4 Best Sights in The Randstad, Netherlands

Just north of the Waag (the Weigh House, built entirely of stone in 1598 and now a pleasant little café), Teylers is housed in a grand 18th-century building with mosaic floors. The best sort of small museum, it is based on the whims of an eccentric private collector, in this case the 18th-century merchant Pieter Teyler van der Hulst. It's the country's oldest museum, founded in 1784, and has a mixture of exhibits: fossils and minerals sit alongside antique scientific instruments, such as a battery of 25 Leiden jars, dating to 1789 and used to store an electric charge. The major artistic attraction is a legendary collection of drawings and prints by Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Raphael, and other Old Masters that once belonged to Queen Christina of Sweden.

Finally opened to the public in 2021 following an eight-year restoration process, a new side wing to the museum now allows you to explore the adjoining home in which Pieter Teyler lived. Reception rooms and bedrooms have been opulently decked out with period furnishings from the late 18th century.

This vast and eclectic collection ranges from a 10th-century boat to a Viktor and Rolf A-Bomb coat, and from Golden Age paintings to minimalist home furnishings. What you see largely depends on the theme of the current temporary exhibitions, but there are also permanent displays. Don't miss the Utrecht Boat, the complete 1,000-year-old wooden hull of a ship, excavated from a nearby riverbed in 1930, which has survived remarkably intact. The museum also has a collection of Golden Age work by artists from the Utrecht school. Across the square, modern-art lovers should make a beeline for the Gerrit Rietveld Wing, focusing on the most famous of De Stijl architects and designers; there is a reconstruction of his studio and lots of original Rietveld furniture.

Located near the Frans Hals Museum - HOF, the town's history museum makes the most of its limited resources to mount two or three small temporary exhibitions a year, offering insight into the history of the city and the surrounding area. Among the permanent exhibits are video screenings (in English), models of the city, and touch-screen computers relating stories that take you back through history. There are fascinating old prints and maps, along with some apparently random exhibits, including one of the earliest printing presses, dating to the 17th century.

You can learn about Volendam's history at this museum, located next to the VVV tourist information center. One highlight is the reconstructed period rooms, like the school filled with mannequins adorned with folkloric costumes. Look for the photograph of chanteuse Josephine Baker clad in traditional folkloric Dutch garb.