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ZaandamCulinary & nightlife

Our most recommended Zaandam Culinary & nightlife

Amsterdam: Zaanse Schans, Volendam, and Marken Day Trip

1. Amsterdam: Zaanse Schans, Volendam, and Marken Day Trip

Enjoy the picturesque Dutch countryside on a day trip by comfortable bus. Encounter the famous windmills, and learn about Dutch traditional crafts.Take advantage of free WiFi on board the bus as you travel. Discover the unique village of Zaanse Schans. Stroll around at your leisure and admire the well-preserved historic windmills and houses. Explore the fishing village of Volendam, visit a cheese shop still making cheese using a traditional Dutch method, and join a demonstration about Volendam cheese. Enjoy lunch at a traditional fish restaurant at your own expense, before exploring more of Volendam. Select the all-inclusive tour option for more activities including a boat ride to Marken, a visit to an operating windmill, and a clog-making demonstration.

Amsterdam: Zaanse Schans 3-Hour Small Group Tour

2. Amsterdam: Zaanse Schans 3-Hour Small Group Tour

Starting from Amsterdam, enjoy a comfortable drive to Zaanse Schans. There, hear your guide tell you about the sights and history of this unique, small village and region. Visit a wooden shoe workshop to see how the traditional wooden clogs are made. Also, enjoy a trip to a local cheese farm to learn how the Dutch Gouda cheeses are made. There, taste all kinds of delicious cheeses. After hearing about the magnificent windmills from your guide, enter one to see how these wind-powered industries operate. Get out on the balcony to experience the power of the wind yourself and to enjoy the lovely view of the countryside. After your guided tour at Zaanse Schans, head back to Amsterdam.

Amsterdam: Edam, Volendam, and Zaanse Schans Guided Tour

3. Amsterdam: Edam, Volendam, and Zaanse Schans Guided Tour

Leave Amsterdam for half a day on this guided tour of the rolling Dutch countryside. Sit back and travel comfortably in a coach to the rural village of Edam. Take a walk through the quaint streets of Edam. En route to Volendam, stop to visit an old cheese farm to see how authentic Dutch cheese is made. Indulge in trying some of these huge spheres of delicious cheese. Upon arrival in Volendam, follow your guide on a journey through the fishing village’s winding streets. Hear about how this bustling place was once the harbor for neighboring village Edam. Enjoy some free time to eat lunch. Next, move on to visit the windmill village of Zaanse Schans. Once used to ground spices, dyes, lumber, oil, cocoa powder, and many other items, the mills are still in use today. Some are now living museums where you can learn about the ins and outs of milling. Visit a wooden shoe factory and behold how traditional clogs are created using antique machines. Filled with newfound knowledge and a taste of the traditional Dutch ways of life, relax and reminisce about your trip while on the journey back to Amsterdam.

From Amsterdam: Giethoorn & Zaanse Schans Tour w/ Boat Ride

4. From Amsterdam: Giethoorn & Zaanse Schans Tour w/ Boat Ride

Explore Zaanse Schans, an open-air museum in the Netherlands on a day tour from Amsterdam. See the cheese farm, clog factory, and more before a cruise tour through Giethoorn. You will pass through the small canals, beautiful houses, and cobbled stone lanes of the Dutch village. Your experience begins as your guide meets you near Amsterdam's Central Station, from where you travel to the typical Dutch windmill village of Zaanse Schans. Zaanse Schans is an open-air museum complete with a cheese farm, clog factory, diamond museum, bakery museum, and Kuiperij, where barrels were made to transport goods, green timber houses, traditional crafts, and windmills. Next, head to the unique Dutch village of Giethoorn, heading further north out of Amsterdam. As you travel, listen to learn about the history and significant elements in the Giethoorn region. The journey will take roughly 2 hours, with a break included ensuring a pleasant journey. Giethoorn is beautiful in all seasons and contains a simple beauty that hardly seems real. Discover this as you glide gently through its small canals, passing old but pretty thatched-roof farmhouses. Your captain will serve as a guide throughout this 1-hour boat trip around town. Get to know everything about Giethoorn, with extra time after your boat trip to walk or bike along a narrow footpath, or to learn how to operate the ''whisper boat'', an electric-motor boat. In the evening, arrive back in Amsterdam's center with the rest of your night to look forward to.

