The city has an old town, surrounded by a small canal. A castle stood in IJsselstein from 1300 to 1888; the tower survived. The city has two large churches, both named after St. Nicholas: the Dutch Reformed Nicolaas church, founded in 1310, and a Roman Catholic church. Inside the Protestant church there are two mausoleums; one of the family of Gijsbrecht van Amstel (1350) and another of Aleida van Culemborg [nl] (1475). The catholic basilica of St. Nicolaas dates from 1887 and is neo-gothic. It was given the title of 'Basilica Minor' by Pope Paul VI in 1972.
A 366.8 metres high television mast, called the Gerbrandy Tower, is located in IJsselstein. The tower is commonly, and erroneously, referred to as Zendmast Lopik, after the nearby village of Lopik.
Topography
Dutch Topographic map of the municipality of IJsselstein, June 2015
1649 map of IJsselstein in Willem and Joan Blaeu's "Toonneel der Steden"
^"Samenstelling" [Members] (in Dutch). Gemeente IJsselstein. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
^"Kerncijfers wijken en buurten 2020" [Key figures for neighbourhoods 2020]. StatLine (in Dutch). CBS. 24 July 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
^"Postcodetool for 3401BK". Actueel Hoogtebestand Nederland (in Dutch). Het Waterschapshuis. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
^"Bevolkingsontwikkeling; regio per maand" [Population growth; regions per month]. CBS Statline (in Dutch). CBS. 1 January 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2022.