Zaanse Schans

Well, the wind mills are nice to see, and the cottages are cute and colourful. However, the whole area makes you feel too much ‘business’, gift shops in every cottage, even cheese factory sites on the route. It’s worth to see just once.

This is a must see stop for any tourist visiting Amsterdam. (Or, I guess just the Netherlands in general, although I can’t imagine why you’d visit the Netherlands without stopping through Amsterdam!) Luckily I have a friend that lives in Amsterdam so we drove ourselves to this location in her car. It is about a 20 – 30 minute ride north of the city. The windmills here are so beautiful. We went on a Sunday afternoon; the gift shop was closed, but we were actually happy because that just meant less tourists and more of the place to ourselves! My friends and I brought a bottle of wine and a blanket and watched the sunset. Super romantic– too bad it was just us 3 girls there together!

I can’t really give an accurate review because I went after dinner at like 8pm so it was getting dark… We saw the windmills and geese and goats. We crossed the little bridges over the rivers and found the giant wooden cogs! Wish we had time to go during the day but it was still a cool experience to see and breathe in the countryside of Holland.

We came here as part of Lindbergh Tours. Learning about the history/​importance of the windmill in Dutch history and culture was very interesting. They made linseed oil from the windmill. Yes, it is kind of a common tourist destination in which you’re thrown in but then again when you come to all kinds of foreign places, you are going to be treated like one… so expect the photographer to take a snap of you and sell it to you as you exit later. But the views and the scenery and worth making the trip once whether part of group or on your own.

This town smells of chocolate! Seriously. There is a giant chocolate factory owned by Cargill along the way. The chocolately breeze must be how Charlie felt going into Willy’s factory.
Anyway, the family enjoyed the visit. On a good sunny day, its a nice stroll through the little town. There are farm animals that are very tame and entertaining for little toddlers. Chickens, goats, sheeps, cows and ducks are some of the animals that allow you to pet them.
The (Henry Willig) cheese shop is amusing with a small area dedicated for cheese making though the prices in Amsterdam are slightly cheaper.
There are several windmills — oil making, wood cutting, spice making etc. At least one was open to gawking for a fee.
For the lazy, you can rent a bicycle to bike around the area. (You really dont need to unless you are mega lazy or really hate walking or want to fulfill your fantasy of bulldozing the great many often rude tourists from the buses)
You can take a boat to cross to the small town for 1 euro which is a fun way to fulfill your quota of doing at least a canal boat ride in the Netherlands. (about 5 mins ride)
p/​s if you need to get food, get food from the tourist area or buy from amsterdam, the small town’s restaurants are a hit and miss with openings.
Getting there:
By bus
For 5euros per adult, you pass through some charming small towns along the way. Takes about an hour to get there. Take 391 from Amsterdam Central. The bus drops you about 5 minutes away from the Zaanse museum which is close to the entrance of the tourist area.
By train
Its slightly less to take the train vs. the bus, but though the train is a tad bit faster, it is a bit of a hike to get from the station to Zaanse and vice versa. You dont get to see any many interesting things on the way either.

Sure, it’s kind if cheesy but it was still a lot of fun. Particularly enjoyed it’s picturesque Dutch countryside feel in spite of being so close to Amsterdam by train. And yes, there are windmills. Explore the miniature museums and shops. Grab a super cheap lunch, a delicious Edam cheese sandwich which cost € 1,50. Then take a relaxing boat ride along the river which, again, was cheesy but still fun. After, grab a traditional Dutch pancake which was a like mega sized crêpe. I had one with fresh cherries and whipped cream. Delicious, but a gut bomb. Like in my other reviews, admission is included in the I Amsterdam card so pick one up to save money. Some say it’s a tourist trap but I still enjoyed it. Even bought some cheese ;)

Zaanse Schans is a Big tourist trap, you can feel the taste of fake and sell sell at every corner. At the beginnig you can feel the powerful disturbing chocolate making smell, and you see loads of chiness buses unloading. The outside view of the windmills in nice, I had also nice weather and got to do a few nice shots but the feeling of going like sheeps in this small area it’s not the thing for me… I guess it happens with touristic attractions.
1. If u happen to come here check the Windmill no 5, has a nice terrace and you can enjoy the weather (if u are lucky haha) and grab a bite to eat (eel and salmon burgers yumm)
2. Visit the small Windmills Village! This is completely a different story: b e a u t i f u l