Marken, Volendam, and Edam Full-Day Tour from Amsterdam

5. Marken, Volendam, and Edam Full-Day Tour from Amsterdam

Enjoy a scenic full-day coach tour of North Holland, and discover a charming landscape of windmills, canals, picturesque villages, and locals in traditional costume. Choose the all-in option to add a few extras to your tour, including a clog-making demonstration and a boat trip. Depart from Amsterdam station for the small fishing town of Marken, renowned for its preservation of traditional Dutch culture. Take a walking tour through streets full of colorful houses. If you've chosen the all-in option, stop at a shoemaker’s studio to watch how wooden clogs are made. Next, head to Volendam by coach if you've chosen the standard option or board the Marken Express if you've chosen the all-in option for a boat trip across the beautiful IJssel Lake. On arrival in Volendam, enjoy free time to explore the shops or try on a traditional costume for a souvenir photo.  Then, enjoy a tasting at a traditional Holland cheese factory and learn how cheese is made before continuing into the heart of North Holland to Edam. Discover the history of the former shipyard and see Grote Kerk, the largest church in the Netherlands, as you stroll the cobbled streets. Next, take in the last stop on your tour, the open-air museum of Zaanse Schans. Admire its magnificent collection of historic windmills. If you opt for the all-in ticket, you can go inside one of the operating windmills to learn more about this Dutch icon of industrial architecture. Finally, marvel at the picturesque homes, wooden barns, and scenic meadows of North Holland as you travel back to Amsterdam by coach. If you prefer a smaller group, like to take your time and explore all the best of this tour, then opt for the Charm of Holland guided tour. Available on Fridays. The tourguide takes a small group to all the inclusions in the all-in tour. The Charm of Holland also includes lunch at a traditional Dutch fish taverne.

Amsterdam: Giethoorn, Volendam, and Zaanse Schans Tour

6. Amsterdam: Giethoorn, Volendam, and Zaanse Schans Tour

See three different regions of the Netherlands with pickup and drop-off from Hotel ibis Amsterdam Centre. Sample local cheeses, enjoy lunch, dress up and take pictures, and take a cruise in Giethoorn. First, start with a visit to the 17th-century village, Zaanse Schans. See windmills from the country's industrial background, and stroll among the green residences. Then visit a factory that makes the popular clogs in this region of the Netherlands.  Before continuing to Volendam, stop at Catharina Hoeve Farm, where you can sample cheese and learn how its made. In Volendam, see brightly-painted wooden buildings and residents dressed in vibrant regional clothing. Your guide will lead you on a brief stroll around Volendam harbor.  Pick up souvenirs and gifts for friends and family back home, and take photographs in traditional Dutch costumes. Stop for a local lunch, then continue to Giethoorn in the northeastern Netherlands, known as the "Venice of the North". See the numerous canals and lack of motorways in Giethroon. During a 1-hour guided boat trip, you'll learn about this fairy-tale village with less than 3,000 residents. Next, stroll through the preserved village.  Finally, explore the village's small footpaths to find hundreds of bridges and take in the tranquil ambiance before returning to Amsterdam.

Amsterdam: Countryside Bike Tour and Zaanse Schans Windmills

7. Amsterdam: Countryside Bike Tour and Zaanse Schans Windmills

Learn about Dutch culture and history as you discover the area of Zaanse Schans on a half-day bicycle tour from Amsterdam. Meet your guide at Amsterdam Central Station and travel to Zaandam by train to start the bicycle tour. Cycle past industrial windmills and admire the beautiful landscape. Stop at a sawmill to learn how it operates, and visit a paper mill to see how paper was made in the 17th century. Pedal through the stunning wetlands, painted by Monet at the end of the 19th century. Pass the neighborhood of Domineestuin, filled with authentic wooden houses, before arriving in Zaanse Schans. Park your bicycle and enjoy a demonstration of how clogs are made. Take the opportunity to taste delicious Gouda cheese, a local specialty. After a fantastic half-day experience, return by bike to Zaandam and board the train back to Amsterdam Central Station, where your tour will end.

