Do you want to know whether it is possible to accommodate museums, canals, cheese, shopping, coffee shops and entertainment, which together constitute a dream vacation in Amsterdam, in two short days? The answer is yes! The compact city center, excellent public transport, sidewalks, accessible routes and clearly marked bike paths make Amsterdam an ideal city to explore on the weekend! Here are some tips on how to spend a real weekend in Amsterdam!
To start:
Start at the Central Railway Station, a beautiful entrance to the city dating back to the 19th century. Stock up on a ticket that allows you to use public transport for free for 24, 48 or 72 hours. If you plan to visit museums and other attractions of the city, the Amsterdam City card can be a wise purchase, providing free entrance to many attractions and discounts for some others. Add a city map to this and you're ready to start the fun weekend!
Day 1: Channels and Entertainment
West Ring Channel:
A look at the map of Amsterdam will show you the three main concentric semicircles that make up the ring of canals of Amsterdam: Heerengracht, Kaisersgracht and Prinsengracht. The western part of the canal ring, a short walk from the station, is called Jordan. Enjoy a leisurely stroll or boat ride through the canals and pose for photos on bridges, admire the architecture and stop at a strange cafe or bar for a drink or a bite to eat. Take an excursion to Anne Frank's house, but be prepared to take turns in good weather and bad weather.
Dam Square
Having strayed through the streets, you will again return to the very center of the city, to the historic Dam square. The impressive Royal Palace and New Kirche are waiting for your visit. If you prefer the entertainment side, go shake hands with a Hollywood celebrity at Madame Tussauds nearby. The impressive façade of the oldest department store in the Netherlands, the famous Beyenkorf, will undoubtedly attract your attention, and a wide range of designer brands will help ease your wallet.
Kalverstraat shopping street will entice you with its festive mood, souvenir shops and boutiques.
Nine streets
We return west to the waters of the Western Channel Ring, and if you are looking for hand-made trinkets and souvenirs, or stamps that you have never heard of, Nine Streets (de Negen Straatjes) is just for you. Vintage and designer goods await you, as do many restaurants with cuisines from around the world. Do not forget to take memorable photos of Amsterdam during a walk (the canal ring is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and there are no public transport along the canals).
Leidseplein
When the tranquility and serenity of the channels again gives way to the bustle of the trade, know that you have reached Leidsestrath. Turn on it, dodging trams that go right along the narrow lane, and go to the theater, club and entertainment center of Amsterdam - Leidseplein. Stop for a drink and continue walking until the morning if you feel like it. City Theater (Stadsshauburg), comedy clubs and open-air pubs abound in the area. Narrow alleys hide some very affordable restaurants offering cuisines from around the world.
Red light district
Return to Dam Square and this time go east, and you will find yourself among the canals of the historic Old Town. Many of the oldest buildings in Amsterdam and the beautiful Chinatown, where the notorious Red Light District is located. Here you have to clean your camera, otherwise you run the risk of being drenched in water or chased by very angry ladies. If you want to go in and get to know Amsterdam's “coffee shops” (where coffee is never on the top menu bar), here you will find branches of some of Amsterdam's most famous establishments.
Day 2: Museums, Parks and Music
Museums Galor
If you followed our advice during the first day, tomorrow you will wake up quite late. Now is the time for a small cultural program, and there is hardly a better way to do this than to visit museums (of which there are more in Amsterdam than any other places). The refurbished Ricks Museum, Van Gogh Museum and the Stedelique Museum (City Museum) await you at Museum Square. If your museum tastes are different, in Amsterdam you will find museums about everything from bags to tulips and from cheese to shipbuilding. After museum excursions, head out into the fresh air in one of Amsterdam’s many beautiful parks: the Vondelpark is most famous near the main museums. A boat trip or a bike ride around the city will add new experiences to your visit, and they can also be made in the area.
Dutch cuisine
If you have not tried (beloved and hated equally) Dutch cuisine, here is your chance. Order some pancakes in Blinnaya with sweet or savory fillings to choose from, in the winter try the famous Stamppot or pea soup, or try bitterballen in the Dutch restaurant Haesje Claes. Lunch cannot be complete without the famous Dutch beer. Surely your lunch break will inspire you to visit the Heineken Brewery, where you will meet hundreds of beer lovers.
Amsterdam Rhythm
Whatever your musical tastes, in the evening you will always find entertainment to your liking. The world famous Royal Concert Hall (Het Concertgebouw) will delight classical music lovers (it is important that a strict dress code is not required here). If you come for the weekend when there is a big concert, you can head to the Heineken Music Hall or the Ziggo Dome a bit further south and east.
If you're in the mood for a night out at the club, head back to Leidseplein, home of Amsterdam legends such as Paradiso and Melkweg, where new and famous artists make every night special.
