Hoorn or Delft?

Neither Delft nor Hoorn are off the beaten path. Quite the opposite actually. So based on that criteria I wouldn’t recommend either place.
You say you already have a full itinerary, what does the rest of your itinerary look like? Perhaps that can help us help you.

Hi Dutch Traveler,
Our itinerary is as follows, of course everything is subject to revision:
Thursday - Arrive Amsterdam 6am - Drop off luggage at hotel in Leidseplein
Explore 9 Streets & Jordaan (love thrift shopping & getting lost in the back streets)
Friday - AM - stop at Waterlooplein street market, Rembrandthuis, Resistance Museum, possibly see Huis Willet-Holthuysen or Museum Van Loon, beer at Brouwerij ‘t Ij
Friday - PM - Nieuwmarkt, OudeKerk, Dam Square, maybe stop at Cafe Hill St Blues for music & a beer or find a brown bar for beer & bitterballen
Saturday - AM - Possible Westerpark & NDSM Straat Museum OR Vondelpark since we’re going to the museum.
PM - Van Gogh museum, dinner in the area, Concertgebouw for a concert
Sunday - AM - Haarlem to see flower floats, walk around, lunch
PM - Haarlemmerstraat, West India House & NDSM if we didn’t go on Saturday
Monday - Kukenhof
Tuesday - in question
Wednesday - Sadly heading home to NY

We are planning to explore a few Jazz clubs in the evenings.
I usually avoid the RLD, however I saw a video saying side streets are very interesting & fun to explore
I have lists of different pubs, streets to explore by district, restaurants. We do have a few reservations made already.

I’m open to any suggestions & revisions from someone who lives there. Thanks. MJ

Okay, you said you’re open to any suggestions & revisions from someone who lives there, so here it goes.
You’ve made a very detailed itinerary and practically everything is on the well beaten path. Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with any of the sights you want to visit, but off the beaten path they are not.
It seems you made your itinerary based on location, but this has resulted in an unbalanced itinerary. Some days are way too full, while others are practically empty.
Your Friday AM for example is way too busy; Waterlooplein market, Rembrandt House and the Resistance museum is already too much for 1 single morning. You definitely don’t have time to cram in Huis Willet-Holthuysen or Museum Van Loon, let alone have a beer at Brouwerij ‘t IJ.
Your Saturday AM on the other hand is practically empty. If you choose option B it will just be the Vondelpark. It takes less than half an hour to cross the park. So what will you do there all morning?

You should also realize that you will be here during the absolute peak of the tourist season. Amsterdam doesn’t get any busier than in the last 2 weeks of April. Everywhere where you’ll go, you’ll be surrounded by other tourists and all sights you plan to visit will be crowded. If you have your heart set on eating in certain specific restaurants, I would recommend to make a reservation. I would also recommend to not book or decide anything for your open Tuesday. See how you feel at that time, see how much of your planned itinerary you managed to accomplish. You can always decide on the actual day what you’ll do.

I hope my post isn’t too much of a downer. Amsterdam is a great city and I’m sure you’ll have a great time!

Hi Dutch Traveler,
Thank you for your feedback. Last time we were in Amsterdam it was not during the April tulip season & negotiating the city was quite easy. As an example I was able to purchase Van Gogh tickets only a few days out. When I looked yesterday everything is sold out for April. I am taking your feedback with great thought. I’ll rework the itinerary to spread out my Friday over 2 days. Do you have any “off the beaten path” suggestions?
Thanks again, MJ

Dutch Traveler we will be in Amsterdam May 7 to 10 and want to see a charming area/village with quaint, adorable homes with flowers galore and historical. Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance, Diane

We just returned and thought Delft was a total charmer - especially on market day. Also a big thumbs-up for the Canal Museum in Amsterdam. Really well done.

We were in Amsterdam in early February and took days trips to both Delft and Gouda. Both were wonderful!

Without descending into the semantics of "off the beaten path" and sticking to your intended question, I think it's a nice idea to go visit a different place for a day. Between Hoorn and Delft I'd pick Delft to visit first. But neither will disappoint. You could potentially see Delft and Kinderdijk in the same day - same general direction.

Have a great trip!

There's not much off the beaten path in The Netherlands.

If I were to think about somewhere new (to me) I might think about Friesland. I watch some Youtube videos about folks who keep Friesian horses, and I'd be quite interested to see rural Friesland and Leeuwarden. It seems that many folks are keeping the traditional culture, dialect etc. alive in daily life.