Information about Schagen

You will be surprised at the diversity of Schagen, a charming little town in the north of Noord-Holland. There are all kinds of things to do for young and old. It is an ideal town for shopping or going out, with much entertainment. Schagen has a lively and atmospheric centre and the indoor shopping mall Makado. Schagen is very much a mixture of tradition and modern hospitality. During the summer months, various music festivals are organized, and in the spring there is the Easter cattle exhibition, symbolized by a bronze bull near the Slot Schagen castle. Schagen is a lovely town to explore.

The location and surrounding area of Schagen

Schagen lies in the north-west of West-Friesland and is easy to reach by car as well as public transport. Schagen has its own wheelchair friendly railway station, which offers good connections with Amsterdam, Den Helder, Alkmaar and Haarlem.

All the things to do in Schagen

There are all kinds of things to do for young and old in Schagen. It is an ideal town for shopping or going out. There are many places to visit and plenty of restaurants and cafés. Schagen has a lively, atmospheric and picturesque town centre. During the summer season, on Thursday mornings, you can visit the West-Frisian market where you will find people from Schagen dressed in original traditional costumes.
During these West-Frisian Thursdays, in the morning there is a large procession with antique carriages and the participants are dressed in costume. There are also demonstrations of folk dancing.

Monuments

Schagen has many national and municipal monuments, often still in their original state. A large fire in 1895 burned down many historical buildings, but fortunately a number of places of interest were preserved. The centre of Schagen is dominated by the Sint Christoforus church with its 65 metre high tower. Inside the church there is a Nicholson organ which is considered one of the most beautiful romantic organs in the Netherlands. During the months of July and August when the West-Frisian days are taking place, you can visit the church and see the organ every Thursday from 10 am to 2.30 pm. According to the experts, the organ is reason enough to pay a visit to Schagen.

If you wish to see the best places in Schagen, you can do the cycling route from the Freebee Map in the brochure that you can order from this website by means of an SMS service. Then you can be certain that you have seen all there is to see in Schagen.

Art and culture

In Schagen there is plenty to see in the area of art and culture. Because Schagen is also the place to visit for museums. The Slot Schagen castle with two castle towers is home to two museums. Below we list the most well-known museums in Schagen:

Museumboerderij Vreeburg, a farm and carriage museum dedicated to life in Schagen round 1800. The former city farm has been furnished with period rooms, and in the stable you can see old tools. A newly built section accommodates the carriage museum. This is a magnificently laid out museum where you will find farming implements and crafts which are a reminder of the olden days;
Museum Slag van de Somme, a special museum housed in one of the towers of the former Slot Schagen castle, with a private collection in memory of the Battle of the Somme (France) 1914-1918;
The Regionaal Museum 1940-1945, housed in one of the castle towers, where you will find a collection about the Second World War from a private collection;
Automuseum Schagen. If you are interested in cars, pay a visit to this car museum. Here you will find a varied collection of cars, including cars from DAF and Volkswagen.

Shopping in Schagen

Schagen is a pleasant town for shopping, with a wide variety of shops as well as the indoor shopping mall Makado. So even if the weather is less agreeable, you can enjoy shopping in the best of comfort. Schagen has three car parks, one of them located in the indoor shopping mall.

Eating out in Schagen

Schagen is an excellent place for a delicious lunch, leisurely dinner or a refreshing cup of coffee or tea, which you can enjoy in one of the restaurants or cafés. However you spend the day, either shopping or a visit to one of the many museums or galleries, there will always be a place for a bite to eat or a drink in the nearby vicinity.

Nightlife in Schagen

There is also plenty to do in the evenings in Schagen. In the centre at the Markt square there are various pubs and cafés where you can spend a pleasant evening and enjoy yourself until the early hours of the morning.

Events in Schagen

Popweekend in Schagen, with performances by various artists. The event takes place on two stages at the Markt. The date for this pop weekend is always the first weekend in August, and the event attracts tens of thousands of visitors. When no large festivals are being held, Schagen is still a main regional entertainment centre;
Easter cattle exhibition. The cafés, bars and pubs are opened early for the partygoers.

The events calendar in the Freebee Map gives an overview of events happening in Schagen.