Fishnlines29

Hi, the 3 museums we'd like to see are:
-Van Gogh Museum
-Rijksmuseum
-Anne Frank house

We could use some advice on how long each of these take to go through - I know this is subjective but we are moderate museum goers - probably relatively fast pace meaning we don't like to linger too long on any one thing....

We plan to buy our tickets in advance to avoid the lines but these are timed, so I'm trying to get an idea of how to book these and if I should book all three in one day so we can leave the second day for simply walking around and chance discovery... maybe a half day bike ride outside the city would be nice. Any suggestions on neighborhoods to focus on or biking outside the city would be great! (We may consider adding 1/2 day but doubtful)

Please also note that we plan to stay within 5 min walk of Van Gogh Museum and our walking around will not include the Red light district as this is a mom/teen daughter trip

Also, for transportation, is it easy to pay as you go for a train from the airport (no Euros to start), trams, etc?

branderson925

Id say traveling at a moderate pace you could do all three museums in one day. However I'm not sure of you've gone through three medium to larger sized museums in the same day. I think you may run the risk of having things "run together". I could be entirely wrong but I like to try to not do more than 3 museums in a day. I'm a big fan of Dutch art so id want to throughly go through the two art museums you have listed.
At a reasonably quick pace you could spend 1-2 hrs at Anne Franks, 1.5-2.5 at Van Gogh and 2-3 at Rijksmuseum. Like you said you don't linger so I think you could spend even less time then I've alloted but better to over budget and have time to relax and grab a coffee if you need it.

branderson925

And I took a bus into Amsterdam so taking a train from the airport is something I'm not entirely familiar with. I however wholeheartedly recommend a bike tour or something along those lines for a half day. One of my favorite memories from being in the city and surrounding area

suec1

I'd do the Rijks one day and the other two on another day. I can only take so much ART in one day. If you want to do a bike ride, I'd suggest a tour - Fat Tire or Mike's Bikes - whichever they have in A'dam. Be warned, biking in that city is not for the faint of heart or a visitor wanting to sight-see by bike. There are many bikes, going purposely at a good clip. There are tram lines and grooves to be careful of and of course pedestrians. IMO - if you want to bike - go outside the city. You can train to Haarlem and get a bike there - much more relaxing experience. I'd suggest a canal boat ride or just strolling instead of a bike rental.

You just might want to consider a very interesting attraction - Our Lord in the Attic, a Catholic church "hidden' in an old house. Now to get there you have to take a short walk thru the red-light district - just enough to give you a little idea of that scene.

Fishnlines29

Ok, so how does this sound - maybe on Sat - Van Gogh museum around 9am, then take a stroll around, lunch, maybe a canal ride, Anne Frank House late afternoon or evening..

Sun - Rijk in the morning - 9-12, lunch, head out of city to take a bike ride (see a windmill/countryside/river) - for the rest of the day.. is this doable on our own or is it better to go with a bike tour?

Dukey1

I agree to the notion of "doing" the Rijks in one day. There is a lot to see but I doubt most folks actually try to see everything.

You might strongly consider getting the tickets to BOTH the Rijks and the Anne Frank ON LINE since there can be VERY long lines, particularly at the Anne Frank.

The Van Gogh is much MUCH easier to manage than the vastly bigger Rijks.

Go early, depending on the time of year. IF there is any sort of cruise ship docked the crowds, especially in the smaller Van Gogh, and outside the popular Anne Frank can be huge.

suec1

I think it sounds like a good plan. I do suggest you investigate a bike tour - I think one does bike out to the countryside from the city. OR take the train to Haarlem - you can rent bikes there for a more relaxed ride.

rncheryl

Bookmarking

yorkshire

I was surprised at how much the Anne Frank house affected me, and I was in my 20s and coming off a trip that included Auschwitz. I would try to plan on a walk afterward to shake off an emotional response.

Diane

I was just in Amsterdam over Christmas and visited all three museums on your list. Definitely purchase tickets in advance!

