Steves - Rick Steves Pocket Amsterdam

Rick Steves & Gene Openshaw

Amsterdam of the Golden Age (the 1600s) was the worlds richest city. And its still a wonderland of canals, stately brick mansions, and carillons chiming from church spires. But the city is also a completely modern, progressive place of 820,000 people and almost as many bikes. Visitors will find no end of world-class sights: Van Goghs Sunflowers, Rembrandts self-portraits, and Anne Franks secret hiding place.

Enjoy the citys intimate charms. Stroll quiet neighborhoods, browse bookshops, sample exotic foods, and let a local show you the right way to swallow a pickled herring. With legal marijuana and prostitution, Amsterdam exudes an earthy spirit of live and let live. Consider yourself warned...or titillated. Take it all in, then pause to watch the clouds blow past gabled rooftopsand see the Golden Age reflected in a quiet canal.

With this book, Ive selected only the best of Amsterdamadmittedly, a tough call. The core of the book is six self-guided tours that zero in on Amsterdams greatest sights and neighborhoods. The Amsterdam City Walk takes you through the heart of the city, giving you the lay of the land. At the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum, youll see all the essentials with time left over for browsing. Youll go window-shopping in the racy Red Light District, meander the tree-lined canals of the Jordaan, and visit the Anne Frank House for insight into her tragicbut ultimately upliftingstory.

The rest of the book is a travelers tool kit. Youll find plenty more about Amsterdams attractions, from shopping to nightlife to less touristy sights. And there are helpful hints on saving money, avoiding crowds, getting around on Amsterdams trams, finding a great meal, and much more.

If youd like more information than this Pocket Guide offers, Ive sprinkled the book liberally with web references. For general travel tipsas well as updates for this booksee ricksteves.com.

Sights are rated:

Tourist information offices are abbreviated as TI and bathrooms are WCs.

Like Europe, this book uses the 24-hour clock. Its the same through 12:00 noon, then keep going: 13:00 (1:00 p.m.), 14:00 (2:00 p.m.), and so on.

For opening times, if a sight is listed as May-Oct daily 9:00-16:00, its open from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. from the first day of May until the last day of October.

Amsterdams Central Station (Amsterdam Centraal) sits on the north edge of the city. From here, the city spreads out like a fan in a series of concentric canals. Damrak is the main north-south axis, connecting Central Station with Dam Square, the citys main square. Farther south are Leidseplein (nightlife) and the major museums (Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh).

To walk north-south through the sightseeing corefrom Central Station to Dam Square to Leidseplein to the Rijksmuseumtakes about an hour.

Think of Amsterdam as a series of neighborhoods, cradling major landmarks.

Central Amsterdam: The historic core lies between Central Station and the Mint Tower/Singel canal, with Dam Square in the center. The central spine of streets (Damrak, Kalverstraat, Rokin) bustles with modern chain stores and tourist sights. To the east of Damrak is the citys oldest neighborhood (De Wallen)now the Red Light District.

Rijksmuseum Best collection anywhere of the Dutch MastersRembrandt, Hals, Vermeer, and Steenin a spectacular setting. Hours: Daily 9:00-17:00. See .

Van Gogh Museum 200 paintings by the angst-ridden artist. Hours: Daily 9:00-17:00, Fri until 22:00. See .

Anne Frank House Young Annes hideaway during the Nazi occupation. Hours: March 15-Sept 14 daily 9:00-21:00, Sat and July-Aug until 22:00; Sept 15-March 14 daily 9:00-19:00, Sat until 21:00; closes for Yom Kippur. See .

Stedelijk Museum The Netherlands top modern-art museum, recently and extensively renovated. Hours: Tue-Wed 11:00-17:00, Thu 11:00-22:00, Fri-Sun 10:00-18:00, closed Mon. See .

Vondelpark City park and concert venue. Hours: Always open. See .

Amsterdam Museum Citys growth from fishing village to trading capital to today, including some Rembrandts and a playable carillon. Hours: Mon-Fri 10:00-17:00, Sat-Sun 11:00-17:00. See .

Amstelkring Museum Catholic church hidden in the attic of a 17th-century merchants house. Hours: Mon-Sat 10:00-17:00, Sun and holidays 13:00-17:00. See .

Red Light District Walk Women of the worlds oldest profession on the job. Hours: Best from noon into the evening; avoid late at night. See .

Netherlands Maritime Museum Rich seafaring story of the Netherlands, told with vivid artifacts. Hours: Daily 9:00-17:00. See .

Hermitage Amsterdam Russias Tsarist treasures, on loan from St. Petersburg. Hours: Daily 10:00-17:00. See .

Dutch Resistance Museum History of the Dutch struggle against the Nazis. Hours: Tue-Fri 10:00-17:00, Sat-Mon 11:00-17:00. See .

Museumplein Square with art museums, street musicians, crafts, and nearby diamond demos. Hours: Always open. See .

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Royal Palace Lavish City Hall that takes you back to the Golden Age of the 17th century. Hours: Daily 11:00-17:00 when not closed for official ceremonies. See .

Begijnhof Quiet courtyard lined with picturesque houses. Hours: Always open. See .

Hash, Marijuana, and Hemp Museum All the dope, from history and science to memorabilia. Hours: Daily 10:00-23:00. See .

EYE Film Institute Netherlands Film museum and cinema complex housed in a futuristic new building.