Madurodam is known to be the smallest city in Holland. It is said that this place is both a war monument and a charity foundation. The city is named after Curacao, son of Mr. and Mrs. Maduro who died in Dechau in 1945. Madurodam opened in 1952 and since then the place has expanded.
A variety of architectural styles can be found at this place. From the Gothic St. Jan Basilica to modern dwellings, bridges, and houses reside along the river. The architectural designs will never fail to amaze the tourists.
In the outskirt of Madurodam, you will find Klompenfabriek, a wooden shoe factory. Wooden shoes are usually hand made out of poplar wood. After drying the wood, the shoe maker would use sand paper to smooth the finish. Wooden shoes are still widely used by the local farmers. The local’s favorite colors are yellow and red which is why most wooden shoes are painted yellow with red pattern designs on them. Back in 1960s, 1100 wooden shoe makers made 3.8 million pairs of wooden shoes. Today, there are only 15 wooden shoe makers left producing only 800,000 pairs of wooden shoes.
In terms of transportation, Madurodam Rail is one of the biggest attractions of Madurodam city. All trains are hand made and are said to be the replicas of Dutch trains.
Madurodam is said to be open all year round. Summer is when Madurodam are mostly loaded with foreigners, tourist and tourist busses. Once you’re inside Madurodam city, there are no benches or chairs to sit on. However, if you are really tired, you can just sit or stay on the edges of the stairs. Wheelchairs are available for free if needed.
In July and August, Madurodam is open from 9:00am to 11:00pm. You should try to see how magical the city is at night because 50,000 miniature light bulbs help illuminate the city.