Amsterdam, the 'Venice of the North', and indeed, the inner city is a miracle of architecture of the 17th century and listed on the Unesco list of World Heritage. And it is not a museum, but still alive, well and changing all the time. And there is so much more: museums, worldclass performances and a multi cultural and liberate atmosphere. Amsterdam is used to receive tourists from all over the world and welcomes them.
Amsterdam is also the capital of The Netherlands, a small country...
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Nearby activities
Alkmaar
is a beautiful town, which is famous for it's cheese. During the months April to September a traditional cheese market is being held here on Friday mornings. The cheeses are sold by dealers on a clap of hands. After that the 400 year old cheese porters' guild goes into action, carrying the cheese off on barrows after the lot has been weighed at the Waag (the official scales).
address:
Kaasmarkt, Alkmaar
price:
Free
openinghours:
First Friday of April until the first friday of September: 10.00 a.m. - 1.30 p.m.
nearby transportation:
Alkmaar Central station (direct connection by train from Amsterdam Central Station), from there the 'Kaasmarkt' is signposted.
The train to Castricum takes about 25 minutes and costs Euro8.20 return. At Castricum station you can hire a bike (phone 0251-654035 to reserve), and in the station restaurant buy a map and a Euro1 entrance card to kilometers of bike paths through beautiful woodlands, meadows, and dunes, with access to the beach. This is also the filtration area for Amsterdam's drinking water, so you may also see huge carp swimming in the crystal-clear water of the pools.
Some other towns just outside...
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Only one hour away from Amsterdam, the second biggest city of the country Rotterdam can been found. It is a centre of modern architecture, cause the centre was bombed in 1940 (start of the occupation by the Germans, during World War II).
Rotterdam can be reached easily by train or car via The Hague or Utrecht.
See for more information under section 'Rotterdam'.
Delft
is known worldwide for the Delft blue which is still made there. The old towncentre is a joy to walk through, especially to see the two churches.
nearby transportation:
There is a direct connection by train from Amsterdam Central Station.
Haarlem
has many things to offer: lovely small shops, a lot of history and interesting museums. Well worth a visit!
nearby transportation:
From Amsterdam Central Station, at least four times an hour, a direct train to Haarlem Central Station. The trips takes less then 10 minutes.
Muiden
offers a picturesque town centre, together with two amazing historic sites: the castle of Muiden ('Muiderslot')
and the Island Fort Pampus
. Muiden can easily be reached by car (about 30 minutes) or public transport (about 45 minutes).
nearby transportation:
By bus from Amsterdam Amstel train station. Or by train to Weesp, then by local bus to Muiden.
The fortifications of Naarden
are one of the best preserved fortifications in the world, so well worth a visit!
address:
Naarden-Vesting
nearby transportation:
There is a direct connection by train from Amsterdam Central Station to Naarden-Bussum station, from there you have to take the bus to Naarden-Vesting.
Close to Amsterdam lies another beautiful and characteristic city: Utrecht
. This city is at least worth a day-trip, although it's easy to spend more time there!
The train station lies amidst a huge shopping centre, which is completely covered. So it's the perfect place to shop with bad weather. If you walk through the shopping centre, you will enter the old streets of Utrecht. They offer even more shops, but also lots of great sights!
nearby transportation:
Utrecht Central Station lies in the centre of the city. Most of the sight can reached by foot from there. This station has frequent connections with Amsterdam Central Station.
Some 20 km North of Amsterdam lies this famous fishermans village on the boarder of the IJsselmeer. You can book touristical daytrips by bus on several booking agencies on Rokin. But you can also easily organise the trip by yourself.
If you're sportive enough you can go there by bike (interesting trip along the boarders of the lake), by car (straight by taking the N247 after passing the IJtunnel from the centre of Amsterdam; or scenic by taking the road along Durgerdam, Uitdam and...
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The tulip season (late March to mid-to-late May) is the best time to take a coach trip to Keukenhof, huge gardens dedicated to tulips. Every year people come from all over the world to see this master piece of Dutch gardening. Trips can be booked from companies on the Damrak. One can also take the train to Leiden, and from there take bus 54, the Keukenhof Express.
Here you can find an interactive map of the Keukenhof: http://www.keukenhof.nl/nm/132/Park-Map.html
price:
13,50 euro.
openinghours:
Open late March to mid-to-late May, daily: 8.00 a.m. - 7.30 p.m.
nearby transportation:
Bus 54 (Keukenhof express) from Leiden Central Station; bus 50 en 51 from Haarlem Central Station to Lisse, then change at bus 57.
Especially for Americans weary of Dutch cusine, Hoorn offers more than just a nice drive or train ride up the country side with splendid views of the Markermeer. Among it's other virtues as a city, Hoorn has a restaurant called "Cosy" that has a gourmet hamburger that is worth every kilometer you have to cross to get to it. It's called the Burgeois and is the only hamburger on the menu. It's served on a multi-grained roll. It's got pineapple and a delicious sweet sauce that covers swiss...
