How to Plan a 1st Trip to Amsterdam

Why Go to Amsterdam?

Amsterdam, the Netherlands is a perfect first trip to Europe for numerous reasons, apart from the locals speaking English. Schiphol airport is one of the biggest in Europe and offers connecting flights all over Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Turn a layover in Amsterdam into your first stop on your trip. It is easy to book round trip flights between the States and Amsterdam. I suggest spending at least 3 days, alternatively a week, if you have the time and budget. The architecture, museums, canal cruises and foods are incredible any time of year, whereas spring is when the tulip season brings the country to life with gorgeous Holland flowers. 

Dutch Geography

Travelers often get confused about the terms The Netherlands, Dutch and Holland and use them interchangeably. Here’s the scoop. Amsterdam is the capital city of The Netherlands. A royal kingdom whose government is a constitutional monarch and has a royal family. You can visit the royal palace, consequently when the family is not present for royal duties. Holland is a region that is split into both North Holland and South Holland. A very small area of land in the grand scheme of the Low Countries (referring to The Netherlands, Belgium & Luxembourg).

The famous tulip farms are in North Holland, along with Amsterdam’s smaller, sister city, Haarlem, just west of the capital. Simiarly, New York City’s Harlem is named after it, since NYC was originally a Dutch colony. The cities of Rotterdam, The Hague and Leiden are all located in South Holland. The Dutch are the people of The Netherlands and any of its colonial kingdoms like the Caribbean Islands of Bonaire and Curacao in The Netherlands Antilles. Don’t worry, there will not be a quiz!

How to Get Around Amsterdam

Almost everyone arrives in Amsterdam from Central Station, by train either from the airport or another European city. This is a great spot to buy metro tickets for the duration of your trip or you can tap on and tap off using your bank card. Amsterdam has an elaborate maze of metro, train and bus transportation. Unless you truly embrace the bicycling culture, consequently public transportation will be your best friend. The maps are easy to read, take a picture of the metro map and ask the metro operators any questions. They are friendly, knowledgeable and speak English (and notably other languages). 

Tram lines connect the city above ground and are the easiest to hop on and off quickly. The RER trains run underground and connect main hubs in the city underground. The bus system is most often used by locals, but visitors should not feel intimidated to use the buses. They often get you closest to your destination and run frequently day and night. The Dutch intercity trains and ICE trains will quickly transport you to additional cities in the Netherlands or destinations like Paris or London. 

Taxis and Uber are available as well, but be sure to take a real taxi or use the uber app. When arriving from the airport, there is an official taxi line, don’t get taken by the guys across the street trying to haggle for a better price. Your hotel or restaurant can order you a reliable taxi as well. We’ve found using the uber app is less expensive and reliable. My biggest suggestion is to walk and take the trams as much as possible.  Bike only if you dare!

European Hotel Expectations

European hotel rooms are smaller than in the U.S. and have strict occupancy rules, in general. Most of these are for safety and building codes, but know that most rooms only allow 2-3. If you have a larger family, look for rooms early or consider using travel points and miles to offset hotel costs. Hotels come in budget, mid-level and luxury styles in each city. Some areas are more popular with chain hotels like Hyatt, Hilton and IGH (popular in Europe). European chains like the Accor hotels are good options. If you are traveling in summer, know your hotel’s air conditioning situation ahead of time! Above all, when reading a hotel’s description know cooling and air conditioning are not the same thing. Cooling can mean just a fan… I’ve learned the hard way that some thermostats are just for decoration! 

Hostels are popular in Europe and also vary from budget to budget-luxury.  There are even hostels with private and family rooms, so don’t discount them if you’re traveling in a group. Renting apartments, canal houses or houseboats is a great option for larger families traveling together and can provide the best value. This often allows kitchen access and not have to eat out every single meal.

A word to the wise about renting, consider a local renting platform rather than Airbnb for European rentals. In recent years, local laws have been changing around rentals and Airbnb has gotten a reputation for canceling, last minute. This can be more than just an inconvenience, it can be costly as well to book a hotel last minute. Joining facebook groups for travelers to that country or city can be a great resource to find rental agencies.

Where to Stay in Amsterdam

The Jordaan: Our Favorite Amsterdam Neighborhood

Our favorite neighborhood is in the North Jordaan, Haarlemmerplein which is in the most northern part of the Jordaan area. North of the western canal belt where most of the tourists are attracted to the Anne Frank house, restaurants and boutique shopping. Haarlemmerstraat is the main road, traveling west from the city center and has lots of restaurants, shops, bakeries, coffeeshops and my favorite fry stand.

