A guide to the polder town · North Holland
Hoofddorp,
drawn from water.
Everything worth knowing about Hoofddorp — its history, its districts, its landmarks and the everyday life of the largest town in the Haarlemmermeer polder.
What is Hoofddorp?
Hoofddorp is the largest town and the administrative heart of the municipality of Haarlemmermeer, set in the middle of the Haarlemmermeer polder in the Dutch province of North Holland.
Where streets, parks and business districts now lie, an inland sea once tossed under storms. Only after the Haarlemmermeer was drained, around 1850, did room appear here for a settlement — at a crossing of canals in the centre of the new polder.
This guide gathers the lasting knowledge about Hoofddorp: how it came into being, how it is laid out, what is worth seeing and how it feels to live there. Not news and not a calendar — a reference designed to still be accurate in ten years.
Hoofddorp in four questions
The questions most often asked about Hoofddorp, answered briefly.
Where is Hoofddorp?
Hoofddorp is in the province of North Holland, the Netherlands, in the Haarlemmermeer polder between Amsterdam, Haarlem and Leiden, right next to Schiphol Airport. More about its location.
Which municipality is Hoofddorp in?
Hoofddorp is not a municipality itself; it is the main town of the municipality of Haarlemmermeer.
Is Hoofddorp a city?
Its name means “head village”, but with almost 80,000 inhabitants, a large shopping centre, a station and a theatre it functions as a medium-sized town.
What is there to do in Hoofddorp?
The Haarlemmermeerse Bos, swimming at the Toolenburgerplas, the forts on the Geniedijk, the Cultuurgebouw and Museum De Cruquius. All tips.
What's in this guide
Chapters covering the polder town from the draining of the lake to the districts of today. Pick a topic to read further.
History
From inland sea to drained polder: how the Haarlemmermeer was pumped dry and Hoofddorp grew.
02Facts & figures
Location, geography, climate and demographics of the town and polder at a glance.
03Attractions
The Old Town Hall, Museum De Cruquius and the forts of the UNESCO Defence Line of Amsterdam.
04Districts
From the historic centre to Floriande, Toolenburg and Bornholm — every district explained.
05Living
Housing types, neighbourhoods and what makes Hoofddorp attractive to residents and newcomers.
06Transport
Hoofddorp railway station, the A4/A5 motorways, R-net buses, cycling routes and Schiphol Airport.
07Practical info
Municipality, healthcare, utilities and basic essentials for residents and newcomers.
08About this guide
The editorial principle, independence and the evergreen approach behind Hoofddorp.org.
— 03 Origins
Born from water
Until the middle of the nineteenth century, the Haarlemmermeer was an unruly inland sea that, in heavy storms, threatened entire villages on its shores. Between 1849 and 1852 the lake was pumped dry — a feat of hydraulic engineering that inspired similar projects around the world.
On the fertile seabed that remained, land was laid out in a strict geometric pattern of canals, drainage channels and roads. Hoofddorp grew at the central crossing in the heart of the new polder and was therefore first called Kruisdorp (“cross village”). The straight street plan of the old centre still betrays that design history: a town that did not grow organically but was drawn on paper.
De Cruquius
Steam pumping station on the western edge of the polder near Heemstede, now a museum about the draining of the lake.
De Leeghwater
Named after the seventeenth-century engineer who first proposed pumping the lake dry.
De Lijnden
The northern pumping station, after which the nearby village is also named.