Sint-Janskerk, South Holland Province, The Netherlands

5drmarkstravels 5:00 PM Aug 12, 2022

Awesome When You see the Inside
Known for its stained glass windows, pictures and postcards do not do justice to these church windows. We paid for the two main parts of the church 1-touring the inside of the church, and 2-climbing to the very top of the church roof. The tour includes a self-guided tour with audio and earphones of the stained glass windows and the church layout. It is easy to follow and to advance or go back to section of the audio that you wish to repeat. A newer addition to the interior is a set of painting portraying the passion of Christ with the most magnificent painting of the empty tomb!...Absolutely outstanding. The climb to the top was possible as the church is renovating some of the outside so there are extra scaffolds outside the roof and it is a spectacular view. You can see Kinderdijk, Rotterdam, and the Hague from the church rooftop. There is a toilet inside the church. The whole package of the church and rooftop is a bit pricey but we are very glad we did it. You can also look down on the Gouda Cheese Market.

5exploringwithjune 5:00 PM Jan 25, 2021

Beautiful but too pricey.
After visiting the museum we stopped by the church. As we'd already learned so much at the museum, we just wanted to pop in for half an hour. Therefore we didn't take an audio tour, which is included in the price, and instead walked around by ourselves. We received a leaflet with some information, which highlighted a couple of the gorgeous stained glass windows. We struggled finding the right numbers to go with the texts at times, but overall it was a lovely way to see the church and to learn something while wandering around. The architecture is really impressive and the windows are pure art. Some windows that interested us weren't included in the leaflet, but it is logical that choices had to be made. If we hadn't gone to the museum, we would've probably also gotten the audio tour as I can imagine that it's way more complete. The church also has a little gift shop with a good variety of products . We entered for free as we both have a museumkaart. Regular prices are 9 euros for adults, 5,25 for kids aged 13-17 and kids under 13 can visit for free. I definitely think this is really pricey for a church. If you visit with a family and, just like us, want to walk around for a short while, it will set you back 30 euros for a relatively quick visit. I can imagine that that can be a lot of money for some families. Also, I think it is really important for kids to see churches like these and learn about the history and architecture, so it should be made more accessible. With commissioning these prices; I think they put off people from visiting. Also, many other impressive churches in our country are free. If I hadn't had my museumkaart, I would probably not have gone in. Concluding, it was a lovely visit but I do wish that they would reconsider their prices.