Planning a 10 days trip to Amsterdam-Brussels in September this year. Any suggestion of must see, side trip etc. Thanks

In Belgium,for side trips from Brussels, Waterloo, Bruges, Ghent,and Antwerp.
In the Netherlands, Maastricht, Delft, and Zaanse Schans . There are tons of interesting places to visit depending on what you enjoy. Enjoy!

Buy a good guide book, or borrow one from the library - one which covers more than just Amsterdam (which is basically what the Fodor's one does sadly.

Tell us what you are interested in seeing - museum, architecture, countryside?
How long are you planning to stay in each city?
Are you prepared to rent a car for a few days?

Bruges and Antwerp and Gent in Belgium are all easy day trips from Brussels or IMO better yet Brussels, which dissapoints so many looking for old-world romance and charm, could be a day trip from say lovely Bruges, by some called the most old-world looking city north of the Alps.

Haarlem and Delft would top my day trips from Amsterdam though there are a slew of great towns and things like Zaanse Schaans and Marken/Volendam that are great as well.

Or you could get adventurous and get away from the regular tourist sites

Definitely give us an idea of what your interests are.

We took a trip to Brussels, Bruges, and Amsterdam a couple years ago - we had about 14 days, which was a relaxed pace. We had 4 nights in Brussels, 3 in Bruges, 5 in Amsterdam, and 1 in Brussels before our flight home.

Brussels was a pleasant surprise - we didn't expect to like it as much as we did. In fact, we had planned 2 day trips from Brussels, but spent our 3 alloted days in Brussels itself.

We ended up with too much time in Bruges - we had planned a day trip to the coast, but the weather was bad, so we stuck to Bruges, which gave us 2.5 days there. We could have done perfectly well with 1.5 days and seen pretty much everything we wanted to.

Amsterdam - I could have had more time there, using it as a base for day trips. We went to Delft, but there are many more places that we would have liked to go.

Last October we did an 11 day trip to Belgium. 2 days in Brussels, moved to Ghent for 5 days, then to Bruges for 2 and went back for the last 2 in Brussels.

Initial impression of Brussels wasn't great, I think we were just in the wrong neighborhood (near Gare Midi). We both loved Ghent... the food, the people, the shopping, and the scenery. I'd been to Bruges in 2008 so knew what to expect there. I found 2 nights there to be plenty this time.

The last 2 days in Brussels were a lot more enjoyable... The food is great and there are plenty of museums and great sites to see.

I've never been to Amsterdam, I do have it on my to-go list. From what I've read, 3 days there is just about right.

Enjoy your trip!

Thank you all for sharing. I am interested in seeing museum, architecture, countryside. Thinking of adding one day for Luxembourg?

If you're in Brussels and you want to see countryside and something different from the usual tourist duo of Bruges and Ghent (both definitely worth seeing), catch the 366 bus to the Chateau de La Hulpe. You can meander along the paths of the 500+ acre domaine and visit the tour the Folon museum (Fondation Folon) on the castle grounds. There's also a cafe across from the museum that serves light meals (pate sandwiches, crepes, etc).

http://chateaudelahulpe.wallonie.be/...?id_article=16

http://www.fondationfolon.be/index_en.php

This link shows you the museum complex and its proximity to the chateau
http://www.fondationfolon.be/visite_environs_en.htm

Entrance to the chateau park is free; there is a modest charge for the museum, which is quirky and fun to tour.

Ruby 99 - since you have never been to Amsterdam how can you say 3 days is about right for the city? You can spend 4 days in Brussels but think Amsterdam only merits 3 days???

Can I suggest that you spend at least the same length of time in the Netherlands as you did in Belgium. There is so much more to the country than just Amsterdam.

If Brussels merits 4 days then IMO having been in both Amsterdam and Brussels many many times then Amsterdam IMO would rate 4 weeks!