We did a quick weekend break in Amsterdam with some friends in January. Amsterdam is cold at this time of year so wrap up if you are heading around this time. There are loads of things to do in Amsterdam for all types of tourists. I would recommend you try book your activities before you travel as it's a city that is always busy with tourists.
We stayed in Stay Okay Vondelpark- its a great location and it was recommended to me by my brother. Amsterdam is a walkable city if you wear the right shoes and the weather allows it- but there is trams around the city you can take. We walked everywhere and enjoyed the scenery. Below are some things to do!
- Van Gogh Museum- I was really excited about this museum. It cost €17 for our tickets and we purchased them at our hostel and then skipped the queue when we got there. You have to leave your bags and coats in lockers, they don't let you carry them around the museum. I made a list of the paintings I wanted to see; The Sunflowers, The Potato Eaters, The Bedroom and Irises and Almond Blossom.
- Red Light District- my only advice is to walk about and take in the sights! You hear so much about it and it's cool to just be there. We went to see a show in Casa Rosso for €40 and that was entertaining!
- Anne Frank House- another place I was really excited for. I booked tickets a couple of months in advance as it does sell out. I would recommend you get the earliest slot possible on the day as the house is so small and gets crowded easily. We were there for our 9am slot and were brought through all the rooms in the house, which have pictures of how the room would have looked like with furniture and belongings. There was lots of video footage from the camps, interviews from Anne's father Otto. They spent 761 days in the Annex and were betrayed about their whereabouts which is still unknown to who that was.
- Royal Palace & National Monument are good places to see and take photos
- Canal Tour is very interesting to do in Amsterdam as its otherwise known as the 'Venice of the North'. It has a lot of history and we went with Blue Boat canal cruise for €16, and it left right beside our hostel. The tour is on the Amstel River (where Amsterdam gets its name) and every bridge over the canal is named after animals or flowers. You pass the worlds only floating flower market, the Bell Tower in Westerkurk that Anne Frank wrote about in her diary. And you will pass a very famous skinny bridge that was build by two rich sisters so that they could see each other and only one pedestrian could cross at a time.
- Heineken Brewery Museum is well worth seeing. It cost €16 online for tickets. It's an interactive tour with photo booths, videos, mini ride on bikes, and they had a roof top bar (with great views) at the top where you get your two free drinks of Heineken.
- Renting Bikes- the dutch cycle everywhere and all you hear are bells ringing to tell you they are coming and coming fast. Look both ways when crossing streets as there are so many cyclists.
- Escape Room Claustrophobia- this is always good fun with friends and we have done a few escape rooms abroad. It cost us €21 each to play 'Wake Up' and had one hour to get out which we did with 6 mins spare.
- IAMSTERDAM Sign. This is fun to take pictures of and when we were there the sign is right beside the Rijksmuseum, but now they have moved as too many tourists were attracted to this small enough area. Now there are two sets of signs, one at Schiphol Airport and another at Sloterplas lake but some of the letters lay flat on the ground so it's difficult to get a photo.
- Finally, you can 'swing over the edge' in Amsterdam (we didn't get a chance to do this) but it only costs €5 to literally go on a swing but I have heard that the crowds are big and queues are long. Best to book tickets for a set time.
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