Windmills Near Amsterdam: Visit Zaanse Schans With Kids

For anyone traveling to the Netherlands (probably landing in Amsterdam), I think one of the top five questions involves where to see windmills near Amsterdam along with where to see tulips, clogs, and eat cheese. And anyone that does search is in luck, because there is a beautiful traditional Dutch village with windmills just north of the city.

If you’re traveling to Holland, maybe with kids, you need to go to Zaanse Schans to see beautiful windmills in the Netherlands. Take a daytrip from Amsterdam and enjoy the time in the countryside. It’s a great thing to do with kids in the Netherlands to learn about the history and cheese and clog production and more.

How to visit the closest windmills to Amsterdam, Zaanse Schanse with kids:

• How To Get To Zaanse Schans
• Basic Info
• Why you should get the Zaanse Schans Card
• Where To Stay
• What To Know
• Tips For Visiting Zaanse Schans With Kids
• What To See

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How To Get To Zaanse Schans

Zaanse Schans is just 15 kilometers north of Amsterdam and is a good daytrip option outside of the city.

• Address: Zaanse Schans, Schansend 7, 1509AW, Zaandam
• Directions:
  • By Bus: You can get the Rnet bus 391 from Amsterdam CS Station to Zaanse Schans. The bus departs every 15 minutes. The trip will take about 40 minutes.
  • By Train: You can take a train to Zaandijk – Zaanse Schans. From Amsterdam Centraal Station, the trip takes just 17 minutes. However, you will have a 15 minute walk to the village from the train station.
  • By Ferry: The Ferry Zaanboot from Amsterdam Centraal Station heads to Zaanse Schans and takes a liesurely 110 minutes. Get more information on the timetable at www.zaanferry.com

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Basic Info

• Admission: Technically, you can enter Zaanse Schans for free and walk around this traditional Dutch village without paying anything. However, there are some buildings that require a fee to enter. You can either pick and choose which you want to pay for in the moment, or visit the museum and get a combination ticket that will get you into all of the Zaanse Schans attractions. For information just look down to learn about the Zaanse Schans Card.
  • If you’ll be getting the I Amsterdam Card, you can use that to get into Zaanse Schans attractions as well.
• Parking: 11Euro/15Euro per day depending on the season.
  • For parking, put “Schansend 7, Zaandam” into your GPS.
• Bathrooms: Just an FYI, the bathrooms aren’t free here. They cost 50 cents but when we went none of our foreign cards worked. When you’ve got little people that need to pee though, it’s either on the toilet if available or in a bush. Luckily, the attendant let us in despite being unable to pay.
  • I personally think paying for a bathroom is ridiculous. Though I understand it’s for the attendants who keep the place clean, but I think our admission should cover that. Anyway, the Dutch have come up with an app just for finding public bathrooms and listing the ones you don’t have to pay for along with the ones you do have to pay for so you can find the best public bathroom near you. It’s HogeNood.

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Why you should get the Zaanse Schans Card

The Zaanse Schans card is €29,50 for adults and €20,00 for children. If you see everything that you can, based on my calculations, you could save €15,50 for adult entrance to everything and €5 for the children’s entrance.

• Buy the Zaanse Schans Card on GetYourGuide or on Tiqets

Your benefits:

• Free admission to the Zaans Museum and the Verkade Chocolate and Biscuit Factory
• Free admission to the World of Windmills
• Free admission to saw mill ’t Jonge Schaap
• Free admission to paint mill De Kat
• Free admission to the Weaver’s House and Cooperage
• Free access to the Zaan Time Museum
• 10% discount at restaurant De Kraai (minimum spend €10)
• Discount on parking ticket €9 instead of €11/ €15

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Where To Stay

B&B Heerlijck Slaapen

Did you know you actually stay in Zaanse Schans? This warm and calm bed and breakfast is a unique accommodation that offer a view of the River Zaan. Each room has its own character and charm. If you want to have a night in a traditional Dutch village, make it this one. It’s a beautiful place to stay for a night or two.

Book a stay at the Heerlijck Slaapen B&B on Booking.com

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What To Know

The Zaanse Schans windmills are a popular tourist attraction now located in a beautiful open air museum. In our first couple of months living here, we visited three times! To be fair, the first time it was just us and then we took a friend there and then we took our cousin there. Beautiful each and every time, I must say.

While you used to be able to see traditional wooden windmills all over the Netherlands, you’ll learn at the museum at Zaanse Schans that there aren’t as many as you might think anymore. The eight traditional windmills in Zaanse Schans were relocated here in the 1960s and provide a glimpse into life in the Netherlands in the 18th and 19th century. These windmills were used in production as a sawmill, oil mill, and more and when you can visit you can see and learn how that worked. It’s a great learning opportunity for adults and children. The windmills are still operational and inside is information for how they work and docents that will show you everything.

How long does it take to visit Zaanse Schans?

If you just wanted to see the windmills and then leave, you could spend just 1 to 2 hours there. The first time we went with our Zaanse Schans cards in hand to see everything, we spent about 5 hours there. You could easily spend the whole day there stopping into all of the museums, windmills, taking a ride in a boat on the water, and eating a meal. Enjoy it all!

