Amsterdam & outer towns April 2024

We enjoyed seeing the floats in Haarlem after the parade a few years ago. It certainly didn’t take all day, perhaps a couple of hours but I don’t recall for sure. Well worth it however. We also had a great day using the Waterland bus ticket to visit the towns you noted in Option 2. We found it very easy and convenient, and back then it cost only 10€ per person. Safe travels.

I really enjoyed Hoorn as a day trip on my last trip to Amsterdam. It has a real fishing village vibe along with many historic buildings. There are water taxis that will take you around the scenic harbor where you can see a 17th century replica of the historic D’Halve Maen boat. De Roode Steen is the main market square where you can stop (and Hoorn has several markets during the week). You can find plenty of charming restaurants and cafes off the square. My friend and I ate at one and had a view of the harbor.

Veermanskade is a really lovely street running along the water where you can see some of the ships, but also some beautiful Dutch houses dating back to the 17th century. Unfortunately, the Westfries museum is closed for renovation, but you can see a lot of the collection at its temporary location in Statenpoort. And if you can, stop by the museum just to see the actual building as it's quite beautiful in its own right.

We also did option #2 but it would have to be on a Wednesday when the cheese market is in full swing.

Mardee, When you went to Hoorn was there a way to see the dike area and and farmland and the Historic windmills around the Shermer without having a car?

Backyard, I'm sorry but I have no idea. I have a friend who lives outside of Amsterdam, and she wound up picking me up and we drove up there for the day. But that's a good question - hopefully someone else here will know.

@Backyard; please see my answer in the other thread where you asked the exact same question. Keeping answers in one place is another reason why it’s best to start your own topic.

Did you see this nearby discussion?

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/netherlands/which-small-town-outside-amsterdam

Thanks for all your suggestions. They really helped to organize this trip. We’ve decided on going to Keukenhof, Haarlem, Geithoorn & a day trip to Volendam, Marken, Edam. If we have time maybe going to Hoorn. The rest of our days will be spent exploring sites in Amsterdam that we haven’t seen yet.

Geithoorn is a great little tourist experience. A bit of a pull from A'dam but worth it I think.