Holiday apartment in Oostzaan between Het Twiske and cultural monuments

At the heart of it is Oostzaan with the water-rich recreational area of Het Twiske, distinctive landscapes and a diverse succession of cultural heritage sites. Het Twiske covers 650 hectares and consists of one-third water. Beaches, an adventure playground, a diving park, a harbour, a climbing park, a care farm and a monumental windmill are among the facilities found there.

Nature and water

Het Twiske offers opportunities for swimming, diving, surfing, canoeing and sailing. The Stooterplas in Het Twiske and the Oostzanerveld also offer opportunities for fishing. The Oostzanerveld is a peat meadow area with hundreds of islands of floating turf. It is part of the Natura 2000 area “Ilperveld, Varkensland, Oostzanerveld en ’t Twiske” and has protected status.

The Oostzanerveld is particularly easy to explore by boat. Boat excursions are offered, as well as canoe and rowing boat rental. The boat excursion through the Oostzanerveld passes, among other things, reddish-brown cattle and goats grazing in the meadows. The boat used for the Oostzanerveld boat excursion can be boarded with a wheeled walker or wheelchair.

Waterways and paths

There is a boat ramp with parking facilities at the Rietschoot, from which the area can be explored by water. The Sloepennetwerk also runs through Oostzaan and offers several routes for sloops. A completely different form of travel is provided for on the Westerstijfselmakerspad: this path is accessible exclusively on foot.

Culture and history

Oostzaan has six national monuments. The Grote Kerk of Oostzaan is itself a national monument and can be visited for concerts, guided tours or a moment of quiet reflection. Inside are two ship models that recall Oostzaan’s history as an important seafaring community.

Theater de KunstGreep presents professional theatre performances from almost all theatrical genres. The audience has 261 fixed seats available, including four wheelchair spaces. Among the memorial sites in the town is the Oostzaan Resistance Monument: it is a bronze chair on a concrete base and was erected in memory of Pastor Nanne Zwiep. The Hannie Schaft plaque in Oostzaan is a bronze relief plaque bearing the image of Hannie Schaft, set into a freestanding brick wall. It commemorates Jannetje Johanna Schaft, a Dutch resistance fighter.

Historical traces in the townscape

The “Recreatief & Historisch Oostzaan” route begins at the municipal hall and passes 13 cultural and historical objects and monuments in Oostzaan. At the final point of the “Buitengewoon Oostzaan” route, the painter and woodcut artist Jacob Cornelisz van Oostsanen is introduced; he was born around 1470. The Polderhuis has stood on the Zuideinde in Oostzaan since 1925. The “Torso” sculpture by sculptor Jan Timmer has stood since 1995 in the green area near the Lishof care home on Lisweg in Oostzaan.

The Kuiperijbrug crosses the Roemersloot at the Kerkbuurt; it recalls Oostzaan’s industrial past. The Twiskemolen has stood since 1974 on the boundary between the municipalities of Landsmeer and Oostzaan. Oostzaan experienced an industrial heyday in the 16th and 17th centuries, when numerous bleachworks and starch factories were spread throughout the area. De Windjager is also one of the town’s distinctive water-related features: the boat was built as a hobby project in 1978 and stands on a small island.

Other places

Other town pages for you to discover: Den Helder, Wormerland, Edam-Volendam, Hoorn, Bloemendaal, Waterland, Haarlemmermeer.

For the overview of the wider region: North Holland.