At a Glance
- Duration: 4 Days (3 full days of activities)
- Home Base: Westervilla Hotel
- Top Day Trip: Haarlem, Netherlands
- Memorable Moment: The emotional story and humanizing focus of the Van Gogh Museum, particularly the focus on his relationship with his brother Theo.
- Overall Vibe: Historically rich and beautiful, but intensely tourist-focused in the center.
This Town is Special Because
The Hook: Amsterdam is the definitive "European postcard" city, all gabled houses and elegant bridges. Our first impression upon arriving at Central Station was one of controlled chaos, quickly tempered by the sheer beauty of the city and the surrounding Jordaan neighborhood.
The "Why": We chose Amsterdam as a natural continuation of our Northern European leg, drawn by its history, world-class museums, and unique canal culture. The city certainly met our expectations for visual splendor, though we quickly learned that the famous landmarks require a level of meticulous planning we hadn't anticipated.
Our Home Base: Westervilla Hotel
The Big Decision: We consciously chose the Westervilla Hotel through Booking.com, a smallproperty slightly outside the main downtown area. It was a choice for peace andquiet over central convenience.
Accommodation Deep Dive: The Westervilla was simple, pleasant, and had the added bonus of an Italian restaurant, Nando, downstairs. Its best feature was logistical gold: being just a few meters from the Bus 21 station. This bus runs every eight minutes, allowing us to be in Central Station in about 20 minutes, giving us easy access without the central noise or inflated prices.
Our Amsterdam Experience: The Day-to-Day
Dam Square: In addition to significant landmarks such as the Royal Palace, the Nieuwe Kerk (New Church), and the National Monument; Dam Square has interesting pedestrian walkways, shopping and people watching. A visit to the old town square is a must. We sat on the steps of the church to plan how we wanted to tackle the city over the next few days and soak in the atmosphere. We walked the streets around the square before looking for a place for a late lunch. It was also where we realized one of our biggest failures. Tom mentioned we needed to buy our tickets to The Anne Frank House months in advance. We did some quick searching and found this to be true- there were no tickets available for the museum. However, you can book tours to take you through her neighborhood and to her monument, that explores her life and Amsterdam during that time.
The Jordaan neighborhood: We walked the beautiful Jordaan neighborhood to see the canals and used the Anne Frank House as our destination target. This historic area is the epicenter for canal tours and activity, with beautiful bridges, architecture and a great vibe. It is easy to see why this is the coveted place to stay in Amsterdam. After wandering the streets and picture taking, we took a moment to pause at Van Zuylen, a popular canal-side spot with great outside seating on abridge.
The Red Light District: We satisfied our curiosity with a brief 5:00 PM stroll through a few blocks. It was certainly interesting to observe, though we imagine the area gets far livelier later in the evening.
The Magnificent Vondelpark (Unexpected Highlight): When a planned market visit didn't materialize, we set off to the next stop on our daily adventure; Vondelpark. This is, without a doubt, one of the best city parks we have ever visited, and one of the largest! It had so much going on; biking, running, organized fitness classes, children play areas, and also some beautiful spaces for solo contemplation, and enjoying time with a significant other. We loved the mix of people, both tourists and locals, and every age was represented. The two most memorable things about the day and park were 1) the architecture; along the outside of the park stand massive, grand mansions from the same historic period. There are so many different architectural styles to these mansions that it adds a unique, almost regal layer to the landscape. 2) The Rose Garden; I had read about this area of the park, and although most of the blooms were spent, you could see how it must be amazing in the summer. We took our time reading about the different varieties and taking pictures of varieties we hope to plant back home.
The Van Gogh Museum Our essential 9:30 AM tickets ensured we saw the Vincent van Gogh Museum before the massive queues formed. The museum tells an incredibly moving story of his evolution as a painter and a man. It’s memorable because it doesn't just display his work but humanizes him, focusing on his relationship with his family, especially his brother Theo. I was fascinated by his signed sketches, where he painstakingly corrected the lines before applying his characteristic heavy-handed, sharp brush strokes. Another thing we will always remember about this museum is that it doesn’t just showcase his work, but also artists he was inspired by and artists he inspired.
A Taste of the City
Lunch Strategy: I was determined to keep to our proven success or finding a neighborhood, outside the city center, for more quality food and immersion. We were less than successful because hunger after a long day of travel led us to something just outside the city center. With some research and planning, we could have done a better job of experiencing Amsterdam’s food scene.
The Food Hall & Local Snacks: After one of our canal walks, we wandered into a nearby, packed Food Hall—a maze of stalls offering everything from Thai to Spanish tapas. Here we were able to try Bitterballen: delicious, deep-fried crispy balls traditionally served with mustard. We tried a sampler of five different types—a great way to sample this pervasive Dutch snack!
Best Meal: For dinner, our hotel’s Italian bistro, Nando, was the surprising star. Our server recommended a starter of sliced veal with a caper mustard sauce that was so perfectly executed, I ordered it again as my main dish the next night.
Local Lunch Spot: For a quick Monday lunch, after our visit to the museum and as a way to be able to experience the park again, we picked up highly-rated sandwiches from the butcher shop, Vorstelijk Belegde Broodjes We took our Broodjes back to Vondel park until the rain sent us scurrying back to the hotel.
Cultural Immersion
Our time was spent primarily navigating tourist sites, but staying slightly outside the center near the Westervilla Hotel provided a welcome window into a quieter, more residential Amsterdam neighborhood.
Staying Fit: Hikes, Walks, and Active Living
Our fitness centered around discovering the city on foot, the best way tosee the canals, neighborhoods and sites of Amsterdam.
Vondelpark: This was our main green space for active living and enjoying nature.
Canal Walks: From our hotel, we could take powerwalks along a canal that was practically pedestrian and bike free. Also, our daily exploring involved hours of walking, particularly through the beautiful Jordaan and along the canals.
Day Trips: Escapes from the Hub
Haarlem: A wonderful day of historic sites, one of the best outdoor markets and along, leisurely lunch al fresco on the canal.
What we loved and what we didn’t
We loved the utter grandeur and utility of Vondelpark, particularly its surrounding grand architecture, and the emotional depth of the Van Gogh Museum. We were also very happy with the logistical ease of using the bus system from our hotel.
We also loved our day trip to Haarlem. We both felt it was a city we would come back to and spend more time.
Our biggest regret was missing the Anne Frank House due to the lack of advance planning for tickets.
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