Overshadowing surrounding historic buildings, the massive defensive gate Hoofdtoren (1532), topped by a tiny belfry, now houses an atmospheric restaurant.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Museum van de Twintigste Eeuw

0.16 MILES

In the vast former prison on Oostereiland, south of the Hoofdtoren, this entertaining museum is devoted to household goods and modern inventions. Among…

2. Westfries Museum

0.22 MILES

Housed in the former seat of the Staten-College (States' Council), the body that once governed seven towns in Noord-Holland, this absorbing museum has a…

3. Rode Steen

0.23 MILES

Hoorn's heyday as a shipping centre is long gone, but the imposing statue of Jan Peterzoon Coen, founder of the Dutch East India Company, still watches…

4. Grote Kerk

8.44 MILES

The 15th-century Grote Kerk bears witness to the vagaries of Dutch weather. Its 32 dazzling stained-glass windows bearing coats of arms and historical…

5. Kaasmarkt

8.56 MILES

In the 16th century Willem van Oranje bestowed on Edam the right to hold a Kaasmarkt, which was the town's economic anchor right through to the 1920s. At…

6. Kaaswaag

8.58 MILES

On the western side of Edam's Kaasmarkt stands the 1778 Kaaswaag, the cheese weigh house, which has a display about the town's chief product.

7. Edams Museum

8.62 MILES

Furnishings, porcelain and silverware spread over three cramped floors of Edam's oldest building, dating from 1540. Its floating cellar is a remarkable…

8. Gestam

8.63 MILES

Sample 30 different cheeses at the wonderful and barely commercial Gestam, a warehouse for regional producers established in 1916.