The Zaanse Schans is a residential neighbourhood in which the 18th and 19th centuries are brought to life. It is best known for its collection of well-preserved historic houses and windmills. The Zaanse Schans is a unique and one of the most visited places in the Netherlands, with green wooden houses, windmills, barns and typical Dutch crafts.

From 1961 to 1974 old buildings from all over the region were relocated using lowboy trailers to the area. Zaanse Schans derived its name from the river Zaan and its original function as sconce (“schans” in Dutch) against the Spanish troops during the Eighty Years' War.

The area around the Zaanse Schans, called the Zaanstreek, once was the largest industrial zone in Western Europe. During the 18th and 19th century heyday it used to have more than 600 windmills; 245 were sawing mills and 160 oil mills. Built for industrial functions, they were used for grinding grain, making wood for shipbuilding, pressing oil from seeds, makling paper from hemp and a lot of cocoa was also produced in the Zaan region.

Starting in the 1960’s, these historical mills and other threatened and antique buildings were moved to the Zaanse Schans to create a collection and to preserve them. Nowadays there are 12 windmills on the <and four more in the vicinity. Most of the mills were moved in the last century, some stood already at their current location along the river Zaan and some have been completely rebuilt according to the original plans.

Most of the mills are owned by the Vereniging de Zaansche Molen, which is also responsible for the maintenance and operation of the mills. Seven fully operative windmills and the Molenmuseum (Mill Museum) can be visited.