Information about Volendam

Volendam, the pearl of the former Zuyder Sea, is a famous ancient traditional fishing village on Lake IJssel. Thousands of tourists come here from throughout the world to enjoy the authentic atmosphere, the little streets and the views of the harbour where boats set sail to and arrive from Marken. Volendam is a village that you must have visited some time in your life. On De Dijk there are numerous restaurants, little outdoor cafés and shops for buying souvenirs and for browsing; and in one of the shops you can have your photo taken wearing a traditional Volendam costume. In the quiet little streets of the Doolhof, you will feel transported back a hundred years in time. Volendam is not only known as a fishing village but also for its music and traditional costume.
 

The location and surrounding area of Volendam

Volendam lies in Noord-Holland on Lake IJssel, right next to Edam, both places forming the municipality of Edam-Volendam. The present day inhabitants of Volendam live in brick houses. However, until the beginning of the 20th century that was a different situation, which is still evident from the little wooden houses you will find in the Doolhof area. As you walk or cycle over De Dijk, you will have a continual view of Lake IJssel. The area around Volendam consists of meadows and marshlands with an abundance of meadow birds, ducks, geese and swans. You can get to Volendam by car or by bus. There is no railway station in the village.

All there is to do in Volendam

Since Volendam lies on the banks of Lake IJssel, it offers excellent recreational possibilities. This is a beautiful place to enjoy walking, cycling and various forms of water sports. You can swim in the lake or in the Waterdam subtropical swimming pool. Bicycles and boats are for hire.
The most well-known festival in Volendam is the four-day fun fair held during the first weekend of September. In June it is time for the Volendammer weekend, the most atmospheric weekend with many people in traditional costume and with demonstrations of traditional crafts. Many activities take place during this weekend, such as eel-smoking competitions, sailing competitions, a fair and a market, acrobatic performances and a lovely art route organized through the Doolhof. There are also many performances by local bands in the numerous pubs in Volendam.

Monuments

While you are in Volendam, you can visit various monuments. The Visafslag former fish auction is a rare and well-preserved monument, mainly built from wood, dating from 1934. The Visafslag is a familiar meeting point, located centrally in the harbour area.
The wooden belfry is a simple belfry with a wedding clock built in 1771, located at the harbour right in the old centre of Volendam.
If you wish to see the best places in Volendam, you can do the city walk 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 Volendam.

Art and culture

There is plenty to see in Volendam in the area of art and culture:

• The Volendams Museum, which is also home to the famous cigar band house, and you can see that since 1875 the village has been home to an international artists colony. The museum holds regular exhibitions with varying themes;
• Palingsound Museum, with a musical collection dating back a century, with photos, trophies, musical instruments and record covers of ‘eel sounds’, music typical of Volendam, from among other artists, the Cats, B.Z.N., Leftside, Maribel and Jan Smit.
• At the Spaander hotel, you will find an impressive collection of paintings. Painters from the artists colony who visited the hotel often paid for their stay by donating one of their paintings.

Shopping in Volendam

Volendam is not only a village full of nostalgia, but also a lovely place for shopping. In the centre and on and around De Dijk you will find a great many shops. From a jewellery shop to a supermarket, from a chemist shop to a souvenir shop, from a clothing shop to a home decoration shop; and further along, there is the Woonboulevard, where you can enjoy interior design shopping, in an area of more than 30,000 m2. The shops at the harbour of Volendam are open seven days a week. The village also has two shopping malls - De Stient and Van Havenhof

Eating out

In Volendam you can enjoy a delicious lunch, leisurely dinner or a pleasant drink.
On De Dijk you will find various good restaurants and cafés. As you would expect from a fishing village, you can enjoy many fresh fish dishes of first-class quality. Take the time to walk past the restaurants and view their menus, and you will realize what a surprisingly wide offer there is. In each restaurant, you can enjoy a delicious type of cuisine. As well as De Dijk, there are of course various other areas with restaurants and cafés.

Nightlife in Volendam

For an enjoyable night out, go to De Dijk in Volendam, where you will find numerous pubs, bars and cafés which are open until early morning. Volendam is home to many Dutch celebrities whom you might meet on a night out. Elsewhere in the village there are also many places to go to for a good night out.