Home > Amsterdam > Zaanse Schans Windmills, Marken and Volendam Half-Day Trip from Amsterdam
USD $63.00
Zaanse Schans Windmills, Marken and Volendam Half-Day Trip from Amsterdam
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Leave Amsterdam behind for a few hours and discover the typical Dutch countryside outside the capital. You'll drive through a picture-perfect landscape crisscrossed with canals, see authentic wooden houses, windmills and fishing villages, and witness traditional crafts from days gone by. The picturesque village of Zaanse Schans is famous for its original buildings, vividly capturing Dutch life in the 17th and 18th centuries. You'll see the historic shipyard and windmills, and pay a visit to a shoemaker who works with wood to watch his clog-making techniques first-hand!
Next, you'll travel to the world-famous fishing villages of Volendam and Marken, on the coast of the former Zuiderzee (now called Ijselmeer). The old wooden houses here are built on stilts and locals still wear their colorful traditional dresses. Then, take a 20-minute boat trip from Volendam to Marken, with approximately 45 minutes at each stop (summer only). The cruise is optional but is included in the cost of the tour.
During the day you'll also stop at one of the few farms where cheese is still made in the traditional way.
7-Hour tour departing at 12pm This option was created based on customer feedback to offer an alternative itinerary and longer tour duration. The afternoon tour at 12pm is 7hours in duration. It visits the windmill village of "Zaanse Schans" and the towns of Marken and Volendam. However, this tour gives you more time at all 3 locations.
Special Offer - Enjoy a free 1-hour Amsterdam canal cruise! This offer is available when you book and travel by 29 October 2017. - Book Now!
wonderful trip.. It is packed program to see main attraction of netherland in one day.
Review by: Thomas K, June 2018
Overall good tour, could have used more time at couple of the stops. We were in a large group of 74 and the guide repeated everything in 3 languages.
Review by: Nitish S, June 2018
The tour was great. Gave us an excellent overview of the Dutch countryside. No picture can capture the experience of seeing those windmills in action. The Cheese factory and the wooden shoe factory tours were amazing too. It's a packed day with a lot of Information and entertainment. Totally worth it!!!
Review by: Steven Z, June 2018
This was a really fun tour that we thoroughly enjoyed. I would give this 5 stars except for the fact that much of the tour is a sales pitch cheese, waffle cookies, wooden shoes and you will be guided through the sales areas. That said, it is all wonderful and still absolutely worth the time and money to see these beautiful parts of the Netherlands.
Review by: Maria C, June 2018
loved the tour.
Review by: Kaushik D, June 2018
Fantastic.Very good passengers and crew.
Review by: Nelli A, June 2018
busy day, lots of people , lots of buses but we stayed in schedule and saw nice spots
Review by: SONAM J, May 2018
I did this tour 2nd time and it was as amazing as the 1st time. Beautiful tour and a must do for Netherland visitors.
Review by: Omio C, May 2018
To my opinion much better than Amsterdam. Its flat, green and water everywhere. Loved it!
Review by: shazlee24, May 2018
This tour was great! Great way to see the countryside as we had no private transport. The tour guide was very informative and good fun but fairly high paced so really had to keep up. Volendam and Marken were lovely towns and the windmills were amazing. Just wish we had more time to wander Zaanse Schans as there were 2-3 windmills and we only had time to visit one and only 15 minutes at the Museum in Volendam was definitely not enough. Overall, was very satisfied with this tour and highly recommend.
Review by: Simarjeet K, May 2018
The tour was very well organized. guide was very good. Highly recommended!!
Review by: dawn, May 2018
windmill tour was nice however, the majority of the trip was a sales pitch. Wooden shoe factory --- here is how they are made, now purchase dessert waffles - here is how they are made - now you can purchase a 3 pack for xx euro here is our cheese factory, now you can go upstairs and purchase Would have perferred time to wonder and less selling. .
Review by: Joel P, May 2018
Saw a lot in a short time. Hard to imagine there are only around 40 windmills left in all of Holland. Good cheese samples at the cheese factory in Volendam. My wife was disappointed that the wooden shoes at the factory in Marked are made by machine. The machines they use are over 80 years old so they have been doing it that way for a long time.
Review by: chimchimcheree50, May 2018
Excellent snapshot of the Netherlands in a day. Lots of variety of places on the tour where you learn local history, see authentic Windmills in action and locals making clogs and cheese and enjoy a delicious lunch on Volderdam Island. We thoroughly enjoyed this tour and absolutely recommend it.