The Van Gogh and Rijks are next to each other so easy to do on the same day. You describe yourself as a moderate museum goer, so I would allocate approximately 2 hours to each. There is much more to see in the Rijks, of course, but the museum has an excellent app you can download that offers a 90-minute highlights tour, which might be perfect for you.

The Anne Frank house gets very crowded. When we visited, we moved very slowly from room to room due to all the people and it took more than 2 hours to do a complete visit.

Very easy to get a train from the airport. We purchased a 5-day pass which was good for train, trams and buses. I know you can purchase a 1 day pass, but not sure about a 2-day pass. You can also pay as you go, but it is a bit of hassle.

I was with my two daughters on the trip (ages 20 and 17) and we thoroughly enjoyed the city. Hope you have a wonderful time with your teen!

Diane

annw

I like seeing the Van Gogh museum and the Rijks the same day, maybe before and after lunch? Or a canal ride in between, since you are staying in the area and will be coming back anyway.

I think you said you do plan to buy tix on line--good idea as everyone has said. I avoided the 3 hour line at the Anne Frank house by doing so. I like the idea of seeing the Anne Frank house in the morning and then the bike ride in the afternoon.

Fishnlines29

Thanks for everyone's advice, so i'm thinking a bike tour might be better so just in case we're 10 miles outside the city and we breakdown we have a little back up! I'm looking at one of these which look similar - leaning toward the second one leaving from Museumplein since we're staying there and it starts going through Vondelpark.

http://www.mikesbiketoursamsterdam.c...ide-bike-tour/

http://www.joyridetours.nl/index.php?page=7

They both leave around 10:30 - 11 so I would probably have to do the Anne Frank that same night since it's the only museum open late. I hate buying museum tix ahead so I don't pick the sunny day, but i guess there's no getting around it!

hetismij2

Both tours go to basically the same places, so I would say go with the one closest to your hotel. It starts earlier so you have more time for Anne Frank afterwards.
Book a fairly late tour of the Anne Frank to have a chance of it being quieter, and to give yourselves time to get over the bike ride!

I know what you mean about booking for the museums, but it is absolutely worth it. Try to get to the Rijks early, to beat the crowds, and then have lunch and go to Van Gogh later. If you are there in July or August then it is open until 10pm on Saturdays.

hetismij2

Of course if you are arriving on Friday you could go to teh Van Gogh then as it is always open until 10pm on Friday.

Fishnlines29

Thanks hetismij - will take your advice (it'll be june and getting in too late Friday night for VG then).

menachem

I'd do something else and skip the bike tour. But I would try to have lunch at NDSM, north of the IJ. The charm is that you get there by ferry (free) from the docks behind Central Station. NDSM is home to art city, artists' studios and theatre workshops and it has two places where you can have lunch. IJ Kantine, just off the ferry dock and Noorderlicht at NDSM proper. It's a very interesting industrial heritage site in its own right, and the ferry ride to it is about 20 minutes and takes you westwards across the IJ.

Pretty much off he beaten path and a one of a kind experience that can be easily organized.

http://whatsupwithamsterdam.com/ndsm/

(disclaimer: I had my studio there, way back when it was a huge squat and people still lived there in old tramcars. at the moment it's all cleaned up and "creative entrepeneurs" )

Flaneur5

My best piece of advice for the Rijksmuseum is get there when the museum opens and go straight to the Hall of Honor. This is where the Dutch Masters are. This splendid hall becomes very unpleasant later in the day with hoards of tourists snapping selfies in front of the Vermeers and Rembrandts. Also, don't miss the magnificent doll houses. They are truly remarkable. If you and your daughter want to see another museum, I highly recommend the Tassen Museum of Handbags and Purses. It has thousands of items dating back hundreds of years and is truly fascinating. This museum is in a lovely old canal house. When your feet can't take another step, take a canal boat tour.

Fishnlines29

Great ideas, thank you!