The Muiderslot is one of the best preserved castles in the Netherlands. The original castle was built around 1280 by Count Floris V of Holland and Zeeland. It was strategically important thanks to the castles location at the mouth of the river Vecht, the most important waterway to the diocese of Utrecht, and along the eastern trade route of Amsterdam.

After Floris's death, the castle was besieged and almost destroyed. The current castle dates back to 1369 to 1387, and was built on the original foundations. The floor plan of the castle is almost a square (32 x 35 metres) with round towers on the four corners. The west tower with it's spiral staircase is the highest tower with a total height of approx. 25 metres.

By walking through the castle yard you'll reach the narrow spiral staircase against the west tower, which was the medieval entrance to the castle. The staircase reveals the castle's defence purposes. They were deliberately built so that the staircase turns clockwise and has uneven steps, which made it difficult for right-handed attackers when the castle was under siege. The staircase leads to the room where Count Floris V was presumably held prisoner for 5 days by his nobles, before he was killed.

Despite radical restorations in the past, the sober and functional character of the castle has remained.

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