The Hoge Vuurtoren — the tall lighthouse — stands 43 metres above the beach, a cylindrical cast-iron tower built in 1878 to mark the entrance to the North Sea Canal. It is painted reddish-brown with a white lantern, and works in tandem with the shorter Lage Vuurtoren (low lighthouse) nearby to create leading lights that guide ships into the canal entrance. The two lighthouses together are a defining element of the IJmuiden skyline.
The lighthouse is a protected national monument (Rijksmonument) and remains in active use. It is not open to visitors — the 159 steps inside are inaccessible to the public — but it makes for a striking landmark from the beach and the surrounding sea walls. The exterior can be viewed and photographed freely from the promenade.
The beach at IJmuiden, stretched out below the dunes near the lighthouse, is one of the broader North Sea beaches in this part of the Netherlands, and the promenade walk between the lighthouse and the harbour gives good views of the lock complex and the shipping traffic.