Schiphol to Haarlem - bus number and cost?

Take the train. It will cost less than 5 Euros. If you have cash, you can buy your ticket from a touch-screen machine at the airport train station.

Well, I wouldn't recommend the train, because you'll have an unnecessary transfer in Amsterdam when all you really want to do is get straight to Haarlem after your flight. The bus may take a few minutes longer, but it's direct and super easy. The bus is number 300. Walk right out the front doors at Schiphol, cross the street to the bus lane, and wait for the bus with the number 300 posted right there on the electronic board on the front of the bus itself. Number 300 comes by every few minutes. When the doors open, walk on, tell the driver you want to go to Haarlem, and pay the fare in Euro...I just did it in September and think it was a little over 4€ per person. He'll give you a paper ticket...you don't need to buy anything in advance...just pay the driver. All of the buses are red, so make sure you get on the right one, number 300. Haarlem is very close...only a few miles away, but it will take around 35 minutes...the bus has to circle way around, and it stops a few times before Haarlem. Once in town, you can get off in the center or at the rail station (about a 15-20 minute walk between the 2 stops). At the center stop, there's a stand-alone TI across the street, a big department store (V&D), McDonalds with free Wi-Fi, and a ton of shops and restaurants in every direction. At the station, you'll have to walk 5 minutes or so before coming across streets with cafes, shops, etc. There isn't much right down by the station, unless, of course, you're looking for one of Europe's ubiquitous sex shops...and, then, there's one right there. :) Happy travels!

I would follow Michael's recommendation. We have made that run a couple of times and it is much easier and quicker than the train.

Thanks, guys! I knew it was easy, just didn't remember the bus number. It's been a couple years since I've been there. I'll walk from the central bus stop up Koningstraat to Grote Markt. I think it's a shorter walk than from the train station. Funny, I don't thinnk I noticed the sex shops the last time I was there.... but I might take a look at that cute little red light area again -- unless it is gone now. Flower boxes, lace curtains -- photo ops. :)
While looking at the map, remembered V&D department store -- hope they still have the good food upstairs!

The strippenkart no longer exists. Instead, there is the OV Chipkaart. Take a look at this thread from TripAdvisor to learn more about it. The Anonymous Chipkaart worked well for me (I wouldn't have been able to figure it out without the TA page). I refilled it with cash at train stations (the only practical way for me to put large amounts on it, as the machines only take coins or chip and pin cards). You have to have a balance of €4 to take city transit and €20 to take inter-city trains. But once you go to the trouble of buying it and filling it, you save a lot on city transit, and can hop on trains without having to buy separate tickets; you also don't pay the €0.50 surcharge Dutch Rail charges for buying train tickets at windows.

Interesting, Harold. Thanks for directing me to TA for the info.
Within the Netherlands, I basically need only the bus to Haarlem, and then a one-day train trip to Delft and Leiden and back to Haarlem; after that I just need Haarlem to the border, so it might be overkill. I'll do a ticket as far as the border, and then might do a railpass for my 6 train trips in German, if I can't decide exactly which trains I want to take.

Hille, yes, it sounds like you won't be using much transit in the cities themselves, and only taking a few trains within the country. In that case, you don't need an OV Chipkaart (since it costs €7.50 to purchase, and with your itinerary you won't save nearly that much; with my itinerary, I did).

Take the train, which is faster, even considering the transfer at Sloterdijk station (no need to go to Amsterdam Centraal to catch a train to Haarlem). Buses are slower, make an enormous detour through an office and industrial park nearby etc.

I'd follow Michael's suggestion too. We were just in Haarlem right after Christmas and took the 300 bus to Schipol. Extremely easy. (we've done the other way too) We paid the driver, I think it was about 4 euros.

Thanks, all! Appreciate your taking the time to answer!