Alkmaar
Alkmaar is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland.
Alkmaar is well known for its traditional cheese market. For tourists, it is a popular cultural destination. The municipality has a population of 113,170 as of 2023.
Getting to Alkmaar
Alkmaar is served by Intercity trains from Amsterdam, 4 trains per hour, journey time 35–40 minutes. These Intercity trains start in Nijmegen or Maastricht, stop at Utrecht and end in Den Helder. At Amsterdam-Sloterdijk station, on the western edge of Amsterdam, they connect with trains to Schiphol Airport, Leiden, The Hague, Rotterdam, Dordrecht and Breda.
- 01Station Alkmaar NS
Worth seeing
The old city of Alkmaar is approximately an oval, south-east of the station. It is about 1 km from east to west, so everything is within walking distance. Shops and public buildings are concentrated in the western part, nearest the station, the east and south are residential. There is one shopping centre just outside the old city, Noorderarcade, accessible by footbridge across the North Holland Canal.
Things to do
The things to do in Alkmaar are primarily to see the old city, to play a wonderful collection of pinball machines (Friday nights only!), to walk or cycle in the surrounding countryside, or to go to the beach (see 'Go next', below). Although the canals in Alkmaar are sometimes narrow, and the bridges low, there is also a canal boat ride.
Where to eat
Almost all bars serve food and the town offers a wide range of restaurants, almost all of which in walking distance from the city center. varying from Dutch to Thai, from Chinese to Russian and Eastern European, from Spanish to Indonesian and from Greek to Scotch. Restaurants are typically open from around 17:00 to 23:30. Abby's Restaurant, Ritsevoort 60. +31 72-511 1111.
Getting around Alkmaar the local way
- Get inYou can get to visit Alkmaar from the UK by using a ferry to Holland.
- Get inThere are a number of ferry companies based in the North East of England whose ports in Holland are a short drive away from Alkmaar, which also offer a range of mini-cruises.
- Get inThis section begins by crossing on the ferry (Buiksloterwegveer), behind Amsterdam Centraal Station.
From Wikivoyage: Alkmaar, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-09.
Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Wikimedia Commons (see Commons), Wikimedia Commons.