Construction Hoornse fair starts at Vale Hen: “This is it, it belongs here”

For Nick Frey, who is in the organization of the fair team, it is a relief that the original place of the fair is being used again this year. Due to corona measures, the last two editions were not organized on the Vale Hen, but on the Pelmolenpad. “That went pretty well,” Frey says. “But we could lose about 10 less attractions there. We didn’t have a haunted house then, but we didn’t have a Ferris wheel either.”

The fair will be officially opened next Saturday at 2 p.m. and will last until August 15. “We do feel more jitters than the past two editions,” notes Frey. “The city center remains the most beautiful place to organize this.”

National Intangible Heritage

The fair in Hoorn is the first tradition from North Holland to be classified as intangible cultural heritage. It is also the first funfair on the list. With inclusion on the National Inventory, the fair can also qualify for inclusion on one of the international Intangible Heritage Lists of UNESCO.

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The fair stems from an age-old tradition. The first fair took place in 1446, in the form of a fortnightly cloth market. To this day, Hoorn’s city center is the setting for the fair, which now lasts ten days. This makes the Hoorn fairground one of the few contiguous large fairgrounds in a historic city center. Over the years, the emphasis has shifted from market to fair. The fairground and patchwork day have always remained connected.

crowd puller

Several operators are working hard in the parking lot of the Vale Hen to get the attractions up and running before Saturday afternoon. The organizer points to an empty spot in the parking lot. “The attraction will be here and is also called the Freefall Extreme. The attraction is no less than 80 meters high and you are, as it were, let loose down.”

The organizer himself is still unsure whether he will step into the attraction. “I don’t know if I’ll still do it this year, but he’s very nice.”

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Also this year, the municipality has ensured that children from low-income families receive 5 fair coins to go to the fair to go. It concerns children up to the age of 18 who live in Hoorn. Residents on social assistance benefit from WerkSaam West-Friesland do not need to submit an application. Residents with a low income from work or other benefits can submit an application via the web form on the municipality’s website.

Due to the work on the city beach and the embankment dike, this year no fireworks show place.