Dayle

Hi Fodorites,

I'm ready to book my on line advance tickets for the Van Gogh and the Rijksmuseum. I've looked up the individual ticket prices and am wondering if it's really worth purchasing the Museum Card at roughly E65. I'll be in the city for 4.5 full days and might also make it to the Maritime and Hermitage too. One day will be a day trip out to the Koller Mueller. It looks like the Purse Museum and Diamond Museum are not covered with the Museum Card so should I buy one?

Also, I haven't yet found info on whether you should buy the Museum Card first, then book an on line entry time for these two popular museums. I'm sure it's there, just haven't hunted enough yet. Clues please?

Thanks in advance!

PalenQ

When I went to Kroller-Muller several years ago they would not honor my Museum Card - check to see if that has changed.

I've found that some A'dam museums off the radar are neat - I liked having the pass because I could stop in some like Lord in the Attic and Dutch Resistance Museum and Troppen Museum, Jewish Museum, etc and not worry about whether it was worth paying for and almost always I loved them - also Hermitage branch in canal house in Amsterdam.

Cards are also valid at Anne Frank House.

You can skip lines at most museums in case you do not want to book in advance.

http://www.amsterdam.info/museums/museumkaart/

hetismij2

You still have to pay for entry to the park for the Kroller Muller museum, so it costs you €915 instead of €18.30.

For the Anne Frankhuis you must book in advance even with a museumkaart.

You must book a timeslot online for the van Gogh if you want to avoid queuing. You cannot just turn up and skip the queue if you have a museumkaart.

You can just turn up at the Rijks, and skip the queue.

You need to buy the museumkaart at a participating museum. It will be a temporary card, as they have to have a photo nowadays.

Buy your card at a smaller, quieter museum if you decided to go that route.

Dayle

OK, so it seems that the benefits of the Museumkart vary by museum. Good to know! I didnt know if you needed to buy the card before booking a Van Gogh time slot, but since tourists cant buy it on line, then it seems the time slot booking is an entirely separate event.

Probably it will be a break even purchase, but I do like the idea of being able to pop into a museum on a whim. Will make time for the Hermitage I think. Wont be visiting Ann Franks house. That may sound shocking, but WWII and the holocaust are real enough and impactful enough to me without visiting sites.

Thanks for the great advice!

menachem

Dayle, you'll be able to just pop in at the Amsterdam Museum (used to be the Amsterdam Historical museum, housed in a beautiful former orphanage, close to Begijnhof, and linked to it by a public passage where those huge civic militia paintings are on show, think "Night Watch". Other museums that might be interesting are the Jewish Historical museum.

But it also grants you access to museums that are housed in Patricians' mansions in the canal ring, for instance:

Bible Museum (always interesting exhibitions on biblical themes, and a spectacular canal mansion)
Willet Holthuysen (a restored mansion with styled interiors)
Hermitage Amsterdam
New Church
Rembrandt House
Museum of Modern Art (down the street from Van Gogh Museum)
Our Lord in the Attic
House Marseille (photography in another spectacular mansion)
Old Church
Royal Palace
Resistance Museum

plus, if you do a daytrip to, say, Haarlem, you get free access there too. Of course you want to visit the Van Gogh museum, but at least two of the museums above are very much worth your while.

I believe Van Gogh museum has a fast lane for Museum Jaarkaart, not entirely sure though.

Also free are

Mauritshuis Den Haag
Panorama Mesdag Den Haag (a mind-blowing experience that should not be missed)

etc

menachem

I checked and Purse Museum and Diamond Museum are free with MK

hetismij2

You can book your timed entry online before you get the card, you just have to have the card by the time you want to visit the VG. There is no longer a fast lane for card holders, only for timed ticket holders.

The reason for this is abuse of the museum kaart in the past. That is why you will now get a temporary card, valid for 31days, unless you register it online and submit a photo.

Dayle

Thanks again for the detailed replies! I will be spending a day and night in Haarlem so Im glad the card is good there too. I looked on the web page for the card, but didn't see the Purse museum and Diamond museum listed. Maybe I didnt dig down far enough.

Your input is very much appreciated. ��

Dayle

hetismij2,

I tried to book my timed entry to the Van Gogh last month, but it seems their booking calendar only goes out 4 months in advance. I'm going to try again now since I'm within the window.

It still isn't clear to me if the timed entry booking, which looks to be about E17.50 is in addition to the entry fee (free with the Museumkaart). Do I have this right?

There is no express entry line for Museumkaart holders. Got it.

I should buy the Museumkaart at a less busy museum. Got it. I'll be in Delft and Haarlem prior to A'dam so I'll get one in Haarlem.

Thanks so much for your patience on this!

menachem

Hi, in the English language section you need to click "more options" at the ticket options page. Only then will a drop down menu reveal a Museumkaart option, with tickets priced at 0 euros. This is not obvious at first sight. The Dutch language section has "Museumkaart" as a readily visible option, hence, I think, the confusion.

schnauzer

I bought my card at the purse museum last year so unless somethings changed they definitely take the card cos they sell them! I got the 31 day "tourist" card.. No photo needed. I loved the purse museum it was just about my favourite! The Hermitage had moved their entire collection for the period I was there last year..couldn't believe it!

With Van Gogh you still had to take your card to the ticket counter, read queue with everyone else but then you got to walk straight in without queuing again to get in which was a great advantage. A bit of a funny system I thought.

The Troppen museum was also a firm favourite but I believe they are either closed or closing which is a huge shame, I loved it.

I was there for ten days so got to use my card, have a look at the entry prices of where you think you want to go and do the calculations, you won't want to spend all four days in museums just so you make the most of the card.

PalenQ

It's a national museum card -good all over NL.

Nice thing is you can come one day say to Van Gogh - and come back another day instead of having to see everything at once.

Dayle

Ah, thank you so much! I just wasn't finding the appropriate click!
The Museumkaart may end up being just about a break even for me, but I definitely want to see the purse musuem. I find those types of collections fascinating! I'm planning to do the Van Gogh and the Rijks on different days. Otherwise I get museum burn out. I would like to see the Hermitage if time allows. That's optional. I'll be visiting a couple places in Haarlem that I believe it's good for too.

Question: Where do you think I should stay the night before flying out of AMS? Haarlem or Amsterdam or just an airport hotel (ugh)?

menachem

Depends on the time of your flight I suppose. I used the Schiphol Sheraton a few times. Not bad at all and with a fantastic spa and sauna.

menachem

In Haarlem: the Teylers Museum! Magical place

http://www.teylersmuseum.nl/en

Dayle

Thank you menachem!

schnauzer

What time is your flight out? If it's not at a ridiculous time in the morning then stay where you were and catch the train. It's easy and doesn't take long from the city at all.