Shopping without showcase and on the channel
THE GRAND SOUK OF AMSTERDAM
Famous for the quantity, quality and extension of its markets, The capital is the best place to unlimitedly inspect all kinds of products . The market Albert Cuyp , in the De Pijp district, is the largest in Amsterdam, one of the oldest –in 2005 he turned 100– and Europe's largest outdoor . From fruit to caviar, through books, electronic items or pets, more than 300 stalls line a kilometer dedicated to sales every day except Sunday, from 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Europe's largest outdoor market
Another of the largest and most touristic is the market that is installed in waterlooplein , which is also open from Monday to Saturday until 5:00 p.m. The most interesting part of its offer focuses on the vintage items (clothes, vinyl records, glasses, photographs...), with authentic and interesting bargains well hidden, so you should search patiently.
Waterlooplein, vintage bargains
On Mondays and Saturdays the noordermarkt add another reason visit the Jordan , which celebrates its neighborhood flea market with pleasant surprises such as antique stalls and organic products . In fact, on Saturdays it becomes the Boerenmarkt, an organic universe in which farms land in Amsterdam to bring fruits and vegetables, eggs, cheeses, wines ... all with the seal of natural production .
Boerenmarkt, an organic universe
Noordermarkt in Jordaan
And if what you are looking for is exoticism , you will find it in Dapperstraat , a long street in the eastern part of Amsterdam that has had a commercial license since 1910. In it resides the Dappermarkt, a special market that reveals the multicultural character of the neighborhood , in which communities of Asian, Moroccan, Turkish or Antillean origin coexist (Monday to Saturday, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) .
Although the variety always attracts attention and the markets with 'a bit of everything' are the most visited, Amsterdam also has room for more specialized proposals ; is the case of Nieuwmarkt , dedicated to organic produce on Saturdays, and antiques and second-hand books on Sundays during the summer months.
Nieuwmarkt, organic products and antiques
The Ostezegelmarkt, at Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal (Wednesdays and Sundays) , it is geared towards numismatics, stamps and old postcards , while in oudemanhuisport the sale focuses on books, prints and musical scores (Monday through Friday) .
But if we talk about specialization, nothing more Dutch than cultivated flowers, the star product of the Bloemenmarkt , the famous m floating market that sets up every day in the store barges of the Singel canal , in the section between Muntplein and Koningsplein. Naturally, tulip bulbs are the most popular plants, although the Bloemenmarkt offers a wide assortment of fresh flowers brought directly from local farming areas. Since its foundation in 1862, it has been the largest supplier of flowers in the central area of Amsterdam and consists of 15 florists and garden shops, as well as stalls dedicated to selling souvenirs.
Bloemenmarkt, a patchwork of flowers
The Dutch practical character is a specialist in finding new uses for things, in a passion for re-recycling in which everything is given a second chance. To the old black market _(zwartemarkt) _ they have found a substitute for him from bazaar, a covered space in the town of beverwijk, on the outskirts of the capital, which has gone from being illegal to being the largest internal market in Europe. Its nearly 2,500 stalls are divided into different sections: the oriental market, the grand bazaar, the flea market, an area dedicated to electronic products and computers, and another for vehicle parts. It opens on Saturdays, Sundays and some national holidays from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., and admission is priced at €2.30 (free until 9:00 a.m.).
Finally, there is a free market in which the whole of Holland is filled with improvised stalls for the neighbors, who take out all their artillery of second-hand junk to the street. Until this year the Queen's day (April 30), and in the future it will do so in the new King's Day, which will be on April 27, coinciding with the birthday of Guillermo Alejandro. The one in Amsterdam is the most famous and is installed in vondelpark.
Market on Queen's Day
THE DUTCH PLUS
The rest of the Netherlands is also going shopping. Although Amsterdam concentrates the largest markets in the country, other cities have a lot to say on this matter. In the case of Rotterdam , the posts speak for themselves in Binnenrotte , which every Tuesday and Saturday is filled with all kinds of products (also, of course, flowers, cheese and bread) at a good price.
Maastricht is another 'hot spot' ’ of street shopping with a tight weekly schedule: Wednesdays at the market square with seasonal products; Thursdays in Wycker Burgstraat with flowers, fruits and organic food; on fridays in Bochstraat with the best fresh fish; and on Saturdays in stationstraat with an antique rake.
the city of Utrecht, with her student community, she is also very fond of changing the market depending on the day of the week. The most important in the center are the Lapjesmarkt (Saturday mornings) , the oldest – more than 400 years old – and the largest textile market in the Netherlands, the Bloemenmarkt (Saturdays), dedicated to flowers in Janskerkhof square, and the Vredenburg (Wednesday, Friday and Saturday), which mixes items of all kinds. Thursday is the day of market in Delft, which dedicates the large space of its main square, Markt, to it and complements it with a smaller extension dedicated to flowers in the Brabantse Turfmarkt , a five minute walk. To find ceramic pieces, the most convenient thing is to go to the antiques market that is held on Thursdays and Saturdays from April to October on the canals.
This article has been published in the Dutch monograph, number 74.
*** You may also be interested in...**
- Amsterdam Guide
- Everything you need to know about shopping in Amsterdam
Flower market in Rotterdam