Eventually Haarlemmerstraat turns into Haarlemmerdijk running all the way to Haarlem the city. The street spills into Westerpark on the far side of the intersection. We have grown to really love this park in the spring and summer, the flowers smell amazing! If you want to find a hotel in or near the Jordaan, I recommend the following: 

• The Bank Hotel  
• Sebastian’s Hotel
• Max Brown Canal
• The Kimpton
• Sint Nikolas Hotel 
• Andaz Princingrat
• Canal House 

Museumplein/ Vondelpark Area

Amsterdam has a lot of great museums to visit, with the three biggest art museums all located in Museumplein, just South of the Canal Ring. The Rijksmuseum is my favorite of the three, but there is also the popular Van Gogh Museum and the museum of modern art. If you are planning to spend a day at each, it might be good to stay down in the Museumplein area. Try staying at:

• Max Brown Hotel Museum Square
• Hilton Amsterdam  
• Park Plaza Vondelpark
• Yays Amsterdam Vondelpark 
• Conscious Hotel Amsterdam City 

Amsterdam Noord

For budget travelers, try looking for a hotel in Noord. This area of Amsterdam is just North of the Central Train Station and has a free ferry that runs day and night and only a few minutes ride. I find this is a much better location than for people to stay in Amsterdam Zuid (south) or outside of the city in Haarlem or out by the airport. These areas often have better deals on hotels, but the commute is far and will eat into your itinerary. Additionally, with jet lag, I find that our family wakes up earlier than normal in Europe, but then we have a late afternoon nap so we can go out at night without falling asleep. A hotel in Noord will still allow visitors to go back to their hotel room mid-day, for a nap or to change for dinner. 

• Bunk Hotel Amsterdam
• Holiday Inn Express Amsterdam North
• Hotel NH Amsterdam Noord
• DoubleTree by Hilton Noord
• Botel

Amsterdam Attractions & Experiences

What should you book ahead of time? The number one attraction in Amsterdam and the hardest ticket to get in all of Europe is to the Anne Frank House. It is a wonderful exhibit and a short museum to visit (as most of the museums in converted canal houses are, versus the large museums in Museumplein. Tickets for the Anne Frank House can only be bought on the official site, there are no tour companies or official resale for tickets. Tickets are released 6 weeks ahead of time, on Tuesday morning at 8:00 am Amsterdam time (yes, it will be the middle of the night in the states). It doesn’t matter what season you visit, if you want to see the Anne Frank House you must have tickets ahead of time!

Ticket and attraction sites like Get Your Guide or Viator have lots of museum tickets and tour options available, including skip the line tickets and canal cruises. They allow for flexibility to book ahead of time and cancel or change up to 24 hours prior to the event. If there are a few attractions you want to book ahead of time, these are a great way to ensure you have tickets at the times you wish. 

When visiting Amsterdam during the high season, April through summer, you will need tickets for Keukenhof to visit the tulips or to the Rijksmuseum in particular. I’d also suggest dinner reservations, if there are specific places you want to try. Fall and Winter are the low season and you really don’t need to make any reservations ahead of time (except for the Anne Frank House). Some love to travel without strict ticket entrance times and reservations and it is difficult to do in most of Europe since travel resumed after the pandemic.  

The Best Canal Cruise Tours

There are a million options and you don’t need a reservation for many tours. If you want to research tours or are looking for a specific time, book ahead of time on an app like Get Your Guide or Viator. In Amsterdam, a canal cruise is a must, during any time of year or weather. A family friendly boat, informational canal cruise, wine & cheese cruise tours, romantic sunset cruises and even a smoke and cruise boat tour. In the winter, there is a special Light Festival canal cruise. I suggest two cruises on a trip, one during the day and one in the evening. You get two totally different perspectives and can cruise different parts of the city.  These are some of my favorites companies to book canal cruises: 

• Blue Boats (best for kids)
• Flagship
• Pure Boats (wine & cheese)
• Captain Jack
• Those Dam Boat Guys (16+ for humor)
• Smoke Boat (marijuana friendly) 
• Buddha Boat (marijuana friendly) 

Whatever your style, a canal cruise in Amsterdam is a must do and should be scheduled early in your trip to help gain your bearings and efficiently see the sites of Amsterdam.   

