Amsterdam ideas

[Wayfairers]

We’ve been to Amsterdam a couple of times and will be there by cruise ship 4 different times for a day each time next year by cruise ship.   I’m looking for ideas. We’ve seen the things we want to see in town and will probably spend at least one day just wandering because that is so much fun there.  Thinking of going to Keukenhof for the tulips on our early May stop (I know there may not be tulips then), going to Haarlam for the day on our mid May stop.  Got another stop late May and one day plus part of another day in August.  We board One day and overnight before sailing at 3pm the following day.  

 

Anyone done anything interesting in Amsterdam or surrounding areas? 

[dogs4fun]

We love the area. Some possible suggestions that can be reached from AMS Centraal:

Windmills of Kinderdijk  (1h, 57m) (note:  Trains run all year but between April - October you can also take the ferry. Take train to Rotterdam Centraal, then take Tram 7 (direction  Willemsplein) and get off at Willemskade. From there, board Waterbus line 20 and transfer at "Ridderkerk de Schans" to the "Driehoeksveer" ferry.)  www.9292.nl

The Hague (1h, 3m)

Zaanse Schans (47 mins) https://www.dezaanseschans.nl/en/

Volendam (26 mins) – charming fishing village

Giethoorn  (2h, 11mins) – possibly one of the most peaceful and gorgeous locations that we have visited in the Netherlands. https://www.holland.com/global/tourism/destinations/provinces/overijssel/giethoorn-10.htm

 

 

Edited September 15, 2019 by dogs4fun

[gnome12]

I did the historical triangle one day. I took the regular train to Hoorn, then a steam train to Medemblik, a boat to Enkhuizen, visited the Zuider Zee Museum, took their shuttle boat to Enkhuizen and got a train back to Amsterdam.

 

I had a museum card (I don't think this one is available to foreigners anymore, but if it is, it is good for an entire year) which covered the museum at Hoorn, the steam train (which is itself a museum), the boat to Enkhuizen and the entry into the Zuider Zee museum. I just paid for tickets Amsterdam - Hoorn and I think Enkhuizen - Amsterdam.

https://www.stoomtram.nl/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/123_SHM_dienstregeling-poster-ENG-LR.pdf

 

[Ine]

Be aware Keukenhof will close May 10, so no visits after that.

Interesting places apart from Amsterdam are the cities of The Hague https://denhaag.com/en/must-see

and  of course also Delft.https://www.delft.com/

Both cities with a lot of history and things to do and visit.

It can be done on the same day if needed. 

[Wayfairers]

Thanks for the great ideas.  Time to do some research to see which things appeal to us!

 

one place we unexpectedly found fascinating in Amsterdam was Cannibus College...the folks  there are very knowledgeable about the various uses, both recreational and medical, and will answer any and all questions.   I seek out the unusual wherever we go and while some things are a bust and we quickly move on, others turn out to be interesting.  

 

So so if anyone knows of off the beaten path unusual or unique places in Amsterdam, please share. 

[Wayfairers]

On 9/15/2019 at 10:17 AM, gnome12 said:

I did the historical triangle one day. I took the regular train to Hoorn, then a steam train to Medemblik, a boat to Enkhuizen, visited the Zuider Zee Museum, took their shuttle boat to Enkhuizen and got a train back to Amsterdam.

 

I had a museum card (I don't think this one is available to foreigners anymore, but if it is, it is good for an entire year) which covered the museum at Hoorn, the steam train (which is itself a museum), the boat to Enkhuizen and the entry into the Zuider Zee museum. I just paid for tickets Amsterdam - Hoorn and I think Enkhuizen - Amsterdam.

https://www.stoomtram.nl/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/123_SHM_dienstregeling-poster-ENG-LR.pdf

 

We aren’t Museum people but I love doing loops with various transportation and exploring new towns.  Are Medemblik, Enkhuizen and Hoorn  interesting towns to explore?

[Wayfairers]

On 9/15/2019 at 9:28 AM, dogs4fun said:

Giethoorn  (2h, 11mins) – possibly one of the most peaceful and gorgeous locations that we have visited in the Netherlands. https://www.holland.com/global/tourism/destinations/provinces/overijssel/giethoorn-10.htm

 

A little far for us for a day trip, but this place looks wonderful!   Thinking I’ll schedule a few days there on our way back to Amsterdam for the sail home in August.  I’ll look into it, but if you have any suggestions on getting there by public transportation from the Black Forest area of Germany, I would appreciate the info.

[Wayfairers]

23 hours ago, Ine said:

Be aware Keukenhof will close May 10,

We are there May 3....I know we are in the shoulder season and the number of tulips we see will be dependent upon next years weather.  But, this is a time of year we usually don’t travel so I’m taking advantage of what we can see while we are there. 

[Ine]

12 minutes ago, Wayfairers said:

We are there May 3....I know we are in the shoulder season and the number of tulips we see will be dependent upon next years weather.  But, this is a time of year we usually don’t travel so I’m taking advantage of what we can see while we are there. 

