support historic buildings: stay with us!

You can also follow us and our church adventures on Facebook via @Mauritiuskerk B&B Studioos Jirnsum and via Instagram @Mauritiuskerk_Friesland.

By spending your holiday in the church with us, you also support the preservation and maintenance of historic buildings in Friesland, designed by the well-known Frisian architect Jacob Nijdam, who was born and raised in Jirnsum and the surrounding area.

Boating

You can rent a boat at Bauke Visser, a boat rental company in Jirnsum. When you want a private boat with your own captain, please contact us: info@mauritiuskerk.nl

Biking

You can bring you own bikes and store them within our church safely. You can also rent bikes from our partner bike shop Joop Zandberg in the nearby village Grou; he will deliver your bike on the day of your arrival and pick them up when you leave.  

For more information on biking and walking routes around Jirnsum, check our Jirnsum Bike & Walking page.

Breakfast

For an extra fee you can order breakfast in your room or in our church garden. Technically we are a BwB: Bed without Breakfast 😊 Many guests like to make breakfast themselves using local products in their own kitchen, although many order breakfast the morning of their arrival or on the day that they leave.

Jirnsum & Friesland

There is so much to do and see in the province of Friesland. You can always ask us for ideas based on your interests. From Jirnsum for example you can visit UNESCO heritage site, Wadden Islands in the Wadden Sea. The medieval town of Franeker (800) is close-by. Once upon a time Franker University, the second oldest university of the Netherlands, was located here. In Franeker you will find the Royal Eise Eisinga Planetarium, an orrery museum on UNESCO World Heritage List.

Many of our guests visit the 11 Cities of Friesland in winter, a 200km long-distance skating tour on natural ice. International artists have designed a fountain in each of the 11 cities, with spring water shooting up into the air. Dramatic and good spots for selfies.

Jirnsum is also part of the Jaabiks walking path, a pelgrimage route popular with walkers and bikers. Starting from the Wadden Sea coast in Friesland, the Jaabikspaad is part of the pilgrimage route leading to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

Walking or cycling along the Jabikspaad you can experience what a pilgrimage does to you.

About us and our B&B church in Friesland

We - Bonnie, Charles & Yara - are living in the Mauritius Church in Jirnsum, a picturesque village between Leeuwarden, Heerenveen and Sneek. We fully enjoy the area and look forward to welcoming you as our guest and telling you more about this beautiful part of Friesland.

As a true Frisian native, Bonnie knows the area like the back of her hand. Charles, an education specialist with Indonesian-roots, once worked as mystery holiday shopper and still fondly remembers this experience. After more than 20 years of living and working abroad - China (Beijing), Russia (Moscow and St. Petersburg) - we decided it was time to come back to our roots and look for a new challenge. So we bought a church that was about to be demolished.

The former Dutch Reformed Church of #Jirnsum dates from 1877. The first stone was laid by the well-known Frisian architect JR Nijdam. The Mauritiuskerk stood empty for years. In 2010 the last church service was held and the church was decommissioned.

We are the first residents of the Mauritiuskerk Residence in the State of Frisian. A church is a building to share and that is why we started in January 2020 with the construction of our B&B Studioos in the church tower.

We have furnished the church studios as we would like to stay during our own travels: fully equipped, excellent beds with high-quality mattresses, and self-catering facilities. A place where you can stay independently, but where - if you want - company is never far away.

Sustainability

We try to organize the B&B Studioos as circularly as possible. For example, Bonnie made the back wall of the double bed in De Kraak Studio from an ancient church door. The staircase in studio De Pelgrim is made from an old wooden church staircase that led to the organ. In both rooms you will find the refurbished, original wooden church floor.

We also like to be as sustainable as possible combined with quality brands. The coffee cups in the room are biodegradable and can be placed in the green bio bin. We use green soap for cleaning and the soap for hands and dishes is environmentally friendly.

Our cleaners receive a good hourly wage and also sufficient time to clean the B&B Studioos: an average of 1 hour per studio. Most 5-star hotels only devote 15 to 20 minutes... Sometimes we still do the cleaning ourselves; cleaning is a form of mindfulness.

Love

We, as a family, live in the nave of the church. We love walking, traveling (preferably by train), reading, cooking, eating and socializing. We are very curious about your stories and what brings you to Jirnsum.

By the way, we speak Dutch, Frisian, English, Russian, Chinese, German and a little French :-)

Wolkom! Welcome! Welkom! Wilkommen! Dobro pozhalovat! До зустрічі! Huanyng, huanyng! Bienvenue!