Zaanse Schans: Windmills, Clogs & Cheese by Electric Scooter

8. Zaanse Schans: Windmills, Clogs & Cheese by Electric Scooter

With this 1-day electric scooter rental, you get to decide what time you’ll start out, when and where you’ll stop and how long you’ll spend at the numerous attractions. Before you start the activity you get instructions from an instructor and have a test run. After that, you can go off on your own (not in a group). Your route starts in Landsmeer, a small village just above Amsterdam. It takes about 20 minutes by taxi, car, or bus to get to the starting point from Amsterdam. After a cup of coffee or tea and an explanation of the navigation app routiq, head out to discover the beautiful countryside. With your scooter rental, you’ll get a digital route to the Zaanse Schans, with its traditional Dutch houses and windmills.

Amsterdam: Volendam, Windmill, and Cheese Farm Private Tour

9. Amsterdam: Volendam, Windmill, and Cheese Farm Private Tour

Experience traditional Dutch culture on this 5-hour private journey from Amsterdam to Zaanse Schans, a clog and cheese factory, and Volendam. After pickup from your accommodation in Amsterdam, your driver and guide will take you to the first destination of the day: Zaanse Schans, a region of the Netherlands full of traditional structures. Tour the wooden dwellings, windmills, and quaint little shops. Above all, you can admire the traditional mills scattered throughout the town, each of which has its own purpose: there's a paint mill, oil mill, saw mill, and more. 

Amsterdam: Zaanse Schans & Giethoorn Guided Combo Tour

10. Amsterdam: Zaanse Schans & Giethoorn Guided Combo Tour

For a one-time life experience, you can start with a tour of the enchanting village of Giethoorn in the north of the Netherlands, with many canals and a total lack of roads. During a 1-hour guided boat tour, you can visit this fairytale village where less than 3,000 persons are living. Explore the restored village on foot to see the structure of every farmhouse on a tiny, man-made island. Walk along the narrow footpaths to explore hundreds of bridges and admire the village's quiet ambiance. Your journey will continue with an exploration of the most picturesque traditional 17th-century Zaanse Schans settlement, which includes houses and a series of wonderfully restored windmills from the nation's industrial heritage. In Zaanse Schans village, you can stroll through the charming greenhouses and visit a factory that makes the famous clogs in this part of the world. There's also a Dutch cheese to taste, and when you're there, you can try some at the Catharina Hoeve Farm, where you can also learn about how it's made.

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What people are saying about Zaandam

I had a wonderful experience, learned a lot both from the audio recordings and our guides. The motor coach was very large, double decker, comfortable. I didn’t expect it to be that large and packed with fellow tourists in mid-February. If I went by myself I’d probably spend more time in each place, I guess I felt slightly rushed. We covered a lot of ground in short period of time. Our guides were extremely kind, helpful and knowledgeable! Very funny, too! Our driver was also super professional and supportive of all our needs. I’m not sure I could take care of everyone the way they did! Many thanks to the entire team, they were brilliant. If I went again, I’d have an early lunch before the trip or be prepared with some healthy snacks until the 3-4 pm. meal.

Ester was a really good guide, lots of knowledge for the tour (also added her personal touch to the tour from facts of her own life as she was raised in a windmill herself which was really interesting) and she made the whole experience the highlight of our visit to Amsterdam. Highly recommended tour and Ester as a guide.

The day could not have been better! The guide, Eva, went above and beyond to keep her audience engaged. It was a beautiful sunny day, which helped, and I felt we saw everything we wanted to, and learnt so much at the same time.

A must do when in Amsterdam. Tony and Merriam were our great host. They are very knowledgeable and entertaining.

Evelyn is so knowledgeable and our tour driver is so helpful. Places are fantastic except for the rainy weather