Day Trips: A day in Haarlem
If you are looking for a day trip from Amsterdam, whether it is to fill out an extra day of sightseeing, to get more of the real Dutch experience or to avoid the mainstream of tourists, then Haarlem is worth looking into. Located just a 15-minute train journey from Amsterdam Central, it is an easy and charming destination for a day trip. The medieval city is full of history, stunning architecture and an abundance of nice restaurants and cafes (as you may know this is very important for me).
The city is still fairly popular with locals and tourists. You could easily just spend a day here, I have and found that even in a few hours you could cover most of the area by foot, however, even after visiting 3 times there was still plenty of different things for me to do.
Although the area near the train station may not be a pretty sight, the main town and shopping street, Grote Houtstraat, is not far away. On your way to the Grote Markt, the main square in Haarlem, you will pass plenty of shops and cafes. The Chocolate Company Cafe was a huge hit with my dad as we enjoyed some amazing cakes here.
In the main square, you’ll see dutch gables on the top of houses surrounding the beautiful St Bavo Church. This is also where you’ll find the City Hall; if you’re prone to getting lost then you can grab a map from the tourist information centre on the ground floor.
The square seems to be the hub of the city, with plenty of restaurants and shops to choose from. If you are lucky and visit on a Saturday then you will find the square extremely busy as the square is filled by the food market. This was a pleasant surprise as I filled myself up with free samples! With fresh seafood, cheese, stroopwafels and bakeries, I was literally in food heaven. It is definitely the market to explore!
Take a walk along the Spaarne River, you will find some impressive houses and restaurants (if you fancy brunch then this is where you will find Teds; check out this brunch blog to see my review). If you would rather go on the canals, then you can take canal cruises or even rent your own boat!
One of the places that we stumbled across was de Adriaan Windmill. Unfortunately, I haven’t had the chance to visit inside, however, you can visit the landing platform for a small fee. Although the windmill was rebuilt in 2002 due to being burnt down, it still shows off the 18th-century architecture portraying the true dutch experience.
I have really enjoyed my visits to Haarlem, all of which involved a bit of walking - the best way to explore! It’s a great place to just wander around as you’ll find plenty of hidden gems with pretty alleyways and cute courtyards, ‘‘hofjes’’, all over the city.
P.s. Flower trade is an important part of the city; if you are visiting in April then make sure to check out when the flower parade is.
