The Flower Festival at Keukenhof Gardens 2009 – 60th anniversary - 19th of March until 21st of May. Theme: USA, New Amsterdam/New York, 400 years.
Spring is the perfect time to visit Haarlem, not only is it at the heart of the bulb growing region it has some world famous museums, in easy reach of Amsterdam and the beach at Zandvoort. Throughout the spring and summer the streets are decorated with floral displays with annual procession of floats decorated with thousands of spring flowers attracting many visitors.
What to see in Haarlem
Culturally, the city has some good museums such as, the world-famous museums the ’Frans Hals’ and the ’Teyler’ which have many fine works of art from the Golden Age of Dutch and Flemish painting and also many modern works and exhibitions. The museums are located near the town centre, not far from the main square. Between 14 Feb and 14 June, there are two exhibitions at the Frans Hals museum, one a private collection with paintings from Frans Hals and Rembrandt, A Childhood Dream. The other exhibition features the paintings of the De Bray family who were key figures in the cultural life of Haarlem during the Golden Age.
One of the special buildings worth noting is the City Hall in the market square (Grote Markt). This was originally a 13th century hunting seat of the counts of Holland with the so-called "Gravenzaal". Also in the Grote Markt is the late Gothic church of St. Bavo 1370-1520. The interior includes an early 16th- century rood screen, the tomb of Frans Hals, choir stalls from 1512 and the famous Müller organ dating from 1738 on which young Mozart once played.
Resistance fighter Corrie ten Boom museum
Visit the former home of the Ten Boom family of the well-known Dutch resistance fighters now made into a museum. It tells the story of the devotion of the life and works of this family, in particular to Corrie ten Boom. During the Second World War, the family saved the lives of an estimated 800 Jews and protected many Dutch underground workers. But they were arrested after a trap was set for them and the family was taken to Ravensbruck concentration camp in Germany. But Corrie ten Boom survived and her story is told in a book entitled ‘The Hiding Place’ and was later made into a film of the same name. Address is Barteljorisstraat 19.
Entertainment
If you are looking for night life, there are plenty of pubs in the city centre. Many of these are of the traditional "brown cafe" type, but some are larger and have live music at the weekends. Areas worth a look are the Grote Markt, Riviervismarkt, Kleine Houtstraat, and Botermarkt. The average city centre pub closes at 2am during the week and 4am at the weekend.
There are also night clubs where the dancing can go on till six in the morning two popular examples are the "Stalker" at Kromme Elleboogsteeg 12-20 and the "Sound" at L Bogaardstr 11-13. Live music venues such as the "Patronaat" Zijlsingel 2, regularly hold pop and rock concerts which also feature international artists.
In the neighberhood of Haarlem
Zandvoort Beach –
Zandvoort is an old fishing village that some years ago became an attractive tourist resort within easy reach of Amsterdam by train or road. One of the main attractions is the racetrack, used for training and races at the weekends, but some days it is open to the public, who can put their foot down on the accelerator over more than 4 kilometres of racetrack. The Dutch Grand Prix is held here in June, gathering together huge crowds of motor racing fans from all over the world.
National Park Zuid-Kennemerland
Close to Zandvoort and Ijmuiden, the National Park Zuid-Kennemerland is an area of great natural beauty and features some country estates, beach areas and the WW II War Cemetery. Cycling tracks and footpaths are clearly signposted.
Boat trips Haarlem
Why not take a leisurely boat trip to see Haarlem and the surroundings, Woltheus Cruises offers trips from 1 April to 31 October. Their address is at Spaarne 11a.