This two-day itinerary will provide a good basis for traveling on most weekends and weekends (although shops close earlier and many museums are closed on Mondays). Whatever the weather, you guarantee that the weekend in Amsterdam you will remember for a lifetime!
Have you ever left to another city for a couple of days to relax and have fun? In my opinion, a great way to distract yourself from pressing problems. And how do you think?
True, I would not be able to combine visits to both museums on the same day because of the danger of oversaturation with art. It’s better to choose one thing or at least disengage them by time, for example, taking a cruise along the canals of Amsterdam during a break or a walk in the Vondelpark park. Although these are just ideas, the choice is always yours.
Selfies
Having received a bold portion of culture, hurry to take photos as a keepsake, which is located directly in front of the building. In a fairly short time, the inscription has become a real symbol of the city and a popular destination among tourists.
On the opposite side of the square is the impressive building of the Concertgebouw of Amsterdam.
Snack for lunch
Let's not see the clock ... Yeah, it's time to eat. If you do not want to lose time and money, then you can have a snack with traditional Dutch fast food. Do not be afraid of this term, by it I mean tender, or fried potatoes (frietjes) with peanut sauce. By the way, you must definitely try out the "Dutch way", holding her tail. This is the only way to learn the taste of Amsterdam 😉
Joy for the legs and eyes
Another “must do” of the Dutch capital is a canal cruise. If you go right through, you get to Stadhouderskade Street, where the pier of cruise ships is located. We buy tickets, look for a suitable place on board and make
Amsterdam is an amazing combination of ancient architecture and new buildings, pacifying landscapes and vibrant nightlife, museums with the greatest works of art and entertainment venues for every taste. There is something to see - various museums and art galleries with works by famous artists - and what to try: various varieties of Dutch cheese, herring of special salting, traditional local dishes of meat and potatoes. Well, the nightlife in Amsterdam is one of the brightest in Europe: everyone can choose a party to their taste!
Tour Dates
Weekly
Duration
4 days / 3 nights
Estimated Cost
From 39 100 rub. per person in a double room
1 day
Arrival in Amsterdam. Independent transfer and hotel accommodation.
2 day
Free day. Optional walking tour of Amsterdam.
3 day
Free day. Optional excursion to Zaanse Schans and Volendam.
4 day
Self transfer to Amsterdam Airport. Departure to Moscow.
The tour price includes:
- Regular flights Moscow - Amsterdam - Moscow
- Meals: breakfast in hotels
- Medical insurance
Additionally paid:
- Registration of entry visas (Netherlands) - 80 euros
- Transfer airport - hotel - airport
- Travel Insurance (optional)
- Entrance fees to museums, castles, etc.
- Additional excursions (paid on the spot to the guide, the cost subject to a set of groups)
The weekend in Amsterdam at the beginning of summer 2017 was the third time I visited Amsterdam, so I wanted to see something unusual, less well-known and to visit places that I had not been to.
There are many attractions in the city, so over the weekend in Amsterdam it will be very difficult to visit everything. Next I will tell you how I managed to spend a great 3 days in Amsterdam in the summer of 2017.
Even if this was my first time in the city, I would not visit all the typical tourist attractions. For three times in Amsterdam I have not been to any of the city museums. What for? The city is beautiful in itself.
Since the motto of my blog is “Travel Interesting”, I will tell you a lot of tips on how to spend time in the capital of Holland, as well as interesting and unknown places in Amsterdam that are worth visiting over the weekend. And in a separate article you can read about.
Interesting things and unusual places to visit on a weekend in Amsterdam
So, the lesser-known and atypical things that I recommend you do on a weekend in Amsterdam are:
- Visiting Amsterdam parks
- Walk around the city center
- North Amsterdam
- De Piip District
- Riding a bicycle
- Tasting local dishes
- Walk along the canals
And other unknown sights worth visiting on a weekend in Amsterdam ...
Visiting Amsterdam parks
Usually, parks are not included in the list of attractions worth visiting in the new city, at least for me. But Amsterdam is a special city with beautiful and beautiful parks.where you just want to stay for a long time. It seems that city parks are the favorite weekend getaways for Amsterdam locals. Well, some bars and cafes by the canals can argue with them over their free weekend days in Amsterdam.
My favorite park is Vondelpark although some other parks such as Amstelpark, Westerpark, Oesterpark and Rembrandtpark, - interesting in their own way. Besides the fact that parks are a great place to relax on the weekend, Amsterdam's city parks also host numerous festivals and performances, usually on weekends.