Review by: Narcis G, May 2018
Great trip! Our team leader Ricky warmed up the athmosphere even the weather was cold and windy, he played the piano for us on the boat and was full of joy. We appreciate also he speacks at least five different languages. Many thanks to our driver Daniel too. Unforgettable day! Mihaela and Narcis from Romania.
Review by: Bryan I, April 2018
Great tour! Bit chilly but it was still nice , the delicious hot chocolate made it nicer!!!!
Review by: Thomas H, April 2018
Great half day tour for our first full day in Amsterdam. Trip did take longer than 5 hours - almost 7 hours in total trip back took almost 2 full hours so don't plan on tight dinner reservations. Also free canal cruise that came along with each tour was great! Didn't know that Dinner was included dinner on your own - that they coordinated at a local restaurant in Volendam. It appears that depending on the weather this is either a 5 hour or 7 hour tour or something in between as was ours since we only signed up for the 5 hour tour, but got the ferry ride, dinner time and plan which you pay for on your own, and a dessert treat and demonstration at the local stroopwafel shop. Clearly more than we planned or anticipated when we signed up for what we thought was a 5 hour tour. Overall though since we did not have any dinner plans or reservations that night, the day turned out great and we loved the tour.
Review by: Ben R, April 2018
This was a great tour and very well organised. I would highly recommend.
Review by: Christa V, April 2018
This was a good deal and a lot to pack into one day, but I wish we could have spent more time in Zaanse Schans, you only get about an hour there and there is 2-3 hours worth of windmills to go inside and visit there.
Review by: Hannah E T, April 2018
Marken and Volendam were both quaint and lovely! I would love to go back and spend more time at each place.
Review by: sunshinepz, April 2018
Loved this tour! Great way to see the countryside if you don't want to deal with renting a car. The whole team was very organized from the get-go. The tour guide was very informative, professional and fun. Volendam and Marken were lovely towns and the boat ride was the cherry on top. The windmills were amazing just wish we had more time to wander Zaanse Schans. Overall, was very satisfied with this tour.
Review by: Samuel C, April 2018
This was the second time we had taken this tour because it was so good the first time. However, this time was different. The bus was late leaving the station so we had very limited time at the windmills and there were so many people on the tour we could barely fit into the first area. The windmills were great and no complaints about the location. Marken and Volendam were wonderful as well and I'd love to visit them again but by rented car next time. While the tour company overall was good besides leaving a little late, the tourist and number of the group would make me rent a car before I took this tour again.
Review by: Delia Ai Hui T, April 2018
It was a little rushed at the windmill village. We didn't get to enjoy the place fully but otherwise the itinerary is very well-planned!
Review by: Swarup D, April 2018
Everyone in this trip was fantastic!!! Be it the bus driver, be it the tour guide. They were extremely good in managing the things, highly professional, takes care of all your concerns, explaining things in every details and makes you comfortable. The only thing is to follow them, have your camera ready, be disciplined in terms of time and enjoy the 5.5 to 6 hour tour with them.
Review by: Yolanda, March 2018
What a lovely day. We found the windmills and Marken amazing. The time spent in Volendam was great. The cheese factory was very interesting. We bought some cheese to take home. Lunch as also a great experience in Volendam. You also have some time to do some souvenir shopping. There are a lot of small shops in the area and you are spoil for choice. The staff on the bus was very friendly and informative. Great experience. A tour to consider when visiting Amsterdam
Review by: Maria Teresa C, November 2017
The trip to the Schans Windmills was awesome! We went to the clog making factory , to the cheese factory and had a great time. The Boat ride going to Volendam was great. It's a pleasure to know about the village.While we are on the Bus there was an audio telling you about the places we passed by. Our tour guide is very Knowledgable. i just wish we have more time exploring the village.
Review by: Lois H, November 2017
Thoroughly enjoyed the tour. The guides and driver were very upbeat and knowledgeable. Learned a lot abut windmills, wooden shoes and much more.
Review by: carol1269, November 2017
This tour was amazing i felt i did see so much in the few hours we had, Visited the Windmills, cheese factory which it was amazing, took a boat and ended up in another City, went to the Wooden Shoe factory. Highly recommended it, still had plenty of time back in the city to experience it the entire afternoon.
Review by: Matias D, November 2017
Very good tour. Recommended
Review by: Varun P, November 2017
Relaxing ...
