Amsterdam
 

I will be in London from 25/03/15 onwards. Planning to spend some time in Amsterdam from 02/04/15 to 06/04/15 as I will be departing on 7/04/15 12noon flight from Heathrow Airport .

1. Planning to go Giethoorn, Zaanse Schans...not sure how to go about...any other place that is a mus visit?

2. Best and cheapest way to travel from London to Amsterdam ?

3. Best and most affordable way to travel around Amsterdam?

4. Best and affordable tour agencies/operators?

5. Clean,affordable, safe and convenient location to stay?

Please advice as this is my first time to Paris and wish to enjoy my stay there =)

Thank you very much in advance for any advice that will be provided by all members =)

Amsterdam or Paris? See your other thread.

<i>2. Best and cheapest way to travel from London to Amsterdam ?</i>

Fly. Unless you have a lot of luggage.

Easyjet has a ticket for $191.


<i>3. Best and most affordable way to travel around Amsterdam?</i>

Bicycle.

Zaanse Schans is easy to get to by train from Amsterdam. Look at the website for details.

Giethoorn is much harder unless you hire a car. Train and bus would take a good chunk of time. There may be a bus tour from Amsterdam to Giethoorn, I don't know. An online search would tell you.
Whilst I am glad someone wants to see more than the usual tourist attractions it may be too difficult, given your limited time, to get there. You wouldn't have much time for the city if you also go to Giethoorn.

Amsterdam is very walkable. That is the cheapest way to get around the city. Plenty of buses and trams too.

There are numerous threads on the forum about accommodation.

Easyjet has a ticket for $191.>

Train can be as low as 39 euros and gtakes only 3.5 hours city center to city center - www.thalys.com - book early to get those limited in number discounted fares - few folks fly between Amsterdam and Paris anymore because of the train, faster overall and dirt cheap if you book far enough in advance.

For lots on European trains including the Thalys trains check these IMo susperb sites: www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

And for some ideas on Amsterdam: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ite-things.cfm

OK, but they wanted London to Amsterdam which is 4:38 in duration and I didn't see a bookable 2nd Class ticket for April 2, but tthey do havea 229 Euro 1st Class ticket.

OP has two threads, one for London and Paris, the other for London and Amsterdam, smae dates, so it is not clear which city they are visiting, so advice on getting to Amsterdam from Paris is pointless. It would seem they will visit one or the other.

OK, but they wanted London to Amsterdam which is 4:38 in duration and I didn't see a bookable 2nd Class ticket for April 2, but tthey do havea 229 Euro 1st Class ticket.>

Oops - I thought Paris for some reason - sorry - to London at this late date the discounted tickets will all be booked probably - no you are right about flying and I made a mistake in thinking Paris.

The reason Paris came up on this thread is because of this in the OP >>Please advice as this is my first time to Paris and wish to enjoy my stay there =)<<

But the title and everything else is re Amsterdam, so I think that was a mistake. The OP has a simultaneous thread asking about Paris so probably confused the two???

She can't be in A'dam and Paris the same days so don't know if she is just trying to decide -- or :?

Dear all, I am sorry for the confusion.
I was deciding on Amsterdam or Paris from London.
I am in dilemma because the weather reports shown that from 2nd to 6th April,it will be rainy in Amsterdam :(

Are you really considering the weather forecast for days almost a month from now into your decision?
It would be more productive to create fall back plans for rainy days as if it would rain similarly in each city. For example, think ahead of time what would you do under different weather scenarios for each day. For example, if you wake up on April 3rd to a clear sky day with forecast showing iffy for 4th and 5th, if you planned ahead, you would know which good weather activities can be easily pulled forward into April 3rd without disrupting the overall plan.

If you check the weather maps, you will see that weather patterns tend to sweep across western Europe from the Atlantic. If it's raining in London, there's a fair chance it will be at least cloudy in Paris fairly soon after, and raining in Amsterdam the next day. And no-one can be sure of exactly where it's going to rain more than a few days beforehand, and even then they might not always be right.

Weather in Europe is surprisingly unpredictable.
In the UK they have a saying April Showers. Maybe you will encounter rain in London too.
This happened 2 years ago in London.
http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/389...ails-to-relent

There's absolutely no point in planning your trips based on the weather in Europe. Early April it could snow, or it could be 18C.

>>I am in dilemma because the weather reports shown that from 2nd to 6th April,it will be rainy in Amsterdam<<

What will the weather be in YOUR home town on April 2nd??? Unless you live in the Sahara or Saudi Arabia -- it is likely you have no idea.

Same w/ anywhere in Europe. And even if it does rain - so what? It is as likely to rain - or not rain - in both Paris and A'dam (and London and anywhere else)

Meant to add - you probably won't have a good idea what the weather will be on April 2 until maybe March 30 - and even then it could change.

After having been in Amsterdam many times during early spring expect wet windy weather - could be sunny and nice but I'd bet on it being cool - not cold - and drizzily - anything else would be a plus.

And as janis says the weather is very changeable - this is a sea climate with winds often whipping in from the sea - prepare for the worst and hope for the best!

