North Holland is the province around Amsterdam, a peninsula of polders, dikes and old harbour towns between the North Sea and the IJsselmeer. Most visitors stay in Amsterdam and day-trip out, and almost everything here is within an hour by train or bus.
Amsterdam, Haarlem and the area of the Zaanse Schans and Volendam each have their own page. This page adds three trips people plan a day around: the cheese market in Alkmaar, the castle at Muiden and the open-air museum of the old Zuiderzee in Enkhuizen.
Further north, the Netherlands page covers cycling on the island of Texel, a ferry ride from Den Helder.
Watch the cheese carriers at the Alkmaar cheese market
Alkmaar
Half a dayFree
On Friday mornings in season, cheese carriers trot loaded barrows across the square to the weigh house, as their guild has since 1593.
What it is
Alkmaar had a cheese scale by 1365, and its Cheese Carriers' Guild was founded on 17 June 1593. On market days the cheeses are laid out on the Waagplein in front of the Waag, the weigh house, and the carriers of the guild's four groups carry them on wooden barrows to be weighed once a batch is sold.
How to do it
In 2026 the market ran every Friday from 27 March to 25 September, 10:00 to 13:00, with extra evening markets on Tuesdays in July and August from 19:00 to 21:00. Watching is free. The Waagplein is about 15 minutes' walk from Alkmaar station, which has direct trains from Amsterdam Centraal.
Good to know
Come early: the carriers gather at the Waag before 10:00 and the best spots along the ropes fill fast. Check the next season's dates on Visit Alkmaar.
Time needed
Half a day
Best time
A Friday from late March to late September, by 9:30
Explore the moated Muiderslot where the Vecht meets the old Zuiderzee
Muiden
2 to 3 hoursBook ahead
A square brick castle with four towers and a moat, 15 km from Amsterdam, built by a count of Holland in 1280.
What it is
Count Floris V built a stone castle at the mouth of the Vecht in 1280, when the river was the trade route to Utrecht. Rebuilt later on the same plan, it is now the Muiderslot, with rooms furnished as in the 17th century, when the poet and historian P.C. Hooft lived here as bailiff and gathered writers and scholars around him, plus gardens and the ramparts to walk.
How to do it
Take the train to Weesp, then bus 110 to Muiden Centrum; by bike there is a route from Amsterdam. It opens daily from April to October and Tuesday to Sunday in winter, 10:00 to 17:00, with the ticket office closing at 16:30. Adults pay €19.50 and children aged 4 to 11 €7.50.
Good to know
Parking at the castle is always paid; the free P2 car park on the Mariahoeveweg is a ten-minute walk.
Arrive by boat at the Zuiderzee Museum's open-air village
Enkhuizen
Half a day to a dayGo alone or with a tour
A village of houses, workshops and boats from the old Zuiderzee shores, rebuilt beside the water at Enkhuizen and reached by ferry.
What it is
Before the Afsluitdijk closed it off, the Zuiderzee was a sea, and fishing towns lined its shores. The Zuiderzee Museum keeps that world in two parts: the Zuiderzee village, an open-air museum of buildings brought from around the old sea, with craftspeople at work, and the Treasure House, an indoor museum open all year.
How to do it
The museum ferry leaves from beside Enkhuizen station, every quarter of an hour in peak season and every 20 minutes otherwise; the last boat back from the village leaves at 17:30. The village opens daily from 10:00 to 17:00 in season, in 2027 from 26 March to 24 October. Adults pay €21 and children aged 4 to 12 €14.
Good to know
In winter only the Treasure House is open. Allow at least half a day for the village.
Time needed
Half a day to a day
Best time
Late March to late October, when the village is open
Ride a bike across a flat island of dunes, sheep pastures and villages, with a beach running the whole length of its west coast.
What it is
Texel is the largest of the Dutch Wadden islands, and a bike is the obvious way round it. Getting there is simple: the TESO ferry from Den Helder takes about 20 minutes, and you do not book a date or time, you just turn up.
How to do it
Rent a bike on the island and ride through the Dunes of Texel National Park to the beach, then to Ecomare, the seal sanctuary and nature museum near De Koog. The island's lighthouse at the northern tip makes a good turning point for a longer ride.
Good to know
The ferry ticket is always a return and is not checked on the way back. Extra sailings run every half hour from 9:30 to 16:00 on busy days.
Hidden gems suggested by travellers. We check each one before it goes up; the words are theirs, not ours.
No traveller picks for North Holland yet. Know a place most visitors miss?
Plan your trip
Which places for what
Amsterdam for the museums and canals. Haarlem for a calmer old town, Teylers and Frans Hals, with the dunes and the beach close by. Zaanse Schans for windmills; Volendam, Edam and Marken for the fishing towns. Alkmaar for the cheese market, Muiden for a castle, Enkhuizen for the Zuiderzee village, Texel for a bike and the dunes.
Combining them
In must30's view, base yourself in Amsterdam or Haarlem. From either, Zaanse Schans and Alkmaar are easy by train, and Volendam, Edam and Marken are a bus ride away; Muiden is a train to Weesp and a short bus. Enkhuizen and Texel each deserve a full day.
Getting around
Trains link Amsterdam with Haarlem, Zaandam, Alkmaar, Hoorn, Enkhuizen and Den Helder; buses cover Volendam, Edam, Marken and Muiden. Pay with a contactless bank card or an OV-chipkaart. A bike is often the best way to reach the countryside, starting with the free IJ ferries.
When to go
Late March to September brings the cheese markets in Alkmaar and Edam, the open-air museums and the longest days; April and May add the bulb fields. Many outdoor sights close or cut their days from November to March.
Questions travellers ask
What is the best day trip from Amsterdam in North Holland?
For windmills, the Zaanse Schans, 18 minutes by train. For a town, Haarlem, 15 minutes away. On a Friday in season, the Alkmaar cheese market. Volendam, Edam and Marken suit a slower day by bus.
When is the Alkmaar cheese market?
On Friday mornings from late March to late September, 10:00 to 13:00, with extra Tuesday evening markets in July and August. In 2026 it ran from 27 March to 25 September. Watching is free.
How do I get to the Muiderslot from Amsterdam?
Take the train to Weesp and bus 110 to Muiden Centrum, or cycle out from Amsterdam. The castle opens daily from April to October and Tuesday to Sunday in winter.
Is the Zuiderzee Museum open in winter?
Only the indoor Treasure House. The open-air Zuiderzee village opens from late March to late October, in 2027 from 26 March to 24 October.
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