We will be staying in Haarlem, The Netherlands, for a week in June. We will be visiting Amsterdam, The Hague, the beach in IJmuiden and Delft. We found that have a full day with nothing planned. Can anyone suggest a great day trip. Is it unreasonable to go somewhere like Belgium?
Any and all ideas are welcomed!
Steves talks about the Historic Triangle out of Amsterdam.Our friends took it and enjoyed it a lot.
I hope you're including the Corrie tenBoom Museum (in Haarlem) in your plans--takes about an hour, donations accepted, and it is NOT 'preachy' as some have said. Be sure to either read "The Hiding Place" before you go, or rent the movie; it will all mean a lot more.
We spent a day in Bruges, and we loved it. Watching the 'lace ladies' do their art was wonderful. They demonstrate from 2-4, costs E2.50 and you can stick around as long as you want. It is next to the Jerusalem Church.
Took about 3 hrs. from Amst. to Bruges on the train. Not sure how long it would take from Haarlem.
Beg to differ, Margaret - our guide at the Corrie TenBoom house was very preachy. Thanks to Rick's guide, we were prepared for that and it didn't bother us. If I hadn't known in advance, I might have been taken aback by her demeanor. I will agree that it was very interesting and does mean more if you are familiar with the book or movie.
Brugges is a really neat place, but it might make for a really long day. If you'd prefer to stay somewhere closer to Haarlem, I'd recommend Zaanse Schans. It is sort of an outdoor museum with windmills that you can go in to see how it works and a pewter making shop. You can listen to a quick talk about how they make gouda cheese and then sample some in the shop. There are also lots of wooden shoes. It's a neat place to spend a morning or an afternoon.
I guess we were lucky and got a guide (for the Corrie tenBoom Museum) who wasn't all that 'preachy'. Because of the comments in the RS guidebook, we were prepared for a major sermon, but that was not the case when we were there. Must depend on the guide.
We didn't find any of it "preachy" either...some literature was there for the taking but no one got on a soap box for our visit either. By the way...you cannot go wrong visiting Brugge!!! It is the Jewel of the North and one of my very favorite cities.
Hi Sue: When living in Den Haag in the early 2000's, would often take a day trip to 'liven' up the weekend. Some choices which I've done in an easy day and the sites of which you may wish to check out on Wikipedia.
In Holland; Utrecht, Arnhem (& the 'Bridge Too Far' Airborne Museum), nearby Droller-Muller Museum/De Hoge Veluwe, Het Loo near Apeldoorn & Leiden. In Belgium; Antwerp. Always did an overnite if visiting Brugge as I found it a bit too far for the day.
You should definitely spend a day in the old section of Brugge. You will not regret it. One of the highlights of our 8 week trip to Europe.
