Haarlem is one of the most satisfying small cities in the Netherlands — a compact medieval centre with a world-class museum, one of the finest organs in Europe, and more hidden courtyard almshouses than anywhere else in the country. It is 20 minutes from Amsterdam by train and absorbs far less tourist pressure, which makes it a pleasure.
The Grote Markt — the central square — is dominated by the Grote Kerk (St. Bavo), a Gothic church containing the Christian Müller organ (1738) that both Mozart and Handel played. Surrounding it are a 13th-century city hall and a ring of café terraces. The Teylers Museum on the Spaarne is the oldest museum in the Netherlands and retains much of its 18th-century character: fossils, minerals, and Old Master drawings in a neoclassical oval room. The Frans Hals Museum holds the finest collection of Golden Age group portraits outside the Rijksmuseum. And the Corrie ten Boom House, steps from the Grote Markt, is one of the most moving small museums in the country.
Away from the monuments, Haarlem is a city of hofjes — over twenty hidden courtyards of almshouses scattered through the old centre, most still inhabited. The Kennemerduinen national park begins 10 minutes by bike, connecting city to dunes to North Sea coast. Jopenkerk, a brewery and restaurant in a converted Gothic church, is the best place to drink. Zandvoort, the closest beach resort to Amsterdam, is half an hour away.