Zaanse Schans Day Trip from Zaandam
About this activity
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Experience Highlights
Embark on a half-day excursion from Zaandam to the picturesque village of Zaanse Schans, where Dutch tradition comes alive amidst windmills, wooden houses and craft workshops.
On this 3-hour tour, you will be picked up from your hotel in Zaandam, transferred by air-conditioned vehicle and accompanied by an English-speaking guide, all in a small group of maximum 16 people.
During your visit you will be able to make your own clogs in a wooden workshop, learn how Gouda cheese is made and admire the workings of an active industrial mill.
- Book your place and travel in comfort in an air-conditioned vehicle.
- Get hands-on: make your own traditional clogs.
- Taste more than 25 varieties of cheese on an authentic dairy farm.
What’s included
- Pick-up and drop-off at your hotel in Zaandam
- Air-conditioned vehicle
- English-speaking guide throughout the tour
- Clog making workshop (includes your own pair of clogs)
Select participants and date
Step by Step
Zaanse Schans is a true open-air museum of traditional Dutch life, situated on the banks of the river Zaan. You will leave Zaandam after pick-up from your hotel and, after a short drive, you will arrive at a collection of active windmills, green wooden houses and workshops that have preserved their essence since the 18th century.
Your English-speaking guide will accompany you along wooden walkways and grassy paths, telling you the story of each mill and how these wooden giants transformed grain, ink or paint for the Dutch trade. You'll feel the breeze on your face as you learn why Zaanse Schans has become a cultural icon.
In the workshop of Kooijman Souvenirs & Clogs, you will discover the most complete collection of wooden clogs and see how a craftsman carves and assembles them. Then it's your turn: with the help of the master clog-maker, create your own pair of clogs to take home as a souvenir.
Next, you will visit the Catharina Hoeve cheese farm, where you will learn about the production process of the famous Gouda cheese and taste more than 25 varieties: from mild semi-cured to aged, accompanied by crusty bread.
Finally, you will enter Molen De Kat, the last working paint mill in the world. You will climb up to the panoramic platform and look out over the landscape dotted with windmills, pasture land and traditional villages, understanding how the wind has shaped the history of the Netherlands.