Review by: Brad B, November 2017
This tour was a good sampler of the basics of what I expect a tourist to see while in The Netherlands. Each stop was done well, with the longest being in Volendam, which had the most to do. _br/_ The Zaanse Schans Windmills were a great attraction, and we had the right amount of time to be there. The man who spoke to us about how the mills, and how they operate was very informative and passionate about the mills, and it was impressive to see how they operate, almost as if it was a living history._br/_ Marken was the shortest stop, with the wooden shoe factory and demonstration. I own a pair that my grandparents bought for my mother in the 1960s, so seeing how they are made was a good way to connect to the family treasures I have.
Review by: Nicolas D, November 2017
Litinéraire était très bien ainsi que la durée du tour. La visite des moulins était intéressante et agréable, malgré la pluie! Les visites à pieds des villes de marken et de Volendam sont biens mais les presentations dans les fabriques de gaufres ou de fromage sont inutiles. Tout pour nous faire acheter, très commercial. Jaurais aimé que les visites soient plus objectives. Le type qui nous a démontré comment on fabrique des sabots était intéressant mais sans plus. Excursion parfaite par jour de pluie, à part pour les photos.
Review by: David C, November 2017
A very interesting trip. Had a good tour guide who was very informative as we travelled through land below sea level to the windmills. An overcast day but very pleasant as we did a reasonable amount of walking. The windmills and the sawing demonstration was excellent with enough time to see most things and take a few photos. We did the full day tour which was well worth the little bit extra. Marken and Volendam we very pretty towns complete with tours of a cheese factory with tastings, and a cruise to where the clog factory was. This was an entertaining time with the clog maker not only showing how they make clogs but showing all the technical bits as well. In all, one of the best tours we did in the Netherlands.
Review by: Christopher R, November 2017
This was really one of the highlights from our trip to Amsterdam. Seeing the traditional windmills in actions was breathtaking. My only quips about this tour is that it attracted some of the most undesirable tourist...ones without manners, not knowing any kind of etiquette whatever. Despite this, we had a wonderful time seeing how wooden shoes were made, as well as, watching the process of seeing how their delicious cheese is created. Overall, one of the best tours to be recommended for taking in all that Holland has to offer.
Review by: Elizabeth Y, November 2017
The guides were fun and the sites visited were amazing...added so much to my Amsterdam experience! Thank you!
Review by: Emily P, November 2017
Convenient and not that far away. I wish we could remember the names of our guides. They were great and made the trip enjoyable.
Review by: Ruderico S, November 2017
For the price this tour is well worth it.
Review by: Maria Luisa d, November 2017
We enjoyed the outing. It was very varied, but a bit hurried, as there are many activities included. It was fun!
Review by: Carlos A, November 2017
Nice mix of locations to really get a sense of the country live and beautiful scenery. The tour guides were very informative, entertaining on a comfortable bus. You also get a bit of time to yourself to browse around. Definitely recommended!!
Review by: Mabel A Q, November 2017
This is a really popular tour, since the bus was packed to capacity. Too bad the weather didn't cooperate. Lucky it stopped raining for the windmills!
Review by: jsutton528, November 2017
Our guides were great and fun, Steph our driver was very entertaining.
Review by: FrancineArocho, November 2017
Highly Recommended, it is an amazing and beautiful experience.
Review by: Kate M, November 2017
Nicely done!
Review by: Janet B, November 2017
Very interesting
Review by: Janet B, November 2017
Very interesting
Review by: carolandalex, November 2017
Great tour. However ,it was pouring rain at the Zaanse windmills. It did let up later and was a beautiful day. Volendam was a beautiful_br/_ waterfro9nt town. Just delightful.
Review by: Marissa, November 2017
Oh my gosh! I remember this tour as if it was yesterday!
Review by: Jane L, October 2017
Lovely day interesting to learn about the windmills and the many areas in which they were used. Cheese tasty and purchasing was fabulous.
Review by: JaMusi L, October 2017
Tour was pretty good and was more than 5hours tour but abit rush at Windmill. Should have done it with more time. _br/_ Have your lunch before tour as the meal (own expenses) came at late PM or early evening only.
Review by: Michelle D, October 2017
This was a great tour! It was wonderful to get out of the city and see the countryside. The only complaint I would have is that it would have been nice to have some more time. The villages we went to were wonderful, and the cheese factory and clog factory were fun!
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