goldilocks + the three bears go dutch

too big

Amsterdam (bicycle & tram traffic, stairs)

too small

Amsterdam (interiors, walkways, school)

Haarlem

Wassenaar

Delft

just right

THE HAGUE/DEN HAAG/LA HAYE

I may not be able to say basic phrases in Dutch yet, but I can scour a Dutch property agent's (makelaar) website without translation, and that is a bigger accomplishment than you might assume, since nothing even vaguely resembles English or French. We settled into a rhythm the last few days of our visit, cruising neighborhoods in Amsterdam and The Hague by car or on foot, then rushing back to our flat to look at long-term rental properties online.

Den Haag street scene courtesy of Trip Advisor

Choosing The Hague over Amsterdam (they are an hour apart) marks the first time in our lives we are making a material decision based exclusively on our children's well-being (how is the school, can they have a garden out back) against our own instincts (where is the cool art and shopping, could we be Quentin Tarantino writing a screenplay and live here). We'll see how that goes. We suspect our children are mini-Quentin Tarantinos in the making, so they might resent us for it.

The best Amsterdam/The Hague long-term rental websites we have found, should you wish to join us (or try out your own makelaar vocab skills):
pararius.com
funda.nl
expatrentals.com

And the more obscure:
engelvoelkers.com/nl
haagen-partners.nl
vriesrobbe.nl
dehaagschemakelaar.nl