Hi Everybody,

My soon to be wife and I are going to Amsterdam, Paris, Mykonos, Santorini, and Athens for our honeymoon in July (3 nights each in that order). we have the Greece portion pretty much figured out but we need help on making the most of Paris and Amsterdam in 3 days each. We'll be in amsterdam from a saturday-tuesday and paris from tues-friday

we're from NYC in our mid-late 20s. can anyone recommend some good bars/clubs/restaurants to go to in either of these cities? also any good non-museum things to do during the day (neighborhoods to walk/shop, bike tours, etc)?

thanks!!

Pris is a huge city. You have to be more specific about the location of your hotel.
Non- museum thing in Amsterdam would be a boat ride on the canals (can be romantic at night; same with Paris)
If museums are not your thing, you might wish to spend 2 days in Amsterdam ( much smaller and easier to get around) and 4 in Paris.

Sorry these notes are so long re: Amsterdam. Note the restaurants and cafes I mention.

"Final stop: Amsterdam. Five nights’ stay, first visit for all of us.

LOVED, LOVED, LOVED Amsterdam! You always hear of the Red Light district and the coffee shops and the laissez-faire attitude, but you don’t hear how open and friendly the people are, how lovely the canals and side streets, how wonderfully trendy the restaurants and cafes, how people are out strolling at all hours of the night and you feel safe everywhere. I think I’d expected it to be quaint and charming (which it is), but in a dark wood-paneled cliché way, not in the young and contemporary way it is.

The standard reply we were given in Amsterdam, when we asked for anything, was always “Of course!” How refreshing.

We stayed in a fabulous location, at The Hotel Residence le Coin, which was directly across a small street from the Hotel de l’Europe, down the street from the Hotel Doelan, on Nieuwe Doelenstraat (sp?). A great neighborhood in the heart of old Amsterdam.

The hotel has a lift and A/C, also free use of the hotel’s washing machine and clothes dryer in the basement (which was welcome as we’d been traveling over a week when we arrived there). Each room has a little kitchenette, a nice-sized bath, large rooms with wooden floors and a sitting area. It’s fairly new, so everything sparkles. Very friendly front desk, too.

Two cafes on the same block as the hotel were wonderful: Café Katoen for a university atmosphere, and Café le Jarden, for great table seating on the canal.

Amazing dinners at two restaurants in particular:
“Stout!”, at Haarlemmerstraat 73 (www.restaurantstout.nl). Fabulous ‘foamy asparagus’ soup with shrimp, chateaubriande, fresh fish, dessert course, wine list. Very trendy lighting. Great service. We’d gone to the neighborhood in search of a restaurant called “Lof” which we’d seen written up. We didn’t like its atmosphere, but were lucky that Stout! was just across the street.

Also at “Restaurant Dining Eleven” we had a great dinner. It’s at Reestraat 11. Also trendy and contempory, well-presented and beautifully-served meal.

Another nice dinner at “frenzi”, at Swanenburgwal 232. Very simple and contemporary. We arrived shortly after 10:00p.m., when most restaurants close in Amsterdam, and persuaded the owner to sell us any left-overs they had in the kitchen! They put together a nice Caesar salad with cooked-in-the-shell shrimp and mango. Very nice.

Also a good brunch at a place across the street from frenzi—called “Puccini”. Creative salads and sandwiches. Very nice also.

We took a canal cruise one evening. Toured the Anne Frank Huis and the Van Gogh Museum. Visited the Nieuwe Kerk (sp?) Our teens went to a concert at the Paradiso and loved it.

One afternoon we did the 2:30 “Best of Holland” excursion to Volendam and Marken, with a stop to see wooden clogs made, Gouda cheese created, and to visit windmills. It was by bus, with a boat from Volendam to Marken. A lot of fun. Even our two teens liked it.

Our teens also liked shopping at one street in particular, between our hotel and the museum district. Also a Zara shop there, and many others like it. They thought the selection and prices were better in Amsterdam than what they’d seen in London and Paris even.

A detail about Amsterdam if you go there-- carry enough Euros in cash, because many places won't accept a credit card for a 'small' purchase (i.e. under 25 EU). "
>-

http://www.paris-walks.com/

http://zpinaddict.com/parishtm/parismn.htm

http://www.paris.world-guides.com/


The Paris metro is easy to use, though busy. It runs on a flat rate ticket 1.40 euros at present, in Paris and more if you go out (airports, etc). Pick up a (large) plan at a ticket booth and buy multiple tickets to save keep queueing up. A good map is worth the cost in these towns.

Athens has a good subway system too.

In all places, be careful of pickpockets in crowds and on public transport.

p.s.
some people rent bikes in Amsterdam , be careful - they take no prisoners.

We liked Spui area for bars and restaurants.
Jordan is also popular with younger crowd.

My husband and I just went to Amsterdam and Paris and we are in our early 30s. We have 3 young children and were without them so we weren't interested in clubbing or late night bars as much as just enjoying each others company, still we managed many late nights in both cities. In Amsterdam the Liedesplaine( I think that is correct spelling) is hopping at all hours. It is a great place to grab a beer (or a spleef) and people watch. Indonesian food is good in Amsterdam also. We went to Lieden which is a 20 minute train ride from Amsterdam. The oldest university in the Netherlands and one of the oldest in Europe is here. It is a lovely town with great architecture, a wonderful botanical gardens, and a bit of student culture. A fun place to walk and see you what you find.We enjoyed ourselves here.
We loved Paris and we would have chosen 2 days in Amsterdam and 4 in Paris. We stayed out late just walking around and enjoying the city. There are museums that are open late sometimes and the Eiffel tower is fun to walk around at night. The Sacre-coure is open at night and although touristy the neighborhood around it on the hill is lively at night.
Off the beaten path but still in Paris we really enjoyed the Chateu de Vincennes. It a very interesting castle and after we stopped accross the street for happy hour drinks at a bar without tourists.
Walking around the Latin quarter where the students are is a good way to find young people and resteraunts and bars that they like. We found some fun that way.
I have to say that after an exhausting day looking at museums and churches and strolling through parks, shopping, and picnicing, we loved grabbing a bottle of wine from the grocery and relaxing in the room too.
I hope this makes enough sense I am sick and way medicated. Let me know if you want more info...

Hi S,

>we need help on making the most of Paris and Amsterdam in 3 days each.

Skip Amsterdam.

It will make your logistics much easier, and will give you time better spent in Paris.

Amsterdam will be there for your next visit.

If you already have tickets flying into AMS, see www.voyages-sncf.com

You can buy 25E Prems tickets from Schipol to Paris.

thanks and keep em coming. we're staying in the latin quarter in paris and right near vondelpark in amsterdam

Liedesplaine( not sure about the spelling) is near by in Amsterdam : tons of bars and restaurants , although it can be touristy.
For the Paris location I hope you get info. from the younger members ( have not been 20 something in a very long time!).

The 9 Streets shopping area of Amsterdam is charming in the canal rings. www.theninestreets.com

For bars in Paris, go to rue Oberkampf and rue Jean Pierre Timbaud. There are a few well known names you'll find listed in Timeout, but you could just walk along the street and duck into whatever you think looks interesting.

We went to Amsterdam for Easter this year. Our trip report may help: http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa..._name=jamikins