THE NETHERLANDS - Europe by Eurail 2015: Touring Europe by Train - page 409

Day Excursions
The Europe by Eurail day excursions described in this chapter are to Alkmaar,
home of the world-famous cheese market; Enkhuizen, for its open-air Zuider Zee
Museum, which depicts what Dutch life was like before the Zuider Zee was sealed
off from the North Sea; Haarlem, for the Frans Hals Museum and more aspects of
life in the Netherlands; and Hoorn, for browsing in a medieval market. These day
excursions present a cross section of the Netherlands, from its rural to its sophist-
icated side.
Day Excursion to
Alkmaar
World-Famous Cheese Market
Depart from Amsterdam Centraal Station
Distance by Train: 24 miles (39 km)
Average Train Time: 30 minutes
City Dialing Code: 072
TouristInformationOffice: Regio VVV Alkmaar, Waagplein 2-3, 1811 JP Alkmaar
Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone]
www.alkmaar.nl
E-mail: [e-mail]
Hours: Monday-Friday 1000-1700, closed weekends
Notes: An easy route to the town square and the tourist office is to follow the
street, Geesterweg, running perpendicular to the front of the station and the VVV
signs leading you across a bridge toward a large church (Church of St. Laurens).
Pass the church on its left side, and pick up Lange Straat, still walking in the same
direction. Pass the town hall, which will be on your right; 4 blocks farther, at a canal,
turn left to the Weigh House, where the cheese market is held. The VVV office is
located in the front of the Weigh House.
There is a cheese market in Alkmaar every Friday 1000 to 1230 the first Friday in
April to the last Friday in September. But Alkmaar is such a picturesque town that
it deserves a visit any day of the week at any time of the year. Trains run between
Amsterdam and Alkmaar about every 15 minutes.