Walk around the city center
Amsterdam is one of the few cities that can be considered an open-air museum., since you do not need to plan visits to any particular place in order to enjoy the architecture and beauty of the city. The whole center of Amsterdam is very beautiful, so you can just walk along it without specific plans, just turning into narrow side streets, bumping into unusual graffiti and atmospheric places. Not surprisingly, many tourists have already understood the value of Amsterdam as an open-air museum, so when visiting Amsterdam on the weekend, you will have to walk in crowds of tourists if you do not follow my advice.
Most tourists walk the streets Nieuwezijds voorburgwal and Damrak (no need to remember these scary names, just check on the map), the area around Bloemenmarkt (floating flower market) is also quite crowded. Just try to avoid them or spend as little time as possible there. As I said, the whole center of Amsterdam is beautiful, so if you go to a parallel street, it will definitely not be worse.
If you want to visit the Red Light District at night, you will not escape the crowdssince the whole area is full of people. In the daytime, there are almost none, but if you do not go here to admire architecture or the Amsterdam canals, you will not see anything until 10 pm.
If you want to feel as a local in Amsterdam, I recommend you visit the De Piip areawhich I will talk about later.
North Amsterdam
Another lesser known place in Amsterdam is the northern part of the city. There you will not see crowds of tourists wandering from one attraction to another, but locals resting on the pier or in one of the authentic cafes. You can also stay at one of the best Amsterdam hostels called ClinkNoord.
There is also a movie museum EYE , Cultural Center Tolhuistuin and panoramic point Amsterdam lookout where you can look at the old part of Amsterdam through the city’s largest canal. To cross the canal, you just need to catch a free ferry that departs from the back of Amsterdam Central Station. It takes you to the north side in just 5 minutes.
De Piip District
De Pijp District - one of the busiest areas of Amsterdam, which is very loved by local residents. Visit one of the bars and cafes in the area to feel local. At night it is a lively and dynamic atmosphere. The area is also a good place to find an overnight stay if you do not like the hustle and bustle of the city center, but prefer something truly Amsterdam.
Riding a bicycle
Riding a bike is not unusual in Amsterdam. In a bicycle city with 500 kilometers of bike pathsWith 800,000 bicycles per 1 million inhabitants, which make up 32% of urban traffic, and about 250,000 bicycle parking spots near Amsterdam Central Station, it is not surprising that tourists also want to ride a bicycle here.
And it's a good idea though you need some time to get used to city traffic. Here, riding a narrow bike path, you need to pay attention to pedestrians, trams, cars, other cyclists and much more, so for the first time it can seem very dangerous and scary. But you will quickly get used to it. If you don’t want or simply cannot get used to it, go to the northern part of the city, which I mentioned above - it’s safer to ride there.
With all this traffic, I rode a bicycle with another person in the trunk (there simply wasn’t any other choice), while at the same time photographing proudly on the phone with one hand? . I rented a bike twice in Amsterdam. The first time, it was a small rental next to my hostel, the second time it was Green City Bikes. Prices in different companies are relatively similar, so there is no need to look for the best prices. I just recommend that you do not rent a bike in very tourist places. Prices there may be higher.
Another tip to you from me - try not to be late with the return of your bike. We mixed up the time, so we had to pay for the next 3 hours of rent, and if we were a little late, we would pay for the whole next day. About this here is quite strict, so watch out for time.
Tasting local dishes
When visiting Amsterdam at the weekend, you need to try the local dishes that are sold here on every corner. Although there is a very wide selection of different fast foods and cuisine restaurants from around the world, you should try something really Dutch.
It is difficult to call a tasting, because Dutch cuisine is not a high cuisine like French, rather simple ingredients are used here, and most of the local dishes are or can be sold as fast food. Local food here is not the most wholesome, but nevertheless, the Dutch are not obese. Everyone looks pretty slim and athletic.
So, some of Holland's most popular traditional dishes are raw herring, fat Dutch french fries with various sauces, after which you will quickly feel full for another half day. Try some local cheeses, such as Gouda and Masdamer, which you can find in the cheese museum and in many cheese shops throughout the city, where you can sample samples for free. Popular local desserts include Stroopwafel caramel waffles, Ontbijtkoek gingerbread cake and thick pancakes.
Walk along the canals
In amsterdam one of the best and most enjoyable activities is to walk along the city canals and sit next to them. Water, and especially canals make any city very beautiful. Just think of Venice or (a city on the islands). Would they be so beautiful without canals and rivers?
Other unknown attractions worth a weekend in Amsterdam ...
Other attractions and attractions in Amsterdam that are worth visiting for 3 days are visiting some of the coffee shops (everyone knows that Amsterdam is famous for its freedom), go to museums, but keep in mind that in the city museums of Amsterdam the entrance fee is about 15-20 Euro. Take a ride on the canals in one of the pleasure boats and visit the vibrant city markets.
Read on from 14 seasoned travel bloggers as well as a total. Enjoy your weekend in Amsterdam!
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