Frans Hals Museum

This was a must visit spot for this trip to the Netherlands. It was an excellent choice. I’ve always liked Frans Hall and finally visiting here was fantastic. Wall coverings made from leather with prints were very impressive. Not to mention all the paintings, clocks, porcelain and furniture.
Truly an impressive collection of Master Pieces. It’s a delightful, short walk from the train station. And when your done there is shopping and food up and down each street you pass.

For me the Frans Hals museum was the Mama Bear of art museums, in the ‘just right’ sense., Absolutely start your visit with the audio visual presentation. In fact, listen to it twice while you rest your feet. The A-​V gives you an excellent overview, not just of the museum, but of Hals, and the Dutch Masters in general. I would have enjoyed seeing more of Hals’ work, but the A-​V presentation prepared me for the fact that his art is all over the world, and not just here in this museum. Oh, the Mama Bear reference? Where the Louvre was utterly overwhelming, the Hals museum was intimate enough that once through made you feel like you had a decent sense of it’s contents. I’d happily go again if I were in Haarlem. We were staying just around the corner from the museum, and the neighborhood was just far enough the beaten track to have it’s own unique charm.

What a cool museum. We decided just to pass by and have a quick look but in the end spent 2 hours just walking slowly through the rooms. Start with audiovisual presentation at the beginning of your visit. It will help you to pay attention to some small details, elements. Museum is filled with beautiful paintings, ceramics, silver and some clocks. There is also a very beautiful doll house that you can closely admire from the small stairs.
Just take your time. stroll through the museum and find the paintings, elements that awaken any feelings or emotions in you.

Since I live around the corner I have been here a couple of times. Although relatively small, the collection is outstanding. The temporary collections make it worth coming back as well. The street in which the museum lies is an added bonus!

Frans Hals Museum is MUCH more than a priest fondling a nun, more than a «cute» museum, and so much more than Frans Hals! It is a world-​class museum full of amazing examples of 16^th and 17^th century paintings, glassware, porcelain and other artifacts. It primarily represents the Golden Age of art and Haarlem was a hotspot — the proof is here. The location, building and café add a ridiculous amount of charm to the place, but the artwork featured here would stand on its own in any location.
Visiting the Frans Hals Museum is my #1 recommendation to anyone planning a stay in Haarlem, and I suggest that you view the museum for a minimum of 1 hour. Cross the street to then see the Historical Museum (which will take about 15 minutes), and then go see St. Bavo Kerk in centrum, where Frans Hals himself is buried. After you’ve taken in these three sites, you’ve seen the essence of what Haarlem was in it’s grandest times.

Much more than Frans Hals here! Despite the name, there’s lots of 16^th– and 17^th-​century works by different artists. All housed in a lovely space, an easy walk from the station, and only 15 minutes from Amsterdam.
If you care about Golden Age art at all, you already know that Hals was a genius, creating portraits so vital they seem ready to start a conversation. His brushwork is bold and free, a beacon for the future Impressionists. (Van Gogh said that Hals seemed to have access to 27 different shades of black. Not an exaggeration!)
This museum highlights his group portraits of Civic Guard companies, which reveals so much about the Dutch temperament of that period. The large room that showcases many of these works actually has a banquet table set up in the middle, as if the guards had just stepped away from their celebration. I really admired this idea, which is both historically accurate and emotionally engaging for viewers.
The museum itself is attractive and welcoming. I enjoyed comparing Hals’s works with those of his contemporaries, including a piece by Judith Leyster, one of the few professional female painters of the time. Hals was apparently her teacher, and the influence is clear. Great to see them together again.

Ein ganz feines Museum mit vielen sehr schönen Bildern.

Staying in Haarlem for a few days, I wanted to check out this museum I saw a few blocks away from where we were at.
If anything I remember from this museum, it was the painting of a priest copping a feel on a woman (possibly a nun). Say what you will, but c’mon… that would be normal in European standards of arts, but back in the US, you’d get a chuckle or two from someone seeing such a thing.
The ambiance is peaceful here… nice thing to do for an hour while in Haarlem because seriously, how many times can you light up a joint? Go be artsy in the city

this is a cute little museum in a cute little town.
the works are beautiful and they have a different sensibility/​sense of humor.
come to see one of my favorite paintings — a priest milking wine out of a nun’s breast; it might become one of your favorites too.

Summary based on 1 visit:
–great, medium sized museum focusing on Frans Hals
–worth a visit (45 minutes by train; 1 mile, 20 minute walk from station) to Haarlem if you’re staying in Amsterdam and tired of the big, sprawling city
–very nice setting
–free if under 18