We ventured out to Zaanse Schans on a nippy, but sunny, Friday. A very quick train ride on the Sprinter from Amsterdam Centraal, and we were off to see some windmills. Yes, it’s touristy. Yes, it can be cheesy. But, yes. It. Is. Beautiful.
If you want great photo opportunities of windmills, this is it.
We only went inside one windmill (the one making peanut oil), and I have to say, I can’t see a reason to go inside more than one while visiting. It was very neat but I can’t imagine that the others are much different. There are tons of little shops to check out… cheese, sweets, goods, etc., and a few places to grab a bite to eat. If wooden shoes are your thing, you are in luck, because you can watch those being made as well (shockingly similar in process to making the Louisville Slugger baseball bats, if you’ve ever been on that factory tour!)
I’m so glad we took the time to go visit this area, definitely check it out if you want to see just a bit of the country side while visiting Amsterdam.

Grab bus 391 upstairs behind Centraal Station if you are heading there. It’s easy, it’s about a 40 minute ride, but in less than 10 minutes you feel so far outside of the city of Amsterdam. Once you get to the bus stop, hop off, cross the bike path and take a left, then you’ll see the parking lot and will be able to find your way from there. For a one-​way trip it’s 5 euros and you can pay the bus driver. If you have your OV-​chip card, it’s 4 euros. (Of course as of Feb 28, 2015). Pretty decent if you ask me!
The Zaanse Schans is a neat place to visit. It’s pretty and fairly peaceful. If you like taking photos there are great opportunities for that! We went very low budget, so we didn’t go to the museum and only popped into the baking museum and a chocolate showcase. Make sure you take your walking shoes! We will probably go back when it’s warmer, but we know it will be packed then, so we had a preview day :)
There are some cute animals around who like to make an appearance, but don’t feed them! Seriously, just enjoy the scenery and the walk. I’m sure the museums are very nice and we would like to go in a windmill sometime, too. But we settled for a cup of hot cocoa and a film about how there are used. Great afternoon trip!

Nice place with various mills. We went there after a visit of the Verkade factory and the Zaanse museum. However, the parking is expensive (EUR 8 if you stay more than 30min) and the entry to the museum costs EUR 9. There is also a fee if you want to visit the inside of the mills. Finally, this place is designed for tourists who want to have a summary of the Netherlands in only one visit.

Me: what do you want to do in Amsterdam?
Friend: I want to see windmills.
Having visited this place as a kid, I knew this was where I’d take her. Yes, it’s touristy but it’s fun and makes for an easy day trip. Only 20mns by train and a 15mn walk from the station, it can’t be any easier!
Unfortunately, only one of the windmills were open (times vary on each one) but better than none. For 3 Euros, we got to watch an informative video on the history of the sawmill windmill and then go to the back to see how functioning. The little exhibit on the bottom was educational too.
Besides the windmill, we got to check out the Clog Workshop among others. Even just walking around was serene, with birds walking along the fields and the view of the village houses by the waterfront.
There are 2 restaurants around but we decided to walk into the actual village and ate terrific food at a little café.
A fun day for people of all ages!

We stopped by this place on our way to Amsterdam!
Yes, it is very touristy but so what??? You are tourists anyway!
It is a small town with windmills, countryside along the riverbank… It is touristy but is very different from Disney, the Louvre museum, cathedrals…
You can step back, relax and enjoy the fresh air, sounds of winds, having a picnic lunch by the river bank…
There are many gift stores here with great specialty gifts for friends and family like wooden clogs, porcelain arts, cheeses…
The park is free! Definitely worth to stop by when you are on your way to Amsterdam!

