Sightseeing in Haarlem - what to see. Complete travel guide

Haarlem is a city located in the Netherlands, on the west of the country 20 kilometers away from Amsterdam. This is the capital of Northern Holland. The population of Haarlem estimates 149 thousand of people.

Haarlem is famous primarily by its flower growing (especially worldwide famous tulips). As the city is located in the center of the industrial region of Holland, besides flower growing here are well-developed machine building and textile, perfume, and chemical industries.

Haarlem is called “the city of flowers”. This is also one of the oldest cities of the Netherlands. The city can be truly proud of some of its amazing medieval buildings and galleries exhibiting tremendous collections of sculpture and paintings. In Haarlem is located the oldest art gallery in the Netherlands – Teylers Museum. The halls of this museum feature works of the Golden Century and works of Flemish painters. The city’s collection of art is located in the museum of a famous Dutch painter Hals. If you make a walk on the central square of the city named Grote Markt, you will see a wonderful town hall built in XIII century, and St Bavo Cathedral designed in the gothic style. On Mondays and Saturdays this calm square turns into a lively market. Other places of interest for tourists include Grote Kirk church, Bishop Museum, market rows selling meat, and more. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

Among the preserved historical buildings in the city is Welgelegen. This building is remarkable in that it was built in a neo-classic style, atypical for the Netherlands. The erection of the building began in 1769 and lasted 15 years. Its first owner was the famous American banker Henry Hope. After many years, the building managed to maintain its original charm. Today, it is surrounded by a large well-groomed garden.

A very unusual historical site is the ruins of the Berkenrode Castle. The history of this fortification is very interesting. The first official mention of the castle dates back to 1284. For hundreds of years, it defended the city from the conquerors. In 1572, during the next major siege of the city, the castle was completely burned. A new fortification was built in its place only two years later. After that the castle was destroyed several times and rebuilt, and it was completely lost in 1857. On the ruins of the castle, locals decided to build beautiful traditional houses. Today instead of the ruins of an old castle, you can see picturesque city streets with miniature mansions in this area. Despite the fact that the castle has not existed for a long time, the locals still remember in what an outstanding place their houses stand.

There are several old villas in the city and its surroundings. The history of each is unique. One of the most picturesque is the Villa Hughes the Manpap, which was built in the early 18th century and for many years belonged to the Lennep family. No less interesting than the historical estate itself, is the garden surrounding it. It continues to be carefully nurtured. In the garden there are many beautiful ancient trees.

In the vicinity of the city is a beautiful Villa Hartkamp which was built in 1693 and belonged to a wealthy banker. The main feature of this villa is not only a unique architectural appearance, but also the surrounding garden. In the late 17th century a large greenhouse was founded here. According to historical data, the owner of the mansion collected more than 1,200 exotic plants and flowers from all over the world. This most interesting greenhouse exists even now. About 250 species of plants represented in it have been preserved since its foundation. The most interesting will be to visit this picturesque villa and the surrounding botanical garden in summer.