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A city full of history, small streets and canals, amazing pastries, lovely people, and high energy, Amsterdam is a destination that needs to be on your bucket list! I have visited the city a few times, and each time I fall more in love with Amsterdam and the Netherlands itself.

In this blog, I’m going to share a budget friendly inspired guide for the best things to see and do in Amsterdam, along with my favorite places to eat!

This blog will be set up a little bit differently, because instead of giving you a day-by-day itinerary, you will have the freedom to design your own trip. All you have to do is pick about 3-4 activities per day, and that way you create the best itinerary for you and your trip! This way you can also use this blog to make a day trip to Amsterdam, a two day trip, or however long you please.

Read all the way to the bottom for day trip ideas outside of Amsterdam to explore more of the Netherlands!

At a glance:
Why I love Amsterdam and the Netherlands
How to Get to Amsterdam
My Favorite Museums in Amsterdam
Must-try Dutch Foods
Must-do Canal Tour
My Favorite Spots to Eat in Amsterdam
More Things To Do in Amsterdam
Day Trips from Amsterdam

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Why I love Amsterdam and the Netherlands

Growing up, one of my mom’s best friends lived in the Netherlands, so she always sent us tons of Dutch gifts to enjoy back in the United States. Some of my favorites were the wooden clogs and matching clog slippers, a pan to make poffertjes along with a box mix to make the batter, and plenty of Dutch cheese! Since she had exposed us to so many Dutch favorites, I was excited to have the opportunity to visit her and her family, explore the country’s culture and history, and actually see what it was like to live here.

I have visited the Netherlands twice, the first time while solo traveling, and I stayed about a week and a half in 2022, and the second time for a week in 2024, staying with my mom’s best friend and her family both times. I’m so thankful she was so willing to host me (and my parents during 2024!) and share her home & culture with me!

Each time I’ve come to the Netherlands, I fall more in love with the country and could actually see myself living here one day. The city of Amsterdam is so young and lively, I feel like I could easily find my place (despite the apartment situation being one of the most complicated!) and live for a few years. Outside of Amsterdam, where I’ve spent most of my time, I love the smaller towns and cities because they have so much charm and history. I also love how huge biking culture is here! Literally there are more bikes than people!

All of my recommendations in this blog come from my experiences when visiting, and some of them are even inspired by my mom’s friends.

How to Get to Amsterdam

Amsterdam is an easily accessible city as they have a huge international airport, Schiphol, that is often a layover spot for long haul flights, yet also Amsterdam is a city connected to the Eurostar which is the high speed train connecting London to Paris and Brussels.

If you’re coming from Paris, I always book my train through SNCF, which is also connected to the Eurostar. Your train will leave from Gare du Nord, pretty central in Paris, and will bring you to Amsterdam Centraal in about 3.5 hours. Ticket prices are always ranging so it’s hard to give an estimate!

If you’re coming from another city, you can always use Omio to check the prices between trains, buses, and flights. This app has been reliable for me in a lot of European countries!

My Favorite Museums in Amsterdam

The Anne Frank House

I visited the Anne Frank House on my second visit to Amsterdam, and this is one place that everyone needs to visit. A somber and heavy experience, yet beautifully layed out and allows you to really understand what Anne, her family, and many other endured during World War II, by the way of Anne’s words directly pulled from her diary.

This is a highly visited site, so I recommend booking your tickets as they go on sale, usually about 1 month in advance. My first trip to Amsterdam, I had only looked at tickets a week or two before and they were already sold out.

Van Gogh

The Van Gogh Museum is another must-see museum in Amsterdam. This museum offers a unique experience because it is home to the largest collection of artwork by Van Gogh in the world, which allows you to see the world through his eyes and see his progression as an artist throughout his life. As Van Gogh was born in the Netherlands and played a pivotal role in Impressionism, this is a quintessential part of a trip to the Netherlands!