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Tips For Visiting Zaanse Schans With Kids

• The area isn’t super stroller friendly. There are some bridges that are not really easy to get over and stairs in windmills and gravel paths. Much easier for little runners or carrying.
• There are some narrow and steep staircases inside some of the windmills which you can climb up. Even with a 7 year old, we were cautious. Just watch your kiddos carefully inside.
• There are some great opportunities for kids to learn and experience the village. Be on the lookout for a craft at the Zaans Museum in the Verkae Chocolate and Biscuit Museum, watch the demonstration at the Cheese Farm, Clog Factory, and in the windmills.
• While the whole place is pretty kid friendly with things to learn indoors and plenty of space to run outside, there is also an actual little playground built next to the cooper’s house if you want that too.

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What To See

When you first arrive at Zaanse Schans, head to the museum to get an introduction into life in the Netherlands at the time and windmills.

Zaans Museum

Step into the Zaans Museum to learn about the Zaan region, the rise of industry which meant the decline in windmills. This museum is also connected to the Verkade Chocolate and Biscuit Factory. If you start here, it gives a great overview of information and background for what you’ll see in the village. Plus, it’s connected to the Verkade Chocolate and Biscuit Factory which is fun and you can taste their biscuits.

• Hours: 10:00am ~ 5:00pm
• Admission: €12,50; Children: €6,50

Cheese Farm and Factory Catharina Hoeve

A great museum and a delicious stop. Step through the doors to learn about cheese production in the in Oostzaan and then step through to the shop where you can try every cheese they have for purchase. There are like 15 different kinds of cheese to try! They don’t really stop people going back for seconds either so try them all and try them all again. You can also step in to learn from a cheese producer to learn even more before you purchase your cheese to go. Learn the differences between Gouda, goat, and herb cheeses.

• Hours: October – March: 9:00am ~ 5:00pm; April – September: 9:00am ~ 6:00pm
• Admission: Free

Clog Factory and Museum

The clog factory is awesome and after seeing some of the beautiful and historic clogs in the corridor, you’ll come around to some benches where you can see a clog making demonstration. They happen often so you won’t miss it. Then peruse the amazing collection of clogs and other souvenirs they have from painted clogs and carved clogs to “ice clogs” with iron fittings, horse clogs, and artistic clogs.

• Hours: October – March: 9:00am ~ 5:00pm; April – September: 9:00am ~ 6:00pm
• Admission: Free

Weaver’s House

Walk through this historic home and listen to interesting stories about old Dutch homes like how they put children in drawers, or a box bed, to sleep! My daughter really wondered how that worked and then saw it. Walk through the house and see how two families lived together and worked on the five looms in the space. If you’re lucky, see a weaving demonstration.

• Hours: 10:00am ~ 5:00pm
• Admission: Adults: €2; Children: €1
  • Free with the Zaanse Schans Card or I Amsterdam Card

The Zaanse Time Museum

This museum is dedicated to ticking and tocking timepieces. There is a room full of pendulum clocks from the time of the scientist Christiaan Huygens. There are puzzles on the table in the center for kids to do and once they figure out the picture, they can try to figure out which pendulum clock it matches.

• Hours:
• Admission: Adults: €11; Children: €5,50
  • Free with the Zaanse Schans Card or I Amsterdam Card

Windmill De Kat (The Paintmill)

Inside this mill, learn how paint was and is still produced there. Built in 1664, Miller Piet Kempenaar and his colleagues keep the windmill sails of this mill turning. The mill produces paint and pigments of high quality which are supplied to artists and restorers around the world. Go upstairs and enjoy the view out over the water and you can see out to the other windmills. This mill produces paint, chalk, pigments, and oils. The whole building vibrates when it’s churning.

• Hours: 9:00am ~ 4:30pm

Windmill Het Jonge Schaap (The Sawmill)

Here you can see logs get cut with the use of that beautiful wind energy. The Het Jonge Schaap is a replica that was built using 17th century building methods has been standing in Zaanse Schans in 2007. This six-sided wood saw mill is unique in the shape of 350 saw mills that once stood in the Zaan area. The original Het Jonge Schaap was built in 1680 in Zaandam and was active until 1942. The mill sells wood and is still operational.

• Admission: Adults: €5; Children: €2,50

De Bonte Hen (The Oilmill)

The De Bonte Hen has survived since 1693 and has survived lightning strikes which many other Zaan mills did not. If a mill were struck by lightning, it would then be fanned by the wind in the area which meant most windmills fell due to the fire.

• Admission: Adults: €5; Children: €2,50

World of Windmills

This museum is the last thing you’ll find at the end of the path. It’s a collection of interactive exhibitions about trade, culture, and wealth. Look at an 11 meter-wide panoramic painting of windmills in the eastern part of Zaandam around 1800 and see an interactive maquette with 1100 windmills in Zaanstreek.

• Hours: 10:00am ~ 5:00pm
• Admission: Adults: €10; Children: €5

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What To Do

Take a boat ride

After all of the museums and windmills, there’s still a great boat ride to see the windmills from one more perspective. There are boats available along the same path that you’re walking to see the windmills. Plan to take a ride on one. It’s great and the guides are very informative.

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