By plane
Direct trains to Zaandam run twice every hour from Schiphol Airport.These trains have destination Hoorn. In all other cases you can take any train with destination Amsterdam Centraal that stops at Amsterdam Sloterdijk and change there for Zaandam.
By train
Zaandam is just two stops from Amsterdam Central Station. You pass through station Amsterdam Sloterdijk. Trains leave regularly 4-8 trains per hour until 1 am.
If you are on to visit the Zaanse Schans open air museum, take the "Sprinter" train with destination Uitgeest runs 4x per hour on weekdays, half-hourly on Saturdays and Sundays and get off at Koog-Zaandijk railway station 4th stop. From here it is about 10 min.walk to the Zaanse Schans.
By bus
Connexxion bus lines 92 and 94 run at least 4x per hour to Zaandam Centre Peperstraat Bus Station and Zaandam Railway Station. Bus line 91 runs from Amsterdam Central station to the Zaanse Schans open air museum.
By car
Take from the northern part of the circular road of Amsterdam Ringweg A10 the A8 to Zaanstad/Zaandam, and just follow the signs.