• Take the train, not the car: the local train from Amsterdam Central reaches Zaandijk Zaanse Schans in about 17 minutes, then it's a 15-minute walk. Parking is limited and costs €15.
• Not every mill opens every day, so check the opening-hours page on the morning you go. The ticket covers two of the mills open that day.
• Bring a debit card: the public toilets cost €1 and take cards only, and there are no luggage lockers.

Zaanse Schans is a heritage village of green wooden houses and working windmills along the river Zaan. Kids can climb into an open mill to watch it saw timber or grind paint pigments, see clogs being made at the clog workshop, and taste cheese at the Catharina Hoeve farm. A windmill boat cruise and marked walking routes along the water round out the day.