Windmills

There's at least one in Delft, which is worth a visit anyway. If you travel between April and June, Keukenhof has one on the grounds that you can walk through. There's probably more on the edge of some of the cities that I don't know about, but for the most part, they tend to be in rural parts of the polderland.

Of course, if you mean modern windmills... those are everywhere.

EASY ANSWER: go to Zaanse Schans. It is a sort of open air museum, with a whole collection of windmills, plus demonstrations of making cheese, wooden shoes, etc. It is well-known, not far from Amsterdam, and is accessible via rail.

The tour buses that leave from the Damrak will also stop at Zaanse Schans along with Volendam. My only complaint was that we did not get enough time with the windmills.

Haarlem also has a rebuilt windmill called De Adriaan which is very cool. You can walk there from the train.

The place I have not been to yet which I'd really like to see is Kinderdijk. You can get there by bus from either Utrecht or Rotterdam. Utrecht is definitely worth a visit if you have time.

I can definitely recommend a trip to Kinderdijk if you can get there. They have different types of windmills there, and you can see them up close. Also, you can go inside one if it is open that day. I am not sure how to reach the area via public transit, though .... we went by car.

I second Zaanse Schans. Absolutely beautiful with lots of windmills of different sizes. You'll also see original buildings from different eras that have been relocated to this outdoor museum. You're free to wander around as long as you like. I had a really nice conversation with a lady who was stationed in one of the buildings. Easy trip from Amsterdam and one of the favorites of my trip.

Zaan schanse is the answer.. tours leave from central Amsterdam probability most convenient way

We'll be making a visit to Zaanse Schans in September mostly because it's close to Amsterdam. I'd much rather be able to visit Kinderdijk but it's just too far away for the amount of time that we have. My understanding is that the 5 windmills at Zaanse Schans are authentic but were moved to where they are now for public display while the 19 windmills at Kinderdijk are still in their natural setting. Here are the 2 links regarding Kinderdijk that I found. The second is a boat excursion company that takes you directly there from Rotterdam.

http://www.stichting-kinderdijk.nl/en/index.php

http://www.rebus-info.nl/main_en.htm

While I don't know about transportation from Amsterdam, I second a visit to Kinderdijk. We drove there but I did see public transportation available. You can rent bikes (kind of rickety, but they work)for 2.5€ and ride about 2 miles or so along the canal and see all 19 of the original windmills. One is open as a museum and quite interesting.

Also, Leiden is worth a vist. They have several in town as well. Leiden, as with so many of the Dutch towns, is quite walkable and very pretty too.

you are smart to plan ahead. I thought they would be everywhere, not so and I missed the one in Haarlem. good luck. But saw the one in Brugge at least.

we liked haarlem/about half hour train from amsterdam/saw windmill/canals/beautiful open square by cathedral to relax with no traffic/hghly recommend the Ten Boom museum