I'll be spending 3 days in Amsterdam in late September and am looking for a good day trip, preferably to a smallish town with outdoor sights. Somewhere with windmills in use (but not touristy) would be great! <BR> <BR>When I travel I often find that my favorite places are small towns 'off the beaten track', real gems that are often discovered quite by accident. <BR> <BR>Does anyone have such gems in the Netherlands they would be happy to share? <BR> <BR>Many thanks, <BR> <BR>Ike.

<BR>Hey Ike,a nice daytrip would be a visit of Volendam & Marken. Here the people are still wearing authentic Dutch clothes from 100 years ago. From Volendam you cantake a ferrie to Marken. <BR> <BR>Another nice trip is a visit to the "Historical Triangle(Medemblik-Hoorn-Enkhuizen). Here you can take an old steamtrain that visits all 3 villages.At Enkhuizen there's 15 mile bridge through the Yselmeer to Lelystad. <BR> <BR>Look at:http://home.wxs.nl/~junge003/home.htm <BR> <BR>Enjoy your stay!! Leo.

Visit a cheese town like Gouda or Edam

Ike, <BR>If you want a truly unique experience, go to Aalsmeer (you can pick up a bus at the central rail station). The town is just on the outskirts of Amsterdam near the airport. Why go there? For the daily flower auction, Monday through Friday. The auction complex encompasses almost 250 acres, 40 of which are under one roof where the auction takes place. Cut flowers and potted plants by the millions are auctioned each morning. There are footbridges over the market so you can see the flowers being assembled in lots on carts for the auction room, watch the auctions themselves then see flower carts being assembled into "trains" to move to the loading docks. It's a most unusual sight but you must visit early in the morning; auctioning begins about 7:30 and lasts til about 11:30. Makes for a memorable experience. <BR> <BR>In the afternoon, I'd suggest a trip to Harlem, only 15 minutes by train from Amsterdam.

Thanks for the suggestions Leo, Richard, <BR>and Wes. <BR> <BR>Aalsmeer sounds like a good bet. <BR> <BR>Ike.

Another idea for your consideration would be Hoorn, north of Amsterdam on the Ijsselmeer. Small beautiful waterfront town with a nice pedestrian area. <BR> <BR>Have a great trip.

Ike, <BR> I just returned from the Netherlands. My favorite day trip is to Zaans Schans just outside Zaandam. It is a recreation of a Dutch village. All of the buildings have been transported to Zaans Schans and there are several working windmills there. It sounds touristy, but it's not what you may be thinking. There are several restaurants there and many museums. I saw wooden shoes made, a clock museum, and a cheese makers shop. It is a beautiful place and I devoted an entire roll of film to it.