Alkmaar Netherlands North Holland
Frequently Asked Questions
Along the canal, a few minutes' walk from the Waagplein, the cheese market square.
Friday mornings from late March to late September, on the Waagplein. The bell rings at 10 a.m. and two cheeses are tossed in the air: that is the signal.
No. The cheeses are genuinely traded, sealed with a hand clap, among carriers, weighers and merchants divided into rival guilds identified by the colour of their hats.
Plenty: more than 500 listed buildings in a core you can cross on foot in fifteen minutes, the great church of St Lawrence with its renowned organ, flowered almshouse courtyards and the canals.
The public weigh house, a fourteenth-century former hospice converted to trade, dominating the square with its ornate tower. It now houses the cheese museum.
Yes, small boats offer guided tours of about an hour, a restful way to grasp the city's layout and to pass under its lowest bridges, heads down required.
Half a day is ample. The historic centre crosses on foot in fifteen minutes, and the canal tour adds a pleasant hour.
Yes, the shops in the centre readily offer tastings: young or matured gouda, versions with cumin or fenugreek, vacuum-packed to carry on with you.
Considerably. You get the Holland you hoped for — canals, gables, golden wheels of cheese — without the crush of Amsterdam, which is not far away.
Arrive early to get a good spot along the barriers. The square fills quickly before the 10 a.m. bell.