Rijksmuseum

If you’re looking to immerse yourself in Dutch history, the Rijksmuseum is the place to go. As the largest museum in the Netherlands, it holds history dating back to 800 years ago with famous artists like Rembrandt, Johannes Vermeer, and Van Gogh.

As someone who is just beginning to appreciate and enjoy museums, I really enjoyed exploring the Rijksmuseum, and also felt that the set up was slightly similar to the Louvre (minus it not being an old castle and being focused on Dutch artworks).

The Moco Museum

As an old house turned into a modern art museum, the Moco Museum is a fun spot to explore new artists and creations. Here, they didn’t just have art being displayed on the walls, they also had immersive rooms to explore, uniquely designed by emerging artists. My favorite part was seeing Banksy’s art on display!

Must-try Dutch Foods

Poffertjes

One of my favorite Dutch sweets are poffertjes! I grew up eating these as my mom’s friend had sent us a special pan & ingredients to make them in the U.S., so this was one of my top things to try in the Netherlands.

Poffertjes are tiny, bitesized Dutch pancakes that can be eaten as you walk through the streets of Amsterdam. They have lots of different toppings, but the most traditional is with powdered sugar!

I thought they would be more widely available in Amsterdam, but I had a hard time actually tracking them down! I can’t remember the spot I ended up trying in the city, but I do remember they were quite expensive for the amount you get. I much preferred the ones I had in Kinderdijk!

Stroopwafels

Stroopwafels were second on my list to try in the Netherlands because they were another favorite of mine growing up! On the contrary to the poffertjes, stroopwafels are incredibly easy to find throughout Amsterdam. Though! They can be quite pricey in the city! I’ve seen them anywhere between 4 and 7 euros.

Stroopwafels are made of two thinly waffle pressed cookies held together by caramel syrup. If you’re looking for a traditional experience, definitely try the stroopwafels from Hans Egstorf. Though they are pricy here, this is the oldest bakery in Amsterdam, and the stroopwafels are made fresh to order! This was definitely worth a trip.

You can also find siroopwafels native to Gouda, which have a thicker caramel filling and crispier waffle cookie. The original spot in for siroopwafels in Gouda is at the Kamphuisen Siroopwafel Factory – definitely a must try!

Outside of Amsterdam, I’ve had a fresh of the press stroopwafel in Gouda for only 50 cents! And it was incredible. Just as good, if not better than the pricey ones, if I were to admit!. So depending on where you are in the Netherlands, the prices of stroopwafels will definitely vary.

Bitterballen

This might be my new favorite Dutch food! It’s fun to say and so tasty. Bitterballen is almost like a fried meatball, but the consistency of the filling has a gravy or stew like feel to it. This is an absolute classic Dutch appetizer, we always have it when eating out with my mom’s friend’s family!

The picture below is a few Dutch appetizers we had when having a drink along the beach at Hart Beach Restaurant in The Hague! The bitterballen is on the bottom, and I don’t remember what the other two are but they were really good as well.

Gouda cheese

When in the Netherlands, you absolutely cannot leave without trying Gouda cheese! I’m sure you’ve all tried it at some point in your life as it’s widely found, especially in the US, but it is the absolute freshest in the Netherlands.

Gouda cheese comes from the city of Gouda, which is about a 30 minute – 1 hour train ride from Amsterdam, making it a super easy day trip if you want to experience the absolute freshest Gouda cheese.

You can have samplings of Gouda cheese throughout most of the Gouda stores in Amsterdam! This is such a fun (and cheap) activity, perfect for trying many unique flavors. The most bizarre flavor I tried was a lavender goat cheese (not Gouda, yes). It wasn’t my favorite, but it also surprisingly wasn’t that bad.

Fun fact: Gouda is actually pronounced <how-da> with a harsh H in Dutch!

Dutch apple pie

The last Dutch food that I think is a must-try is Dutch apple pie, or appeltaart. To be honest, I’m not sure what differentiates a Dutch apple pie from an American apple pie, but the one we had at Tazzina café was absolutely heavenly. Though, since this was an Italian café, this could have been more of an Italian apple pie. Nonetheless, this is a staple in the Netherlands! I will go more into detail about this café below.

