seeksocean

HI,
Just letting you all know that I decided on Maes Bed and breakfast. It just looked really nice and the folks there were very helpful. But I need a few ideas on my four day itinerary. Any suggestions? I hope there will still be tulips on May 11th!! Thanks again for all the help!

ilovetulips

I think that you will enjoy Maes. Vlad in particular was a wonderful host. They also have a young man that helps them clean and puts breakfast together and he is great. As I said, the stairs are pretty steep but they help you take your bags up when you check in and down to the lobby area when you check out. Every morning we met different people at breakfast, usually from Britain. The things we did while we were there( really only had 1.5 days after a delay in Dallas) were
1. Van Gogh Museum- wonerful museum that is laid out well. Very user friendly.
2. Heineken Brewery Tour- A neat interactive tour about the making of beer and water conservation along with 3 beers- 10 euros. We thought the tour was well worth the money.
3. Vondelpark- Close to the Museum District. I loved this park. It is so beautiful and locals are all over the place just relaxing and playing. It is a beautiful urban park.
4. Ann Frank House- I enjoyed this tour, but for some reason it didn't reel me in like I thought. Maybe because there were no furnishings to personalize it. It is a great place none the less, I guess I thought it would have stirred more emotions in me.
5. We also stopped to have a beer at a cafe close to the Hard Rock. The day was beautiful and it was relaxing to sit and enjoy a beer. Make sure you stop for drinks and soak in the atomosphere.

ilovetulips

Seek,

I just read your post about distances. To visit the museums(Van Gogh and Rijksmuseum are very close as is Vondelpark), I would suggest trying to figure out the tram system and using them. To walk from Maes to the Museums is a solid 45-50 minutes. The Anne Frank house is pretty easy to walk to and the elevation is flat. Vlad might be able to help figure out the trams, they don't seem to be easy but you will get it after staying for a few days.

seeksocean

Thanks so much. I really appreciate your suggestions. Maes said they would try to put us on the first level (second floor to us). While I have your attention....do you think that my chances are good for seeing tulips still in bloom in mid-May? I love tulips too!

Also, in Amsterdam, what is the tipping protocol? In the USA it seems we tip for absolutely everything? For example, staying at Maes for 4 nights...do we tip there? Cafes, taxis?

If you did figure out the tram system and you have a spare minute or ten, maybe you could write me down what you remember as far as the directions from Maes to the Van Gough, etc. and back to Maes would be. Only if you have time.
Thanks again!!

LSUvetgirl

Not sure what type of handicap he has, but if at all possible I would *highly* recommend renting a bicycle and getting around like a local. There were a few places where I got a bit intimidated (scared) because of traffic, etc. but I'm pretty sure I'm not the first clueless person on a bike that the locals have seen Anyway, we were able to see soooooooo much more of Amsterdam than I know I would have been able to if we had been walking. We only went 1 day before renting bicycles and I felt like we had walked 10 miles! The walks are fairly pleasant, but they eat up a lot of time. The cycling was one of my favorite parts of the trip. And pretty inexpensive as well. And everything's flat so you never really get tired!

ilovetulips

Hi seeksocean,

We were in A-dam at the end of May and I didn't see any tulips, but I would check out Kuekenhof's website to see if their gardens are still open then. You might be able to catch the last bit of the tulips.
Tipping- every guide book I read said that tipping is optional, but if you are pleased with your service leave 2 or 3 euros. I think we left about 8-10% at most restaurants which is probably more than we needed to leave.
My husband just told me that he left 15 euros at Maes( we were there 2 nights.) I am not sure what is customary, but this guy did a wonderful job.

I will try to remember the tram number we took, but when you receive your reservation form, Vlad includes the numbers from Central Station to Maes. He will be much more helpful than I am. Some posters who have visited A-dam several times will know more than me. I was pretty much jet lagged the first day to really understand anything about public transport. Thank god for my calm husband!

seeksocean

Thank so much! Invaluable!! Who did you leave the tip for/with at Maes? 15 Euro sounds fair. When my trip date gets closer, I may be in touch with more questions....Meanwhile, if you have any pearls of wisdom to pass my way, please feel free. We'll be there for 4 nights and 3 full days. Thanks again!

ilovetulips

I think my husband may have directly tipped the man. I remember he was there the day we were checking out. They will keep your things for you after checkout if you plan to see some things before leaving Amsterdam. One tip not just for Maes but any other small locally run hotel or bed and breakfast- try to get some kind of travel insurance through your credit card company. We booked all of our lodging through our American Express card. You have to pay a little extra for the insurance but it might be worthwhile. We planned to be in A-dam 3 nights and then go on to Paris for 5 nights. Our plane was delayed in Austin which caused us to miss our connection in Dallas and we couldn't leave Dallas until 24 hours later. I called Maes as soon as it was a decent hour to let them know that we still wanted our room but we would be there 1 day late. Understandably they weren't able to book it again on such late notice so we had to be charged. I have no negative feelings toward them, they are running a small local business, but we could have been reimbursed our money if we had signed up for this insurance with American Express. Just something to consider because delays are bound to happen when flying internationally. Luckily our room was paid for by American Airlines in Dallas because I would have been sick if we would have been paying for 2 rooms.

seeksocean

Thanks for the info! I have had plenty delayed or canceled flights stories from hell. I don't have Amex, but both my credit cards are travel cards. I'll look into their benefits.

I do have a nonstop to Paris from San Fran (on my miles yet!), so the odds get a little better about at least getting that far.

We will be taking the train to Amsterdam. I also travel with the good ole Costco calling cards. Invaluble no matter what country I am in.

Thanks for the tipping info. It's always an awkward guessing game for me.