The Zaanse Schans is an open air conservation area and museum, on the bank of the river Zaan, north of Zaandam in the Netherlands. It displays the traditional architecture of the area (green wooden houses) and has several functioning windmills and craftmen's workshops, which are open to visitors. Located next to it is the regional museum, the Zaans Museum .
Getting there
To get there, take a train to railway station Koog-Zaandijk (17 minutes/4 stops from Amsterdam Central Station). From there it is a 10-15 minutes walk through the village of Zaandijk (just follow the signs).
Alternatively take Connexxion bus line 91 from Amsterdam Central Station (IJ-side bus station) which has its terminus right beside the main entrance of the Zaanse Schans. The bus ride takes you around 40-45 minutes and the bus leaves every 30 minutes, in rush hours more frequently. The bus link at Central Station is at the back side of the station (bus platform), accessable through the western station tunnel.
Another possibility is to go by boat from the centre of Amsterdam. It is not very far and it is a truly lovely ride. You could even combine the ride to the Zaanse Schans with breakfast, lunch or dinner on board and you could aks the captain for a quick history lesson on the way. The best way to get to the Zaanse Schans by boat is to book a boat through
See
The access for the open air museum is free, the wooden houses are mainly normal living houses. Most of the windmills can be visited, so is the cheese farm.
Eat
There is an excellant pancake house (with a range of cakes, snacks and drinks as well as pancakes.) There is also a smaller cafe, a fried food snack bar and many gift shops. Not to mention the cheese available on site!
Sleep
Inntell Zaandam is a recently completed hotel which looks like a pile of typical wooden houses from the Zaan Region. It is right opposite the Zaandam Railway Station and easily accesible by train from Amsterdam Central Station and Schiphol Airport. Travel time Schiphol Airport-Zaandam (halfourly direct train) 20 minutes, Amsterdam Central-Zaandam (4-8 trains per hour) 12 minutes.
Buy
There are many gift shops (selling much the same touristy things.) However there is a clog workshop with a store selling may designs and sizes.
The cheesemaking workshop too has a shop selling a variety of cheeses.
The Bakery "In den Gecroonde Duyvekater" sells typical sweet bread and self-made candies.
The Grocery store of Albert Heijn gives you an idea how the first grocery around 1900 was set up. This was the first store of Albert Heijn, currently the largest supermarket in the Netherlands. They sell some tourist oriented products of Albert Heijn.
Contact & location
Be the first one to add a review
The photos displayed on this page are the property of one of the following authors:
The Zaanse Schans is an open air conservation area and museum, on the bank of the river Zaan, north of Zaandam in the Netherlands. It displays the traditional architecture of the area (green wooden houses) and has several functioning windmills and craftmen's workshops, which are open to visitors. Located next to it is the regional museum, the Zaans Museum .
Getting there
To get there, take a train to railway station Koog-Zaandijk (17 minutes/4 stops from Amsterdam Central Station). From there it is a 10-15 minutes walk through the village of Zaandijk (just follow the signs).
Alternatively take Connexxion bus line 91 from Amsterdam Central Station (IJ-side bus station) which has its terminus right beside the main entrance of the Zaanse Schans. The bus ride takes you around 40-45 minutes and the bus leaves every 30 minutes, in rush hours more frequently. The bus link at Central Station is at the back side of the station (bus platform), accessable through the western station tunnel.
Another possibility is to go by boat from the centre of Amsterdam. It is not very far and it is a truly lovely ride. You could even combine the ride to the Zaanse Schans with breakfast, lunch or dinner on board and you could aks the captain for a quick history lesson on the way. The best way to get to the Zaanse Schans by boat is to book a boat through
See
The access for the open air museum is free, the wooden houses are mainly normal living houses. Most of the windmills can be visited, so is the cheese farm.
Eat
There is an excellant pancake house (with a range of cakes, snacks and drinks as well as pancakes.) There is also a smaller cafe, a fried food snack bar and many gift shops. Not to mention the cheese available on site!
Sleep
Buy
There are many gift shops (selling much the same touristy things.) However there is a clog workshop with a store selling may designs and sizes. The cheesemaking workshop too has a shop selling a variety of cheeses.
The Bakery "In den Gecroonde Duyvekater" sells typical sweet bread and self-made candies. The Grocery store of Albert Heijn gives you an idea how the first grocery around 1900 was set up. This was the first store of Albert Heijn, currently the largest supermarket in the Netherlands. They sell some tourist oriented products of Albert Heijn.
Contact & location
Be the first one to add a review
The photos displayed on this page are the property of one of the following authors:
Bogdan Migulski, Francesco Dore, Johan Wieland, Or Hiltch, Rob Lee
Some photos courtesy of:
. The photos provided by Flickr are under the copyright of their owners.
This travel guide also includes text from Wikitravel articles, all available at
View full credits
Claus Hansen, Patrick and Stacy Hall, Roundtheworld, Globe-trotter and Wesopa
This travel guide also includes text from Wikipedia articles, all available at
View full credits