Must-do Canal Tour

It’s hard to decide what my favorite thing to do in Amsterdam is, but this canal tour is probably #1. I did the cheese and wine tour along the canals my first trip to Amsterdam when I met up with my study abroad friend who was coincidentally also in the city for a few days and it was so fun!

This is the canal tour we took, the “Amsterdam: Classic Boat Cruise with Optional Cheese & Wine“, and I wouldn’t even look any further at other ones because it was really the best. This tour offered basically unlimited Gouda cheese and wine, taught us history about Amsterdam and the Netherlands, and even some fun facts along the way. This is a great way to see the city by way of the water, offering a chance to relax and enjoy a snack.

My Favorite Spots to Eat in Amsterdam

Café Brasserie Meuwese

A family owned business since 1969, my parents and I stumbled upon this restaurant for dinner before ending our day trip to Amsterdam. We were so pleasantly surprised by this spot, the staff was so sweet and the food was incredible! I would 100% come back here the next time I come to Amsterdam.

Here I ordered their burrata salad with a size of fries, and they also gave us a complementary baguette with butter. The salad and fries were perfect and just what I was craving!

Tazzina

My parents and I stumbled upon Tazzina café before we headed to the Anne Frank Museum, and it ended up being such a hidden gem. This is a traditional Italian café, and everything from the cute interior, large group of locals enjoying their coffee on the terrace, the friendly staff, and the amazing sandwiches made this spot really hit a home run.

To be honest, I don’t remember which sandwich I had ordered, but we each ordered something different and shared the apple pie to finish, and everything was so delicious!

More Things To Do in Amsterdam

Picnic in the park

When I came to Amsterdam the first time, my friends and I decided to have a little picnic at Vondelpark. We picked up fruits and snacks at a nearby grocery store and then enjoyed the afternoon in the sun before heading to our canal tour! This was a great activity to enjoy Amsterdam how locals do, and also have a chance to relax as we’d been very active trying to see as many things as possible.

Rent out bikes and explore the city on two wheels

One thing you’ll immediately notice when you visit not just Amsterdam, but the Netherlands as a whole, is how much they use bikes as their main form of transportation! So much so, that there are literally more bikes than people in the whole country! Naturally, renting out a bike to see Amsterdam from a new vantage point should be on the top of your list of activities.

Personally, I actually haven’t gotten to rent bikes in Amsterdam, but I’ve ridden quite a bit in the town where my mom’s friend lives! Next time I visit Amsterdam I definitely plan to rent out bikes.

The Albert Cuyp Market

The Albert Cuyp Market is the largest outdoor market in the city and has been around for over 100 years, filled with stands selling everything from freshly made goods, fresh produce, clothing, flowers, and lots more. I loved strolling through and seeing super unique items and tasting along the way!

For even more background on this market, check out this very well written blog detailing its history since day 1.

Day Trips from Amsterdam

If you’re looking to explore more of the Netherlands, here are some ideas for day trips you can make nearby!

Gouda

As mentioned earlier, the city of Gouda is the birthplace of Gouda cheese, but it’s also known for so much more! Only 30 minutes to 1 hour from Amsterdam by train, Gouda makes for a very easy day trip. Check out a full guide to a day trip to Gouda here!

The Haag

The Haag is a coastal city in the Netherlands located right on the North Sea. This is a perfect option if you want to spend the day on the beach, or even visit the Madurodam museum nearby!

Kinderdijk

To explore even more of the Netherland’s history, taking a trip to Kinderdijk is a must. Here, you’ll discover the windmills that help power the Netherlands and keep the country above sea-level. This is also dedicated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site!

I hope to make my blog on Kinderdijk soon, I will update this blog when it’s done!

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I hope you enjoyed my guide for visiting Amsterdam, along with some bonus tips and tricks for visiting the rest of the Netherlands! If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment :)

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Xx,
Carmela