Best of Amsterdam Museums

There are a lot of museums in Amsterdam, you are never going to get to them all! My advice is to pick your top 2-3 choices depending on the length of your trip. Taking into consideration the season and weather, it may be more reasonable to choose more indoor attractions in the winter. The top museums and churches to visit in central Amsterdam include:
·  Rijksmuseum
·  Van Gogh Museum
·  Rembrandt House Museum
·  Stedelijk Museum (modern art)
·  Anne Frank House
·  Madame Tussaud’s wax museum
·  National Maritime Museum
·  Amsterdam Museum
·  Houseboat Museum
·  Museum On’s Lieve Heer-Op Solder
·  Nieuwe Kerk (Amsterdam’s New Church)
·  Oude Kerk (Amsterdam’s Old Church)
·  Basilica of St. Nicholas   

Best of Amsterdam Attractions

There are so many great things to do in Amsterdam, be sure not to over schedule museums. Other cultural attractions include: 

• Royal Palace
• Marge Brug
• Artis Zoo (aquarium and planetarium)
• A’dam tower
• This is Holland 
• Begijnhof
• Bike tour or walking tour (especially good for history enthusiasts)
• Bloemenmarkt- flower market
• Dutch food tour or cheese tasting
• Heineken Experience or beer tasting tour
• Red-light district and coffeeshop tour

Amsterdam’s Best Parks

One of the quintessential parts of visiting Amsterdam any time of year is visiting its parks. Parks are not just for children, you’ll see more grown-ups in parks than kids. One of my favorite lunch options is to pick up the makings for a picnic. I stop in at one of the bakeries, sandwich shops or even a market stall to pick up rolls, cheese, meat, fruit & pastries. Find a bench on a canal or neighborhood park to enjoy your lunch outside. There is a well-maintained park no matter what part of the city you find yourself in Amsterdam. 

• Vondelpark 
• Rembrandt Park 
• Noorderpark
• Oosterpart 
• Westerpark (my favorite)

Parks are also a great place to enjoy a snack, sweet treat or ice cream on a sunny day or let the kids run off steam. 

Booking Day Trips Outside of Amsterdam

If you have decided to organize any of the day trips easily accessible from Amsterdam, you can choose between an organized bus tour, regional trains, uber/taxis or renting a car. If you want to take out all of the thought process and want to sit back and be a 100% tourist, then book the bus tour. There are tons of options and many are available to book for free from Viator or Get Your Guide, and can be changed up until the last day. The most expensive option is to uber or book a private tour, but for some places it’s worth it. Keukenhof, Haarlem and Utrect are all easy uber trips for that door to door service.

The train system is extensive in this part of Europe and you can plan a train trip for any of these places. These train rides need a different ticket than what you have for the metro, but you only need to arrive a few minutes ahead of time and can buy a ticket on the platform. You will do the same thing if you leave Amsterdam by train for another city like Paris or Berlin. Other great places to visit near Amsterdam include:
·  Keukenhof and tulip field tour in spring season (end of March-mid-May)
·  Giethoorn day trip
·  Edam, Volendam & Marken
·  Gouda, The Hague or Rotterdam
·  Utrecht & Castle de Haar
·  Brussels or Bruges, Belgium
·  Christmas Market to Cologne, Germany (December only)

Favorite Amsterdam Brunch Restaurants

Many hotels in Amsterdam do provide a continental to full buffet breakfast in the mornings. Many hotel spreads are more elaborate than others, make this part of your consideration. The best restaurants for breakfast, lunch & brunch in the areas are scattered around the neighborhood, with many in the northern streets. Try places like:

• Ted’s Brunch (in the 9 Streets) 
• Miss G’s Brunch Boat
• Bakers & Roasters (various locations)
• Toastable Nieuwendijk
• Celia Amsterdam
• Box Sociaal Jordaan
• Ms. B’s at La Grotte 
• The Papeneiland Cafe
• Cafe Tgijssen 
• Winkle 43 
• Scandinavian Embassy
• Bagel & Beans (numerous locations) 
• Ibericus 

Brunch and lunch often take over or travelers can save lunch for sandwiches eaten in parks, snacks like fries from a shop or my favorite way to enjoy lunch is by traveling through a market and picking whatever looks good at the time. There are markets like Albert Cuyp market or Ten Katemarkt that are open daily and others like Noordermarkt (Saturday) or the Biologische Market Haarlemmerplein (Wednesday) that are only open on a specific day. 

