LoisG

We will be staying at the Golden Tulip Barbizon Plaza hotel at the end of April. We would like to take some day trips out of A'dam and see Delft, maybe the Hauge,Maakum, etc.From other travels in other countries we have always relied on tours, etc.to get around .Is this the case in Holland?We want to see the Floriade,Kuekenhoef(sic)Gardens as well.We were also plannig to take 6 days to to stay.Enough time?Thanks for everyone's input.

Sjoerd

You don't need a car to visit Delft and The Hague (Den Haag). Very frequent trains (check out www.ns.nl (click on "English") for schedules and fares) <BR>I don't know what you mean with "Maakum", as a place with this name doesn't exist. Perhaps Marken (bus from Amsterdam) or Makkum in Friesland province, which is reachable via train and bus. <BR>Keukenhof (www.keukenhof.nl) is also reachable by train/bus combination and I guess there will be special buses from Amsterdam once the Floriade opens. In short, you won't need a car. <BR>If you are in Amsterdam on 30 April, you will be there on Queen's Day (the celebration of the Queen's birthday) which is one huge street party with HUGE crowds. I love it, but you'll only like it when you like to be with LOTS of people! <BR>If you have time, go to the Kroller Moller museum (www.kmm.nl) in National Park De Hoge Veluwe, and to the Zuiderzee museum in the lovely town of Enkhuizen. (direct train from Amsterdam)

wes fowler

The public transportation network in the Netherlands is excellent; assuredly, you won't need a car. In addition to Sjoerd's recommendations, you might want to consider an early morning bus from Centraal Station to Aalsmeer and its flower auction. Held in the world's largest commercial building (over 40 acres in size), millions of cut flowers and blooming potted plants are auctioned each Monday through Friday. The tour on an overhead catwalk and watching the auction process itself is fascinating. <BR>Check the website: www.user.netland.nl/~hanns/klok.html for more information including times.<BR><BR>Don't discount a trip to Giethoorn and a bicycle ride or stroll there. (Other than walking, biking or boating is the only way to get around; there are no roads for auto traffic.) The town is small, laced with canals and perfect for strolling. You really don't need a bike there. One of the places to look for is the Museum De Speelman with its collection of antique street organs. A really small but interesting museum quite close to De Speelman is the Museum De Oude Aarde with its collection of semi-precious stones, minerals and crystals, all dramatically lit. To get there, take the train from Amsterdam marked for Groningen to Meppel. It's about an hour and a half ride. Leave the Meppel train station, turn left to the bus departure area and take NWH bus number 79 for the 20 minute ride to Giethoorn. You may have to change buses somewhere along the way; ask the driver. The bus does not run on Sunday so plan this trip for a weekday. The VVV office by the way, is near the bus stop. <BR>Plan to have lunch at Smit's Paviljoen. It's at number 29 Binnenpad, a peninsula that juts out into Bovenwijde, the town lake. The pavilion offers a fine view and very inexpensive food. <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>You might also consider a visit to

leila

Having just returned, I agree with the previous poster, you do not need a car.<BR>However, we loved our tiny Fiat, which we rented from Avis for 40 Euros, just outside of the city.<BR>We drove south to Delft, then on to the Hague, to Leiden, to the North Sea, to Lisse, and up to Haarlem.<BR>It was a great and easy adventure. The roads were beautiful and each time we got lost , we found helpful English speaking Dutch to put us back on the trail. <BR>On the way home form Haarlem, it poured, it was dark and there was construction, and still it was not horrible.

kh

In all our trips to The Netherlands, we have only rented a car once. Usually, we rely on trains to get us where we want to tour. The most interesting towns are a nightmare to park in - and of course, Amsterdam parking is a no-go.<BR>If you want to cruise the countryside for a day or two, get a car for that length of time and use public transport to get other places........