Haarlem

The best thing to do is just to come over and live here. But visiting on a trip or from Amsterdam is a good second. Haarlem has great atmosphere, it’s not as rushed as Amsterdam, lots of shops, great pubs and restaurants and there’s always something going to do (museums, festivals etc.).

It is a nice little Dutch place. Benefit: you’re close to the seashore (Zandvoort) and at the same time 20min away from Amsterdam … need I say more !?

Lovely little town! You feel like you go back to 18thcentury for example… Really beautiful with astonishing cathedral

I spent NYE 1999 here. What a blast! The fireworks at the town square were an experience to say the least. Great people.

Check out the ten Boom Watch Shop where Corrie ten Boom and her family lived during WWII. This is the famous location of the “hiding place” where they hid several Jewish people from the Nazis.

http://www.corrietenboom.com/

Ask me anything

Very pleasant and sociable town square. Close to Amsterdam.

Haarlem is a beautiful quaint town to visit. It’s fill with lots of things todo in a small area. There are many museums, shops, out-door cafes, bars, clubs to explore. American franchises are almost non-existant. I only saw one McDonalds there. A cathedral lies at the center of the city and few roads for cars lead into the city. The most notable museum in Haarlem would have to be the Teyler Museum, with its eclectic collection of paintings, sculptures, antique science experiments, and fossils. Most people walk or bike around. The town square is used many times to open garden markets or farmer markets. Restaurants will also set up tables out in the square, so you can have lunch or even dinner out in the sun. I say dinner because during the Summer out in the Netherlands the sun doesn’t set til 10pm that’s 2200 hrs. They have a great variety and great quality of food. The thing that surprised me as an American was that everything closes at 5pm and opens 9pm. Most Most everyone there speaks English along with Danish and are very friendly. The Eurorail is very accessible from there. What I liked the most about Haarlem while on my trip was that it wasn’t as tourist-y as Brussels. Brussels was flooded with tourists shops, chocolate stores, and hig-end clothing stores. If you ever go to Haarlem, tell the people “Danke vil,” and thank them for me.