You will love Keukenhof, everybody does.  They do some replanting and there are many old trees that give shade. So in general flowers bloom a bit later there then in the fields. Also there are alwyas glasshouses with special flower exhibitions. It is also easy to do yourself with public transportation. There will be frequent special buses from the airport to Keukenhof. You might need 3 -4 hours inside Keukenhof. 

[gnome12]

50 minutes ago, Wayfairers said:

We aren’t Museum people but I love doing loops with various transportation and exploring new towns.  Are Medemblik, Enkhuizen and Hoorn  interesting towns to explore?

The Zuider Zee Museum is an outdoor museum, of what life was like in the area in the past. I found it fascinating, and spent a couple of hours there. I didn't have a lot of time in Hoorn, but Medemblik was interesting in the time I had between the arrival of the train and the departure of the ship. I saw a bit of Enkhuizen and enjoyed it too.

[3rdCoastFan]

An idea if you're Amsterdam proper with a few hours to spare - Hungry Birds. We loved our Hungry Birds food and walking tour last spring. They reply quickly over email - you could ask for a sample itinerary to see if the tours would cover places you haven't visited yet. We really appreciated the curated guide to all of the food influences - we had a fun group and a great guide, too, so that made it even more enjoyable. 

 

https://www.hungrybirds.nl/ 

[dogs4fun]

2 hours ago, Wayfairers said:

I’ll look into it, but if you have any suggestions on getting there by public transportation from the Black Forest area of Germany, I would appreciate the info.

The Black Forest area is quite large - what is the nearest city?

We regularly use the trains in Germany - they are wonderful and inexpensive (particularly if you book early, online). We have taken the overnight train from AMS to Prague and from Berlin to AMS. Regardless, it would be a long journey. For example, I chose Offenburg as the starting point and the journey takes 9h, 41m to reach Giethoorn (not something I would be willing to do) .

You can check online on the Deutsche  Bahn site entering your starting city and ending city:

https://www.bahn.com/en/view/index.shtml

Transportation options to reach Giethoorn here (enter your starting city):

 https://www.rome2rio.com/map/Black-Forest-Baden-Württemberg-Germany/Giethoorn

Edited September 16, 2019 by dogs4fun

[Dutch_Travelgirl]

4 hours ago, Wayfairers said:

So so if anyone knows of off the beaten path unusual or unique places in Amsterdam, please share. 

Both unusual and unique is the Museum of Bags and Purses. Apart from having a great collection of, you guessed it, bags and purses, this museum is located in a historical canal house. https://tassenmuseum.nl/en/

[Wayfairers]

1 hour ago, dogs4fun said:

The Black Forest area is quite large - what is the nearest city?

We regularly use the trains in Germany - they are wonderful and inexpensive (particularly if you book early, online). We have taken the overnight train from AMS to Prague and from Berlin to AMS. Regardless, it would be a long journey. For example, I chose Offenburg as the starting point and the journey takes 9h, 41m to reach Giethoorn (not something I would be willing to do) .

You can check online on the Deutsche  Bahn site entering your starting city and ending city:

https://www.bahn.com/en/view/index.shtml

Transportation options to reach Giethoorn here (enter your starting city):

 https://www.rome2rio.com/map/Black-Forest-Baden-Württemberg-Germany/Giethoorn

I haven’t worked out all the details for that part of our trip yet, but looking at Donaueschingen and Offenburg as bases.  With a 9hour plus train journey, we would stop somewhere along the way for a night or two.  Thanks for the info on the train line and my transportation options - I regularly use Rome2rio in my planning, but I’ve found that more accurate information is available directly with the train lines.

[Wayfairers]

3 hours ago, 3rdCoastFan said:

An idea if you're Amsterdam proper with a few hours to spare - Hungry Birds. We loved our Hungry Birds food and walking tour last spring. They reply quickly over email - you could ask for a sample itinerary to see if the tours would cover places you haven't visited yet. We really appreciated the curated guide to all of the food influences - we had a fun group and a great guide, too, so that made it even more enjoyable. 

 

https://www.hungrybirds.nl/ 

Wow, their tours look interesting....we enjoy walking tours that involve eating and drinking and looks like that is what they offer.  Thanks!

[MamaFej]

I like to do the offbeat and unusual, but my brother's family is into more touristy stuff. Therefore, on the day we were there together, I booked us all combi tickets for the A'Dam Lookout Over the Edge Swing and This is Holland. I admit, I enjoyed both more than I expected to, and This is Holland was my son's favorite thing from the whole trip. Imagine the Soarin' ride at Disney's California Adventure (and one of the Florida Disney parks- I forget which one) on STEROIDS! It was really fun, and there were fun, interactive activities before and after the ride part. It was a considerably wilder ride than the Disney versions, but really fun.

 

As for the offbeat stuff, I agree with posts above.