Windmühlen, Wasser, alte Häuser und Handwerke idylisch gelegenes Freiluftmuseum ohne generellen Eintritt. Bei schönem Wetter ist es dort durchaus schön. Außer man mag keinen typischen Touri-​Groove, dann fühlt man sich hier eher fehl am Platz
Parkgebühren: bis 30 min 1,50 EUR über 30 min pauschal 7,50EUR (egal ob 31 min oder 8 Stunden).
Ansonsten: den Beitrag von steaky (
) lesen dem stimme ich zu 100% zu.

Zaanse Schans is the best place to get an impression of the Dutch way of life in the 17^th and 18^th centuries. Besides genuine working windmills, Zaanse Schans houses a number of well-​preserved traditional Dutch houses, a cheese and dairy farm, a wooden clogs workshop and an age-​old grocery store.
There are six working industrial windmills and at least three would be opened anytime of the day. Don’t be fooled by the outer appearance — they are not the same internally! My personal favourite windmill is ‘De Zoeker’, an oil mill that is still producing oil using traditional methods daily. The sight of the large milling stone in constant motion, the aroma of the roasted nuts and seeds, and the loud, reverberating sound from the constant pounding makes the visit to ‘De Zoeker’ a very interesting experience.
Besides the amazing windmills, fascinating museums and traditional Dutch workshops in Zaanse Schans, I also enjoyed strolling on the path along the Zaan and taking in the magnificent view of the surrounding landscape. It is, without doubt, a wonderful destination to be enjoyed at a leisurely pace from the ever crowded Amsterdam.
P/​S: to save money and reduce the need from having to pay for entering each windmill, I would suggest buying the Iamsterdam card. Besides the windmills, it provides for a host of other privileges as well.

Even though this is a tourist destination it is quite recommended as there are real, working, VERY OLD windmills that have been transplanted here and completely renovated to be functional once again. Also the wooden shoe workshop and display are interesting and colorful, BUT! they charge TOO MUCH for their products, which are available elsewhere as well (remember, the place IS for tourists). The cafeteria is pretty good; decent food, fair prices. You DO NOT need to spend big bucks for a tour; the area is quite easy to explore on one’s own.

Usually I flee from tourist trap places or refuse to step foot in one, but this place is unique. Yes, it is HIGHLY touristy, but it is like a world heritage type site, as this is the only place that you will be able to see and experience actual working original wooden mills that are still in use today and are actual running businesses. There are about five different mills that you can tour through up and downstairs. Each of the mills has a small entrance free. Each one is a different industry (wood, die, etc).
You definitely get to step back in time and get a taste for what life might have been like back in the day. There are many different museums that are also interesting to go through. My favorites were the wooden shoe factory, the mills, and the Distillery. All of these buildings are sit in a beautiful green lush watery farm land. This was definitely the highlight of my trip to Amsterdam.

If this is the first time you visit Netherlands and you are in the Amsterdam area, I highly recommend a visit to Zaanse Schans.
Easily accessible by train from the Amsterdam Central Station, Zaanse Schans makes a great half day trip to everything Netherlands.
You will get a better understanding about the culture, food, history with exhibits, hands on demonstration and tasting. And of course there are shops for all your souvenirs needs.
Even a Distillery Museum and Tasting Room? That sound like a fun fill day!
Admission to the ground is free but if you do want to get into the different museums. If you planning to visit a couple of Wind Mills or other exhibits, consider getting the Zaanse Schans Card which will offers extra discount.

Zaanse Schans ist ein putziges kleines «Freiluftmuseum», das alle holländischen Traditionen (oder auch Klischees) auf kleiner Fläche vereint. Es gibt mehrere Windmühlen, eine Käsemacherei, eine Holzschuhmacherei, ein Pfannkuchenhaus, jede Menge Holzhäuschen, Kühe und sogar ein Albert Heijn Museum. Eintritt ist nur für die Mühlen und das Zaansmuseum inkl. Schokoladen– und Keksfabrik (von deren «Duft» man direkt an der Bushaltestelle begrüßt wird) zu zahlen. Aber man kann auch jede Menge Geld in den Souvenirshops lassen ;)
Insgesamt ist das ein sehr netter kitschiger Zeitvertreib. (Bei mäßig gutem Wetter ists auch gar nicht so voll…)