Amsterdam will always be my second home away from home. It was my leap of faith adventure to leave Texas and to live and work here for more than 6 years. Amsterdam is truly a beautiful city and has such charm and an endless amount of things to see and do. I could probably write a short book on all the things, but here’s a brief summary of the tops things I would advise if you are looking to visit for just a few days.
Getting around
Amsterdam is walkable but you’ll definitely need some comfortable shoes because of the many cobblestone streets. Trams will get you around the city and you can use your debit/credit cards or Apple/Google pay – anything that has contactless capability.
Having an app on your phone such as city mapper, is helpful to give you directions around the city.
If arriving by Eurostar, and you have your tickets on your phone, I’d recommend switching off NFC when scanning out or having a printed backup, as for some reason the exit gates will try and charge contactless rather than reading your ticket.
Things to do
There is no shortage of museums and tours in the city. But with limited time it’s a good idea to narrow it down to a few:
My absolute favourite is the Van Gogh Museum, but then he’s one my favourite artists so this is a personal preference too. Once a month the museum stays open late for what they call Vincent on Friday where it stays open until 10pm. The museum hosts DJs, workshops and talks. If you happen to be in Amsterdam one of these Friday nights I highly recommend visiting then.
Rijksmuseum
This is the national museum of the Netherlands. The museum itself is architecturally stunning and has 80 galleries showcasing art from world famous masters such as Rembrandt, Rubens and Vermeer. You can easily spend a whole day inside this museum, so for a short visit I would recommend purchasing tickets ahead of time, arriving early and planning what you want to see while you are there.
Anne Frank and the story of her family living in a tiny attic hidden away in Nazi occupied Amsterdam during World War II is known worldwide. Each year thousands of tourists come to Amsterdam to take a tour of this house and see how they lived and read the tragic history of this family and their story. Queues for this museum can get quite long, well over 2 hours, so book tickets ahead of time and you can skip the queue when you arrive.
Canal Tour
Simply a must! No one should leave Amsterdam without taking a boat tour of the canals. This is my favourite way to see the city and will allow you to see parts of the city you would not see otherwise. There are many boat companies that provide a wide range of tours. I would recommend using Flagship Amsterdam boat tour agency. They have several tour options, with a public boat tour for 1 hour at €19.95. There might be a few tour companies that are €5 less, but you won’t get the same experience, tour knowledge and the small difference in price is well worth it.
Flagship Amsterdam | #1 Best Day Cruise in the world by Tripadvisor
It’s probably not a well-advertised fact that there is an operating windmill right in Amsterdam that is also a brewery. And I mean who wants to come to Amsterdam and not see a windmill. It’s located in the East not too far from Centraal station and on a warm sunny day is great to sit outside and enjoy some local beers.
Who’s not familiar with the world famous iconic green bottle and red star label of Heineken beer. In an area called De Pijp is an old operating brewery that has now become the very popular “Heineken Experience”. The tour is self-guided and personally I think it’s quite well done. There are two opportunities to sample the beer along the way – once in the room where they explain why they use metal scrapers to scrape the foam head off the beer and then at the end where you get two free pints (well…. included in the price of your ticket).
For those with a head for heights, there’s a swing that sits atop the A’dam Lookout building. Check out my video oon this page if you want to see it in action.
If you don’t fancy it, the building is still worth going to and has a great rooftop bar and some cool VR experiences.
Day trips
There are many day trips you can take from Amsterdam if you want to further engross yourself in Dutch culture.
Zaanse Schans, Volendam, and Marken
This is a full day trip that takes you to the old fishing village of Volendam where you might see Dutch people dressed in traditional costumes with the white winged hats, and take in a cheese making demonstration. Then a boat trip to Marken to watch how clogs are made and understand why clogs were worn. The village is also known for its traditional Dutch wooden houses. Zaanse Schans is famous for the rows of working windmills along the canals.
If you are lucky enough to arrive in late April or early May, then don’t miss the opportunity to see the beautiful tulips on display in the Kuekenhof. This park is only open for about 2 months of the year in Spring when the tulips bloom. It presents over 7 million flower bulbs, arranged in intricately landscaped displays, with every colour and variation of tulip. You can also rent a bike outside the gardens, and cycle around the village of Lisse and see the rows and rows of tulips grown by the local farmers.
The Hague and Scheveningen
The Hague is the administrative capital of The Netherlands, but possibly most famous for being the host to the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court. Located along the North Sea, it also boasts about 11km of beach with one of those being Scheveningen. Try and pronounce this word all you want, I wish you luck. It’s such a difficult name to pronounce it was used as a nationality detector during World War II to catch out Germans pretending to be Dutch, as very few non-Dutch people could even pronounce it.
What and where to eat
Stroop Waffle – No trip to Amsterdam is complete without a Stroop Waffle. This thin round waffle cookie is held together by caramel filling. Having these warm is the best way to enjoy them. You can get freshly made warm ones in the Albert Cuyp Market any day, which is found in the De Pijp.
Bitterballen – this is a typical Dutch snack and can be found in almost any brown bar. Typically, it’s a round fried ball filled with a meat-based stew thickened with roux and beef stock. They are served with spicy mustard and go great with beer. For the non-meat eaters out there, I have seen vegetarian options, but they are not as prevalent and a lot harder to find.
Kip Sate – The Netherlands has a strong Indonesian influence, as Indonesia was a Dutch-owned colony until the 1940s. Kip (Chicken) Sate, is marinated grilled chicken on skewers and smothered in peanut sauce.
Panakokken (Dutch pancakes) – don’t mistake these for American-style pancakes, as they are closer to French crepes. These pancakes are served both savoury and sweet and typical options are cheese and ham, or bananas and Nutella.
Stamppot – A Dutch comfort food that consists of kale mashed potatoes topped with smoky sausages.
Genever – Okay so you can’t eat Genever but you can drink it. This is a clear botanically rich malted grain spirit that can only be made in Holland or Belgium. It’s infused with a juniper distillate, and comes in all flavours. One great place to enjoy these flavoured drinks is at Wijnand Fodkink, located in the Red Light District. This bar has been around since 1679 and continues to provide its patrons tasting of their Genevers and other liquors. It’s a small shop but the queue moves quick and the staff are very helpful and knowledgeable to provide you with a drink to suit your palette.
Amsterdam has no shortage of restaurants and I believe has come a long way in its culinary offerings over the last 10 years. But I will leave the where to eat to a local expert. I have a good friend that has her own blog called, The Amsterdam Foodie. Her blog includes loads of restaurant reviews all over Amsterdam and you can sort by location, so if you can’t find somewhere to eat after looking here, I’m not sure what to say.
Amsterdam Foodie – restaurant reviews and foodie travels
That being said there is one long-standing favourite place I would recommend and that is Loetje Amsterdam Café – Loetje. There are several locations throughout the city and the steaks here are delicious. Back in my meat-eating days, I was a regular here and even since leaving I still make a point to visit when I return. Now as a pescatarian I have to pass on the steaks, but they have some other tasty options for the non-meat eaters.
I would also like to recommend having coffee and a slice of Apple Pie from Winkel 43. The pie is incredible and locals and visitors flock here to enjoy it. Don’t be alarmed if you see a queue to get in, that’s typical. Generally, the seats turn over pretty quick and you can manage to find a spot to sit and enjoy!!