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350 Hotels in Amsterdam
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NH hotel Amsterdam
Quality rooms in the city centre. Enjoy comfort and service at NH !
www.nh-hotels.com/Amsterdam
Suggested Itinerary
Amsterdam, the city of sin? Or so they say… Truth is there is a lot more to Amsterdam than its illuminated nightlife and hazy aura. If you want to make the most of your stay in the world’s most liberal capital city, take a look at this suggested Amsterdam itinerary.
Day 1: The most common route to the city is from its vast Schiopol airport. This provides a passageway for most travellers and also has direct links to Centraal Station, which takes you to the heart of the festivities. When you book, be sure to check how close your hotel is to Centraal and the Damrak – the main ‘strip’ of the city. As soon as you leave the Station, head left to the Tourist Information and think seriously about purchasing the IAmsterdam discount card. This plastic marvel comes in various hourly forms – 24, 48, 72 and includes free tram travel around the city. It also gets you decent discounts on the vast majority of tourist havens and even free entry to some. If that wasn’t good enough, it also has a fantastically detailed city map with transport links.
A good way to ease into the first day is to visit some of the city-centre spots like The Torture Museum, The Amsterdam Dungeon, Madame Tussauds Amsterdam and The Amsterdam Historical Museum – all walk-able destinations from the Damrak. In the evening, head up to the Station to catch a canal cruise, you can also book various excursions all with a canal theme at the Tourist Office.
Day 2: Amsterdam, as you have probably noticed, is a cyclist’s paradise and the conditions for those on two wheels are some of the most pristine you are likely to find across Europe. Hire a bike from any of the rental outlets dotted around the city, particularly near the station and take a ride along the crafted cycle lanes. Watch out though, these guys have been cycling most of their lives so are at quite an expert level. If it’s a nice day, head to the picturesque Vondelpark near Leidseplein, close to Museumplein at the southern edge of the city centre. If it’s not so nice, you can always head into the Rijksmuseum or the Van Gogh Museum to pass a couple of cultured hours that really emphasize the culture of Holland.
At night, if you’re feeling brave, now is the time to head west from the Damrak to the Red Light District (you’ll certainly know when you’ve arrived, thanks to the illuminations). For those inclined, there are things live sex shows as well as naughty shops in this well-publicised part of town. You’ll also find the Hemp Museum around here, which opens surprisingly late. Though if you don’t fancy that, just yet, you can still get all the bizarre frills by visiting the Sex Museum on the Damrak. A very eye-opening experience indeed!
Day 3: Amsterdam is famed for its tulips, clogs and windmills. But after walking around the Dutch capital for a few days and you will soon find out that the only windmills you are going to see are ones measuring approximately four to five inches in height that are sold in novelty shops around the train station.
So if you fancy branching out to see some of it, head to Zaanse Schans which is just 8 miles north of Amsterdam. Here is where you will find everything which epitomises the country such as 17th century windmills and wooden houses. The village also has a museum so you can learn more about how locals used to live in a typical Dutch community. And if you wanted to see how clogs are made, there is also a wooden shoe factory here.
Organised tours leave Amsterdam daily and visit both towns as well as a cheese factory to sample some of the Netherlands' renowned types such as Edam and Gouda. They take approximately four or five hours and they get you back into the city for the evening.
Getting back into Amsterdam that evening, its good to explore the city's other cafes because not all of them specialize in getting their customers stoned. Amsterdam has a very prominent café culture. Along with the coffee shops that legally sell cannabis, Amsterdam is also full of grand cafes and brown cafes which, basically, are large pubs. Look hard enough and you will find one of the theatre cafes where you can enjoy some performing arts while sipping on your cappuccino or latte.
Day 4: Your last day in Amsterdam will most likely involve trying to work out how to get to Schiopol without missing your flight! Plan ahead, the trains are pretty regular from Centraal Station so shouldn’t pose a problem. Most trams going to the station will say, but be sure to ask, it’s not unknown, like in any public transportation system, for the driver to forget to change the destination.
If you do have some time on your hands, try and visit the Flower Market outside of Rembrandtplein. The canal-side walk takes you through a variety of exotic flowers, though don’t be fooled by the ‘grow your own weed’ cans. Whilst it may be legal to return home with seeds, most of these cans will not flower an outstanding harvest.
Last-minute shopping can be done there or in the pedestrianized town centre off of Dam Sqaure where you will find every high-street brand and tourist shop going.
