I am planning a first time trip to Amsterdam for 3 days in late April, 2001. Can anyone give me ideas on what not to miss, places to stay, etc? Would appreciate the help. Thanks! <BR>

Chris I stayed at the Hotel Rembrandt while in Amsterdam. Just to warn you, it does get cold there, even in July! So bring jeans, and a sweater, because the nights (and days are cool!) You should really go to the Rijks Museum. It is fabulous. Rembrandt's "Night Watch" is the center piece of the museum, plus they have all the significant Vermeers. I am sure other people will have other ideas for "must do's" in Amsterdam. It really is a great city for people watching. Get a beer, visit a coffee shop (or two...) and really enjoy the city. It has a lot to offer.

Do not miss the Van Gogh museum. Maybe $7.00, and it is incredible. I stay at the Marriott, it is close to lots of walk in restaurants...20 minute cab ride from the airport. Much more grand and romantic = Amstel Hotel (Intercontinental) The American Hotel is old and famous, but small rooms. Amsterdam is a great city, you'll have fun. <BR>

Definitely take a canal boat tour. I've done both daytime and nighttime tours - both are great. In addition to the museums suggested above, the Anne Frankhuis is another great one. If you stop by the VVV (tourist office) at Centraal Station (there's one inside the station and one directly in front of it), you can buy tickets for just about everything there. As for food, eat an Indonesian or Chinese rice table. (Run a search for previous threads that list places to eat.) There's also a place called the Pancake Bakery near the Anne Frankhuis that's fun to try. Oh - since you're visiting during tulip season, DO NOT MISS a chance to see Keukenhoff Gardens - just incredible! <BR>

This is an excerpt from a personal note I sent someone… (May have to split it up) First of all, everyone we spoke with during our visit spoke English, if that is a concern, so it was very relaxing in that regard. <BR>We both love to walk all over, so we did a great deal of exploring on foot along the canals, looking at the wonderful variety of canal houses. It was very chilly in March, had to wear a couple of layers, and all-weather jacket (40-52 degrees). Our hotel was one block off the canal at Leidseplein Square, and there are a number of tram lines there. About 2 more blocks off Leidseplein toward Damrak we went to a tourist office and bought a pass for Circle Line 20, which is a tram line that goes in a loop through most of the inner city where 'sights' are. Also bought tickets for canal boat ride there (but could also do that at the dock, which is about a block to the right from the hotel on the canal). <BR>We visited the Anne Frank house - mostly bare of furnishings but you are provided with videos and get a feeling for the Franks' lives there; quite interesting, get there before they open to be in front of line that soon forms. No photos allowed, but they have postcards in the shop. <BR>We walked around the Dam Square and Red Light District. These are interesting from the perspective of 'character' but not the most beautiful city square, and the R.L.D. gets kinda spooky as it gets dark, lots of men converging on the area. Guide books indicate one should absolutely refrain from taking photos of girls in windows, could cause some trouble. <BR>The hotel was quite close to both the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum, which are a 'stones throw' from each other. The entrance fee to each one was neighborhood of $7.00-10.00. The Rijksmuseum has a small but nice side garden, and a few particularly nice paintings (Vermeer, Rembrandt), also has a few rooms of beautiful Delftware, which comes in far more colors than just blue/white. The Van Gogh museum was wonderful - very open space, I believe one floor was entirely V.G. and another floor was V.G. and other artists. <BR>

The Leidseplein Square area did not have much crowding so early in the year, but definitely has a lot of restaurant, theater and 'coffee shop' business. A lot to do there for evening, including Eng.language cinemas. Speaking of 'coffee shop', these are bars where some alcohol or coffee is served, but the main draw is the personal-use amounts of marijuana that are legally sold there. We did not notice much smoking outside the shops, read that it was considered rude to do... The other service offered in many of the shops are the Internet stations where you can read/send email, etc by 1/2 hour or hour fee. I checked the weather reports and sent trip reports to my friends (cc: myself as a journal). <BR>We walked through the Vondelpark near our hotel - a huge, lovely family park, lots of rollerblading, biking, romping dogs, frisbees, etc.. <BR>Go to 26 Damrak to the Lindbergh Tour & Travel agency and book one or two tours - we went on 1/2 day tour to tulip fields and Keukenhoff (should be in full bloom by April timeframe). Took another 1/2 day tour to Zaanse Schans (preserved windmill village), Volendam (town built on the dykes), and Marken which is like a 'museum' village, very picturesque. Enjoyed this tremendously, was around $23 per person. <BR>The canal cruise was by Rederij Noord-Zuid for about $10 per person, great way to see Amsterdam as an overview, lasts about 1 hour or more. <BR>The canals are especially pretty at night where the bridges have strings of lights under them. <BR>

Here are some other hopefully helpful hints: <BR>1. http://www.visitholland.com/ also call 1-888-Amsterdam and ask for the Go Holland brochures - lots of information <BR>2. http://www.channels.nl/amsterdam/lindberg.html -the Lindbergh tours <BR>3. http://www.hollandmuseums.nl/ info about the museums <BR>4. http://www.annefrank.com/anne/anne.html site about Anne Frank <BR>5. http://www.apti.is.nl/ Amsterdam public transportation <BR>6. http://www.schiphol.nl/engine/ info about Schipol Airport <BR>7. http://www.channels.nl/ FABULOUS web about Amsterdam, with many photos <BR>I love the Eyewitness Guide books, so got one on Amsterdam. The Best Western AMS Terdam hotel was one block from a Golden Tulip hotel and the KLM Shuttle drops off/picks up there. That was how we traveled from/to the airport - the ticket is bought on board for about $9.00 a person, stops at numerous hotels. There is a Transfer desk in the airport to make inquiry. I used a laminated/folding mapguide called "Streetwise Amsterdam" to get around, but also get the tourist ones that show the tram lines/stops - that helped a lot, too. Based on what I saw, I advise you NOT to get a hotel in the Dam Square area, or near the train station. Very crowded, seems like prime pickpocket territory. I really liked the area we stayed in. A couple of streets behind the hotel were lots of 'designer' stores for window shopping, and it was very close to the Vondelpark and museums. <BR>

Book your hotel early.Don't hire a car.Try the Botel or the Doelen Hotel.Never leave the hotel without a map, easy to get lost!

Hi Chris: <BR>Good Advice here! I agree with Frank about Doelen Hotel. Run by the Golden Tulip chain. www.goldentulip.com <BR>Book now. I could not get a reservation for early June! It is centrally located about 3 trams stops from the Railway Station. Be sure to stop in The Tourist office. They are very helpful. They exchange money with little or no service charge. <BR>Bring a warm waterproof jacket and enjoy your stay!

We're going to Amsterdam on Saturday! We'll also visit Brussels briefly and then spend the rest of the time in Paris. We're staying at the Eden Hotel in Amsterdam. Any other must-see sites? Thanks!

Erica- How was your Amsterdam and Paris trip? We are going first week in March.

I agree that the weather causes serious problems in a visit to amsterdam(especially if you are greek and not informed about it).We were ther last May and we were freezing!!My suggestions are:van gogh museum,rijksmuseum,canal cruises especially at night,and please don`t miss keukenhoff garden!!!Just unforgettable!!

HELLLOOOOO!!!! THE ORIGINAL MESSAGE WAS FROM 2000 SO THERE'S NO USE RESPONDING TO IT NOW!!!!!!!

Ah Amsterdam. My favorite European city. I stayed at the Canal Crown Hotel. Very comfortable/pretty, clean, inexpensive, and within walking distance of everything. Check their website or call 020-420 00 55.