Annietan29

We were in Amsterdam last January,it was cold, windy and rainy
but we still has a great time walking around the city enjoying the sites. Please note we live on a tropical island, any thing below 75 degrees is cold for us. I love Amsterdam despite the weather. Great food, nice helpful people, easy to find your way around. Plus as a bonus the fries was very, very good!

Don't let the weather scare you. Click PalenQ's name, he has a good thread on Amsterdam.

And to add to the above post the weather this year in The Netherlands during Jan was much more pleasant than the year before.

The weather forecast can't get it right for tomorrow let alone a month away.
It could be raining in Paris in April just as easily as in Amsterdam. I am amazed you even found such a long term forecast.
I have found a 14 day forecast, which looks great, but I wouldn't rely on it to plan anything.

ribeirascra,

Then my husband and I got lucky with the nice weather in January. lol.

Can't wait to go back!

Like London I understand if you look at rain totals per annum Amsterdam and London may actually have less than say Rome - but on a per day basis it is much more wet - often a drizzle - than Rome - look at the stately Dutch elm trees lining canals - their westward =-facing sides are ubiquitously green - from being covered by green moss, which loves wet damp things!

Be prepared for any kind of weather except it being very hot or cold IME. And yes I love Amsterdam no matter what the weather - my favroite city in the whole world!

and if bringing an umbrella be sure it is sturdy - I have more than a few times experienced very strong winds and in the narrow streets they can twist an umbrella out of shape - better to bring some good rain gear - some water-proof jcket and especially shoes - bring an extra pair perhaps if yours get wet!

And it is always dry in the Coffeeshops if that is up your alley - great place to relax from the rigors of sightseeing and to dry out - on just about every corner and you need not imbibe to experience these unique places only seen in Colorado, Washington and Amsterdam IME - not sure about Washington yet.

Dear all,
Thank you for all your kind comments.I will be coming to Amsterdam ��
eventhough it is only for a fee days, I am happy I can make it.
Can't wait to enjoy myself thererrors ����

Great to hear! I am envious of you. I don't think you will be disappointed. Have a wonderful time and eat lots of fries for me.

Be sure to have one of Holland's famous rijsttafel meals - a ubiquitous fare of the many Cinese-Indonesian restaurants.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rijsttafel

https://www.google.com/search?q=rijs...=1600&bih=1075

aka mediocre fake indonesian food in a exotic location

locals may be food snobs when it comes to rijsttafel's but even mediocre ones by their high standards may delight tourists - they sure did for the over 1,000 people I took to Rijsttafel restaurants when we were in Amsterdam - everyone loved all the side dishes, etc.

Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater! But do reviewsw and do not judge a rijsttafel by the number of dishes it provides as a 'dish' could mean a cup of peanuts or chips.

Actually we started going to a nice un-touristed place right opposite the Olympic Stadium - food was spicier but all the other folk in there were Dutch! (Take trams 16 or 24 (if I recall right) to the Olympic Stadium and you'll find the place, if still there as I presume having seen it a few years ago.

Yes, so?

I go to Indonesian restaurants a lot and if you check iens.nl, you'll soon find out what the good ones are.

Rijsttafel is an invention for tourists, supposedly derived from the traditional Indonesian selamatan, festive meal, where there are many dishes.

The imo best way to eat Indonesian food is go a la carte and stick to the tried and tested: white rice (or yellow rice if it's your birthday), a sajur, a meat dish, a vegetable dish, a pickle (acar), something crunchy, a sambal you like, doesn't have to be spicy. It's all about a balance of flavours and textures: restaurants that pride themselves on the amount of heat in their food (pedis) drown everything in a sea of chillies. Indonesian cuisine and its Dutch Eurasian cousin are wonderful and complex, but the usual rijsttafel reduces this complexity to an endless array of same-tasting stuff on little dishes. Looks nice on the table though, and you think you're getting a lot.

In Amsterdam, restaurants I'd seek out are:

Blauw Amsterdam on Amstelveenseweg
Sampurna on Singel
Djago on Scheldeplein (to my mind one of the most authentic eurasian restaurants in Randstad)


I know there's Kantjil & De Tijger, it gets a 6.9 on Iens, which is not a good sign. I find there food to be formulaic and oddly bland, but people think they're getting the real deal there, so it's always busy.

And I know lots of people flock to Sama Sebo: it's almost as bad as K&T, but also in a good tourist location, so people go there. And it's in lots of guidebooks.

http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/amsterdam-my-favorite-things.cfm>

Interesting the Rijsttafel is only eaten by tourists - but that does not mean it can't be fun and tasty - in this thread I started long ago several folks tell of their positive rijstaffel experiences:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ite-things.cfm

menachem gives valuable advice on Chinese-Indonesian restaurants in general and yes they have lots of stuff besides rijstaffels - anyway this cuisine in general is a delight whether you have a rijstaffel or not.

Uhm no my advice limits itself to Indonesian restaurants. Chinese-Indonesian restaurants (Chin. Ind.) are in a different category altogether. Those offer approximations of a vaguely asian cuisine.

Rijsttafel: two t, one f !!!