We are two seniors staying in Haarlem for 5 days next week. We have one day totally free (Friday). The weather look great so far and we are toying with the idea of taking the 2 hr trip down to Kinderdijk. Zaanse Schans seems too touristy for us.
It looks like we should take a train down to Rotterdam and then a tram to the waterfront and then a ferry??
Would you suggest stopping in Delft on the way back?
Thanks in advance for your input.
It may be faster to take the Rotterdam city bus, I don't know the number offhand. We liked Kinderdijk, but I have some doubt about using up a full day, even for a UNESCO WHS.
Have you already done Delft, Leiden, or Keukenhof?
Kinderdijk is exceptional! It's really a very pretty and unique sight, all of those windmills spanning down the canal.
But it takes some time to get there. I've been twice in the past 4 years, both times combining bicycles and river ferries, making the journey an important part of the experience. Train, tram, ferry and/or bus from Haarlem is a lot for a day trip. The ferry terminal in Rotterdam is not close to the train station, and the ferries run regularly for ferries but a less frequently than buses or trains. Even if everything syncs up just right with tight connections, it will take a lot of time. I nearly always advocate public transportation for travelers in Europe, but maybe consider renting a car for a day. It would make transfer faster and easier for sure, and GPS is pretty helpful with routing so that you can just keep your head focused on the driving.
Deflt is really special too - it's a great idea for an additional destination by car, or an alternative day trip that's easier by public transit. The main square, Town Hall and big church in Delft are huge for how cute and quaint and tightly packed the town is. Quite remarkable, definitely one of the best places in the Netherlands to grab a table and have a drink in the main square, and then wander the painfully charming little canals.
I think I'm among a small minority who don't particularly love Leiden. If you're in Harlem already Leiden imo is similar but not quite as good.
The last thing I'll say is that Kinderdijk is gloriously beautiful on a nice day, still good in dramatic poor weather, and comes across a bit flatter when it's just a dull overcast day. Instead of scheduling it in in pen, maybe pencil it in and decide if the weather feels right to you for an extended day outside.
Take the train to Rotterdam, when you arrive you need to get on a tram to the riverfront which I think is #7. There will be riverboats to take to Kinderdijk. It was a huge highlight of our time in The Netherlands. On a previous trip we had gone to Zaanse Schans, a reproduction village with the buildings brought there from other places. We did not enjoy it. As you said, touristy. We spent two weeks in beautiful Leiden. Yes, visit Delft and The Hague, very close to each other. The trains arrive frequently on this line.
@Hank: We plan to visit Kinderdijk from our home base in Leiden. Please advise me on how you added bicycles to this experience as I would like us to do the same.
Jill both times we rode bikes at Kinderdijk we were bicycle touring, so had bicycles already and rode through with our bags too another overnight stay destination.
Generally though you have a set of options I would think for cycling Kinderdijk. It appears that you can rent bicycles from a couple of outlets near the entrance to Kinderdijk. So you could travel there by whatever ordinary means and then just use a bicycle to tour around the windmills.
https://www.kinderdijk.com/plan/directions-address/by-bike/
Or you could travel to Rotterdam and then rent a bike from one of the many rental shops in Rotterdam. I'd look at reviews and reserve ahead of time. The rental experience can vary from delightful to crusty grouch. I recall once renting from a bike shop on the same street as the Rotterdam train station a couple of blocks down the way to the viewers left as you face the station. It was a nice shop and the guys working there were pleasant.
Then ride down to the water taxi. You have to cross the river anyway. It's a big ferry boat and if I recall the bikes just roll on free and easy. Decide which stop you want to get off at depending on how long you want your ride to be. Then ride out to see the windmills, stop somewhere on the way or back for lunch. Decide how far you want to ride back.
I've also rented in Dordrecht and used the ferries from there. If it was me I think I would choose Dordrecht as my start and finish point, smaller city less busy easier to deal with. If I recall correctly the water taxis go there as well, or at least you can ferry across the river.
A last option would be to rent bikes in Leiden, take them on the train to wherever you think is a convenient/interesting stop to ride to kinderdike from, have your day out on the bikes, and return the same way.
"bikes can be taken on all trains except in peak hours (06:30-09:00 & 16:00-18:30 Monday-Friday, no restriction on national holidays or in July & August). You need to buy a one-day bike ticket for around €7.50."
Upside here is you can get the bike squared away in a leisurely way and go where you want. Downside, outside of the no bikes on the train restriction times noted above, is that it can be a pain in the butt dragging the bike up on the train depending on the type of train it is. And how many bikes you have. And how heavy they are. And how many other bikes are already on the train. And how annoyed the Dutch people whose way you are getting in might or might not become. You can look at rail websites and generally know which type of train. The local commuter style sprinter trains are usually easy to roll on and off with a lot of open space.
Anyway, many ways to skin the bicycling cat :-) have a great time
Just went this week. Take the train to Rotterdam from Haarlem. Then its a 30 min walk to the Erasmus bridge. Use google maps to find the water bus jetty. Look up their website before you arrive to check the departure times to Kinderdijk. Buy your return tickets on the ferry.
And you can buy your Kinderdijk tickets on line before you go and download the app onto your phone so you already have the audio tour ready to go when you arrive. The Kinderdijk website and app give you the waterbus directions from Rotterdam. I did Delf in the morning and Kinderdijk in the afternoon. But you could easily do it the other way around. If you don;'t want to walk between the Windmills there is a little boat that does a loop of all the windmills and you can still listen to the short audio tour on the app.
The best things to do in Delft is the canal tour and the Vermeer Centre.
