Cheese Market Hoorn, North Holland Province, The Netherlands
3.5 (26 reviews) Tuesday: 1:30 PM - 3:30 PM Spent 1-2 hours Ranking #14 in Hoorn Flea & Street Markets
It's kinda cheesey (sorry, I couldn't resist)
Cheese. Inextricably linked to Dutch traditions. The oldest cheese market in the Netherlands is the cheese market in Hoorn, the historic port town just north of Amsterdam. A cheese market with roots in the Golden Age and even further back in time. A cheese market that is still going strong: visit this weekly market from mid-June to the end of August, acquaint yourself with this age-old trade. It’s free! At times, it might seem a little funny; briskly stepping men in their impeccably white suits and their straw hats with colourful ribbons, carrying wooden racks filled with cheeses between them. Yet this scene is part of an age-old choreography, with each step having a meaning all its own. The stacking, the judging, the weighing: it all plays a role. The colourful history of the West-Friesland region is also highlighted through folk dancing in authentic nineteenth-century costumes.
Address
Roode Steen 1, 1621 CV, Hoorn The Netherlands
Mobile
Website
http://www.kaasmarkthoorn.nl/en/
Working hours
Monday :
Tuesday : 1:30 PM - 3:30 PM
Wednesday :
Thursday :
Friday :
Saturday :
Sunday :
Current local date and time now
Tuesday, May 14, 2024, 23:01
User Ratings
3.5 based on (26 reviews)
Reviews
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4Yiannaki-and-PP 5:00 PM Sep 21, 2016
Keeping tradition alive
Reading other reviews I agree that the re-enactment can be a little kitsch and contrived but I feel it is important from a cultural perspective to not lose sight of some of these quaint traditions. There are so many ugly things happening in the world that watching an old fashioned cheese market is a great way to reflect on, and celebrate, the simple things in life. In addition to the men and the cheese ceremony, there was a horse and wagon ride for kids and traditional dancing by elderly couples all dressed in traditional costumes. They took their roles so seriously. One lady was being admired by others as she had a new traditional dress she'd had made - it was really nice to see the pride they took and the enjoyment they got out of the ceremony. There are not many things like this left. You may not want to witness a cheese market ceremony every week but I think it is a great attraction to have done at least once.
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3Goldygolfer2014 5:00 PM Sep 5, 2014
Interesting, but goes too long.
We had been in the area for almost six weeks and had somehow missed the cheese markets in any of the nearby towns, so we made the effort to be at the one in Hoorn last Thursday. We quite enjoyed it, but felt that it went on too long. The setting is lovely and the re-enactment of how the cheese markets worked many centuries ago is really interesting. Local people dress up in the costume of the time. It goes for almost an hour, but we felt that this could be cut to about 30 minutes. Even the crowd started to disappear and lose interest. If anyone is in North Holland for a good period of time, then this is perhaps something one should see, but, if short of time, then there are more interesting things to do in the area. Hoorn is a pretty town and worth a visit. If it happens to be a Cheese Market Day, then perhaps that would be a bonus.