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address:
Nieuwland 1, 1621HJ, Hoorn, Noord-Holland, NL
price:
€8-12
nearby transportation:
Station Hoorn
'The national park Hoge Veluwe', as part of the region 'de Veluwe' has additional charme and beautiful surroundings: free bikes at the gates to cycle through the grounds. Nature is well kept and at odd time it is very possible to be very close to its inhabitants (deer, swine etc).
In the middle is the modern-art museum Kröller-Müller with a major collection of works by Van Gogh, Seurat, Redon, Braque, Picasso, Juan Gris, Mondriaan and others. There is an excellent statue garden...
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Watersports for young and old! Nautiek Vaaropleidingen is a sailing school in the heart of Amsterdam, easy to reach, easy to enroll in for a day or 6 months, no strings attached. The proprietor, Rob, has been imparting sailing wisdom in English and Dutch for many years and besides renting boats for hours, days or weekends, he also teaches sailing classes.
His fleet of valkboots (keelboats) take anywhere from brand new landlubbers, and green deckhands all the way up to experienced...
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address:
Veemkade 267
zipcode:
1019 CZ Amsterdam
phone:
+31 (0)20 41 93 005
nearby transportation:
C van Eesterenlaan (Tram 10 & Bus: 41, 359)
email:
info@nautiek.com
The Hotel De Oude Taveerne (Old Tavern Inn) is an old 18th century fisherman's house used as a hotel and tavern. It's very cozy (*gezellig*) and has great views of the lake from inside or out. The rooms are three stars and full services are available.
You can sit inside or outside or you can cross the street and sit on the harbor where they have some tables as well. The menu is simple and very Dutch. Sandwiches, croquets, soups, etc. But the real fun is in
getting...
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address:
Durgerdammerdijk 73
zipcode:
1026 CB Amsterdam
phone:
+31 (0)20 490 4259
openinghours:
7 days a week from 0800 - 2400
email:
deoudetaveerne@hetnet.nl
When is the weather is warm and the sun is shining many locals go to the beach. A favorite is the beach of Zandvoort, mainly because it can easily be reached by train!
There is a direct connection between Amsterdam Central Station and the station of Zandvoort ('Zandvoort aan Zee'). The trip takes about 30 minutes. The train leaves each half hour and during the summer each 15 minutes. From the station of Zandvoort it is a 5 minute walk to the beach.
A return ticket will cost you around 9 euro.
Not far from Amsterdam, on about 20 km, in the lake called IJsselmeer is Marken, an island joined to the mainland by a land bridge. It still has many wooden houses, and some of the locals still wear traditional costumes. Organized coach tours are available from th e companies on the Damrak. But much cheaper is it to make the trip by yourself. For only six strips of a strippen-card (See: Moving > To get around > Public transport) you can take bus 111 of Arriva bus company, from Central...
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From the train station of Hoorn you can make a trip by historic steamtram to Medemblik. From thereon it is possible to travel further to Enkhuizen by boat. From Enkhuizen you can take the regular train back.
This route is called the 'Historic Triangle' and offers a wonderful day-trip! You can enjoy the views on the beautiful landscape of 'West Friesland', which is covered with blooming flowers in spring.
nearby transportation:
Train station Hoorn and Enkhuizen, both have frequent connections with Amsterdam Central Station
The Vinkeveense is a lake a couple dozen miles south of Amsterdam. Dotted with countless little islands of Dutch living, it's a wonderful place to lounge during a doldrum or to careen through in a squall. Aside from bitterballen, gouda and Heineken, it's hard to get more Dutch than this place.
The Vinkeveensehaven is located on the N201 just west of where the road separates the smallest lake from the main one and is a great place to rent sailboats for the day or weekend. It's friendly...
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address:
Herenweg 144
zipcode:
3645 DT Vinkeveen
phone:
+31 0297 26 19 90
nearby transportation:
Viaduct (121, 126, 130)
email:
info@vinkeveenhaven.nl
The Zaanse Schans is one of the top tourist destinations of the Netherlands. On the banks of the river Zaan you can see the characteristic green wooden houses and historic windmills. There are several museums, restaurants and little shops on the premises. Together with the organized activities it gives a perfect impression on how a typical Zaanse village must have looked like in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
address:
Schansend 7, 1509 AW Zaandam
price:
free
phone:
+31 (0)75 61 62 862
openinghours:
daily 9:00 - 17:00, some of the attractions are closed during the winter season.
nearby transportation:
Train: station Koog-Zaandijk (from Amsterdam Central Station take the stop train to Alkmaar). From the station it is a 15-minute walk, which is signposted.
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