Hoorn was one of the six Dutch East India Company chambers in the 1600s and the town has never quite got over it. The harbour is ringed with warehouses turned into apartments, the Hoofdtoren from 1532 still guards the entrance, and there is a statue of Jan Pieterszoon Coen on Roode Steen square — a genocidal colonial administrator whose statue people have been arguing about for years now. At 9pm the harbour cafés are lit, the water is flat, and it feels like a stage set. Because it partly is.
This suits slow travellers, retirees, and anyone doing the historic ports of the IJsselmeer (Enkhuizen, Medemblik, Volendam). It does not suit anyone under 25 looking for nightlife — there are about four bars and they all close around midnight on weekdays. The steam train from Hoorn to Medemblik is the local star attraction and it is genuinely charming even if you hate trains. In winter the town shuts down after 6pm and the wind off the IJsselmeer is brutal.
Where to stay in Hoorn
Waag area, Roode Steen, and the streets around the Binnenhaven (Veermanskade, Italiaanse Zeedijk) put you in the picturesque bit — $85-$140. Hotel De Keizerskroon on Breed is a solid mid-range. Cheaper options near the station on Van Dedemstraat are functional and dull, $60-$80, ten minutes' walk from the harbour. Do not bother with anything south of the railway line — it is postwar suburbia.
Hotels in Hoorn
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Things to do in Hoorn
- Westfries Museum on Roode SteenRoode Steen 1, $12, the old regents' building with a genuinely good VOC-era collection including a room reconstructed as a captain's quarters. Tue-Sun 10am-5pm. The debate about the Coen statue outside is part of the visit now.
- Steam train to MedemblikMuseumstoomtram, departures from Van Dedemstraat station, weekends April-Oct plus Tues-Fri in summer. $28 for the train and return boat via Enkhuizen, half a day. Book online, sells out weekends.
- Hoofdtoren caféHoofd 2, the 1532 harbour tower turned into a café-restaurant. Terrace over the water, mains $22-$30, but a coffee and apple pie on the terrace for $8 is the better move around 4pm.
- Bike the Westfriese OmringdijkRent from the OV-fiets at the station, $5, follow the old sea dike west toward Schardam and Scharwoude. Flat, empty, sheep and windmills, a 20 km round trip. Bring a windbreak — no shelter.
Getting there & around
Start at the station, walk down Veemarkt to Roode Steen, then out onto the Veermanskade past the moored botters (traditional flat-bottomed boats), around the Binnenhaven past the Hoofdtoren, up the Italiaanse Zeedijk with its rich merchants' houses, back through Kerkstraat past the Grote Kerk (now an events venue), finishing on Bierkade.
Intercity trains from Amsterdam Centraal take 38 minutes, every 15 minutes, $9.80. From Schiphol 55 minutes with a change at Sloterdijk. The centre is a 10-minute walk from the station down Veemarkt. Local buses go north to Enkhuizen (45 min, $6) but the train is faster. Ferries across the IJsselmeer to Stavoren (Friesland) run May-September only, three times daily, $18 one way — a proper crossing on open water.
Questions answered
Hoorn or Enkhuizen — which is the better base?
Hoorn has the better train connection to Amsterdam (38 vs 62 minutes) and more restaurants. Enkhuizen has the better museum (Zuiderzeemuseum) and a prettier old harbour. If you have two nights, do one in each. If you have one, Hoorn is more practical.
Is the steam train worth the money?
Yes, if you take the combined train-and-boat ticket that returns via Enkhuizen. The train alone one-way is nostalgic but slow ($15). The full loop is a proper day out with a good hour in Medemblik castle and lunch on the boat back.
Nearby areas
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