Huis van Hilde

About the museum

Huis van Hilde is the archaeological museum of the province of North Holland and also the visitor centre of its finds depot. The province is required to keep all finds recovered during excavations permanently; for a long time they were stored in a former rice mill in Wormer, whose conditions no longer met the requirements. In 2011 it was therefore decided to build a new facility in Castricum.

Based on a design by Fons Verheijen, construction began in 2013 on a building that recalls the medieval farmsteads whose traces have been found in the soil of North Holland. Parts of the building are covered with sand and vegetation and blend into the dune landscape. The museum opened in 2015 directly behind Castricum railway station. It is named after Hilde, a woman whose skeleton was discovered in 1995 during excavations of a 4th-century settlement in Castricum.

The collection comprises several million finds from the Neolithic period to the Second World War; only a small part is on view in the museum, while the rest is kept in the climate-controlled depot. The centrepiece of the permanent exhibition is a set of lifelike human figures, reconstructed from skeletons that were found, standing in a circle around visitors in the large hall. A separate wing is devoted to the 17th century, with a cannon, globes, a ship model and the bronze hoard from the Westfrisiaweg. There is also a hands-on lab, changing exhibitions and lectures.

Highlights

• Lifelike human figures, reconstructed from skeletons found in North Holland
• Wing on the 17th century with a cannon, globes and a ship model
• Bronze hoard from the Westfrisiaweg
• ArcheoLab: touch and examine real finds
• Hands-on ArcheoHotspot station and interactive sandpit
• Right at Castricum railway station, free parking

Permanent exhibitions

• Vaste tentoonstelling – Encounters with lifelike human figures from North Holland's past, plus finds such as canoes and stone coffins and a wing on the 17th century with the bronze hoard from the Westfrisiaweg.
• ArcheoLab – Lab area where visitors may take real finds and replicas out of cabinets, handle them and examine them closely.

Founded

2015

Operated by

Provincie Noord-Holland

Admission & discounts

Free with Museumkaart and ICOM card; CJP pass and VriendenLoterij VIP card are not valid. Tickets online or at the ticket desk. Prices exclude surcharges for special events.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The main doors open automatically, the aisles are mostly wide, and a lift leads to the museum café. Only the grandstand with the lacquer profile is not accessible by wheelchair. A wheelchair is available on loan (reserve in advance at the ticket desk on +31 23 514 32 47). Sensory tour for people with visual impairments; an induction loop for lectures in the grandstand is being considered. Dogs only as assistance dogs.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
• Hands-on stations
• Kids’ birthday parties

Children aged 5 to 17 pay €6, free up to age 4. In the ArcheoLab, real finds and replicas may be touched; at the ArcheoHotspot you help sort and piece together finds; there is also an interactive sandpit and the puzzle rally “Wie is het?” (from about age 6, accompanied). Additional workshop and activity programme during school holidays. Children's birthday parties from age 6 (max. 10 children and 2 chaperones, about 2 hours, €150).

Getting there & parking

Satnav address: Westerplein 6, 1901 NA Castricum. Plenty of bicycle racks available.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop

Museum café “Hildes Heerlykhyd” on the first floor (run sustainably and socially; coffee, lunch, pastries), terrace in the museum garden. The museum shop is accessible without an admission ticket.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Corporate events

Up to 120 guests.

Auditorium (up to 80 people), grandstand (120 people, cannot be darkened) and museum café (80 people) for conferences, presentations and symposia, each with technical equipment and daylight; catering and guided tours possible. Rental only on regular opening days; on Mondays the entire building can be rented exclusively.

Plan your visit