Favorite Amsterdam Dinner Restaurants

Dinner gets even more diverse, with options from 5-star eateries to simple ethnic take away stalls. If you are a steakhouse type of person, Amsterdam will be the perfect place for you to try. There are some amazing steakhouses. We hear there are also lots of new restaurants catering to vegetarian and vegan menus, as well as popular Indian and Suranamise places with vegetarian menus. We make sure to visit Seafood, Italian and traditional Dutch restaurants while we are in town and have found many at different price points and neighborhoods that we recommend. Some of our favorites include:  

• Pesca- Theater of Fish
• Seafood Bar (5 locations)
• Salmuera
• La Oliva
• La Perla Pizzeria 
• Il Pacioccone (and their pizzeria next door)
• Cannibale Royale (5 locations)
• Mr. Porter Steakhouse
• Black & Blue Steakhouse 
• Mr. Meat Steakhouse
• Foodhallen 

All these locations we’ve personally tried and loved over our recent trips. When traveling off peak season or with the family I often don’t make reservations, but keep a running list of casual places my kids will enjoy. During peak season, I typically try to book reservations most nights, then cancel if plans change.

For couples trips, I aim to book a cafe, steakhouse, Italian, seafood, Spanish/ Latin American and an Asian restaurant to cover our favorite foods and not eat in steakhouses every night. There are also many vegetarian and Indian options that I hear are great, but not our taste. There is a bakery, pastry shop, cheese store or ice cream shop lining the streets of the whole city, but especially the Jordaan neighborhood. Wander around, trying the specialties of the Dutch city. 

Easiest European Cities to Pair with Amsterdam

One of the best parts of traveling in Europe is how close the countries are to one another and how easy it is to travel by train to almost any European city. The best way to travel to other cities is on an express train like the ICE train or ICE sprinter train for direct service or fewer stops. These trains are more expensive, especially if you choose 1st class seating for a business class experience. Trains are always more comfortable than traveling by plane, with spacious seats and tables. If you travel carryon style (which I highly recommend for European travel) you can store your bags over your seats and lessen the chance of theft. Oversized bags need to be stored in the entrance of the cars where they can not be easily monitored. Some of the easiest train trips from Amsterdam include:     

Paris, France

The most popular city to pair with Amsterdam is Paris, probably because it is only 3.5 hours by train and has a similar romantic feel, but with completely different architecture, language, food and culture. Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport has frequent and nonstop flights to the U.S. allowing travelers to fly into one city and out of another with ease. Many travelers think they need more time in Paris to “see everything,” but I disagree and think Amsterdam needs just as much time to see properly. Four to six days in each spot will allow for plenty of time to see both areas and possibly a few day trips too.   

London, England

An Ice train to London will take just under 4 hours from Amsterdam, through Rotterdam. Traveling between London and Rotterdam is just about 3 hours, if this city is on your Dutch bucket list. London is another popular pairing with Amsterdam since both cities speak English and make first time traveling to Europe a breeze without translation. Keep in mind that the taxes when flying into, and especially out of, U.K. airports are more expensive than other European cities. That might make flying into London and out of Amsterdam significantly less expensive than the opposite itinerary. 

Brussels, Brugge or Antwerp, Belgium

Another popular pairing due to close proximity are cities in Belgium, particularly Brussels, Brugge and Antwerp. Brussels is most popular because it is the capital city and has a very impressive Grand-Place to see the Gothic architecture. However, it is very crowded and not my favorite place to experience the delicious Belgian food and cities. Instead, I suggest people go to Brugge or Antwerp. They have all the same delicious fries, chocolates and waffles to eat, but in a more relaxed environment to enjoy them in Belgium. Some like to rent a car and drive between the Netherlands, Belgium and France and this is a great idea, especially outside of the capital cities where the streets are narrow and the parking is difficult to say the least. 

Reykjavik, Iceland

Another great spot for your first trip to Europe that many people don’t think of is Reykjavik, Iceland. Reykjavik is only a 4 hour flight from the east coast and not much longer from Denver or the west coast. The route over Iceland is a popular one, since it is a shorter distance at the poles. Icelandair, the national airline and Play airline, the country’s low-cost carrier both offer programs to visit Iceland for free for up to a week. Iceland might be cold, but the summer offers long hours of light as well as volcanos, waterfalls and black sand beaches! The winters are very cold and not for everyone. If you dare to stay in winter you will have the best chance of seeing the Aurora Borealis.

One way flights on budget carriers like Easyjet, Ryanair, Vueling, Eurowings and many others are a great way to get between larger cities. Once you are in Europe, you can easily travel between any country. Check to see if taking a train or plane makes more sense in both cost and time efficiency.  

Ready to Plan Your Trip to Amsterdam?

There is nothing better than visiting Amsterdam, especially in the spring or summer when the tulips are in bloom. Even in rainy weather, the Dutch cities and countryside are beautiful and worth a visit. Feel free to reach out to me directly with Amsterdam or European specific itineraries you’re looking for help creating or wanting me to review at laura@lauramariemyers.com. Let’s schedule your next trip today!  

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