Amsterdam

[ewanrob]

Anyone of you good ladies or gents who have been lately, finally got round to planning a bit of a trip after my Treatment last year. Good places to visit, eat & drink ?

[FactualFrank]

My sister's friend has lived there a few years, so if you don't get much response here I can ask for you.

[claretonthecoast1882]

Went last year with England, didn't see anyone eat in the 3 days there. Places to drink... every place is good over there

[cockneyclaret]

Look for the supper club

[Bosscat]

The Sex Museum good for a laugh m8

Heineken Brewery tour not bad

[ClaretAndBlue94]

The Pantry was excellent when I visited.

Couple of really nice Indonesian places as well to eat in the same area.

[Giftonsnoidea]

Just been! Eye wateringly expensive mate! I liked it better better when I paid in Gilders!

Lost in Amsterdam was decent for cocktails, smoking waitresses + smoking (if its your thing)

Sichuan chinese retaurant an old haunt of mine, just outside the red light district, that too has become crazy expensive.

Radisson in Sloterdijk is 6 mins from city centre, around £60-70 a night in a modern hotel, depends what your budget is, customer service could have been better but hotel was really nice.

get a halifax clarity card for no fees spending

[DCWat]

Just heading home from Amsterdam as I type this.

Body World Museum, Anne Frank Museum, Museum of Prostitution, Sex Museum, Harmsen Restaurant, Red Light District. Great City and very friendly people.

[Croydon Claret]

If you're going in the Spring then I fully recommend booking a day trip to Keukenhof

https://keukenhof.nl/en/

[Bosscat]

If you're going in the Spring then I fully recommend booking a day trip to Keukenhof

https://keukenhof.nl/en/

Been 3 times Croydon (last time last May) fantastic day out....

[Dark Cloud]

A beautiful city and actually quite small and easy enough to get about on foot. Lots of great bars/pubs (Golam bar where they brew their own beer) and plenty on Haymarket. The red light area is actually really "interesting" and although it can mean quite a bit of queuing up, The Anne Frank house is a must.

[Bangers&Mash]

https://www.foodhallen.nl

http://www.mosselengin.nl

[Jambounchained]

Been 4 times. There’s a restaurant called Red which I’d thoroughly recommend. They literally only do steak and it’s to die for.

The blue cheese chocolate soufflé for dessert sounds disgusting but it was in reality absolutely incredible.

[lizardlad]

I enjoyed the coffee shops

[tarkys_ears]

I've been to the airport once, 12 years ago...

Nice pint of Heineken

Will that help ya!?

[jdrobbo]

I highly recommend a trip to Leiden, which is just 20 minutes away by train. We stayed there before and are hoping to go back soon. In my opinion, Amsterdam is good for a day trip, but the aforementioned town is far, far nicer. Google it up!

[timshorts]

I highly recommend a trip to Leiden, which is just 20 minutes away by train. We stayed there before and are hoping to go back soon. In my opinion, Amsterdam is good for a day trip, but the aforementioned town is far, far nicer. Google it up!

Amsterdam is too full of tourists. And too full of the sort of tourists that go to Amsterdam for sex and drugs.
Practically anywhere else in the Netherlands I'd recommend.
Try the breda jazz festival week. I'm not a great jazz fan but there is something for a spectrum of tastes. I was lucky that a trip to rotterdam coincided with 2 cricket one dayers v Ireland a couple of years ago. Free to get in, a really good barbecue and you could basically sit on the boundary and chat to the players.
Football is pretty similar to what we'd get at home in the championship but there are a few slightly insane places to visit. The home tribune at mvv maastricht doesn't match anything I've come across over here. It's hard to get in an away end though unless you have a special card. I had one for nac for a bit but don't get there often enough for it to be worth while.
One place I've not been is leiden. I'll give it a try on your recommendation.

[California Colner]

Try the Banana bar in the red light district
You’ll have fun in there

[Bosscat]

The cheese festival in Alkmaar is good fun.

[chorleyhere]

If you are going to visit the Anne Frank house best to pre-book as it can be very busy. Only 200 non booked places available and these go very quickly.

[superdimitri]

I highly recommend a trip to Leiden, which is just 20 minutes away by train. We stayed there before and are hoping to go back soon. In my opinion, Amsterdam is good for a day trip, but the aforementioned town is far, far nicer. Google it up!

I lived in Leiden for a few years. Lovely place. I liked being close to the Hague which I think is also nicer than Amsterdam.

Really depends what the op is looking for though, plenty of reasons to go to Amsterdam outside of the stereotype. Some great pubs and places to visit.

Having lived in Amsterdam too I can say I was pleased when I moved away to Leiden.

[longsidepies]

Haarlem, 15 mins by train from Amsterdam, is a lovely little town to base yourself away from the hustle and bustle of Amsterdam. As someone mentioned above, if you go in the spring, try and visit keukenhof area. We did it last year but we hired bikes from Haarlem and rode along the canalside to keukenhof. It's a free show along the way as all the fields are full of beautiful multi coloured tulips. No need to pay an entry fee then at keukenhof as you've already seen the flowers!

[TVC15]

Been twice - 20 years ago and last year to visit my daughter who was living there for a few months.
I was very surprised last year as to how different it was from the first time - much cleaner and far more beautiful than I remember but it was probably because my daughter knew all the best bits to visit and the weather was much nicer too.
The food hall was great, some nice parks and some great restaurants too. The Banksy exhibition I think is still on and we enjoyed that. The other main museums are good too.
I found it a nice city to walk round and explore and the fact that it’s only an hour away flight is good to. The train from the airport info the city is also quick and easy to use.

[padihamclaret]

Absolutely love Amsterdam, has a lot to offer. Drinking wise Cafe Gollem, cafe Belgique (tiny bar off dam square selling good Belgian beers,) Ardennest (a nice bar in the Jordaan that sells only dutch products,) the Wildeman (a famous bar with an excellent range) and my favourite the Ij brewery tap (a bar in a windmill that still has a small brewery in it)
Food wise, the Argentina steak houses are superb. The chinese floating in the harbour near centraal station is superb. Found a very good pizza parlour in dam square that cooked them in a pizza oven.
Theres lots of sights to see, the rijks museum, the van Gogh museum, the resistance museum, the ajax stadium tour, the town hall in dam square. Personally, I just love getting lost in the picturesque streets and popping in somewhere for a beer.
It's not the cheapest of places but most european cities that have the euro aren't

[ewanrob]

Many thanks for all your kind responses

[ClaretAndBlue94]

Zaanse Schans was my favourite day out whilst in Amsterdam.

About half an hour on the bus from the station and free entry. Really nice place to visit and a nice craft pub in the village attached to it.

[Hopey1786]

There's pros







And there's cons to Amsterdam

[KateR]

all depends what you are looking for, where you stay and are you willing to travel. Have been many times over numerous years, used the trains a lot with ease.

Day trips for example, Haarlem was a good shout, lovely place, great market square. Bloemendaal aan Zee nice seaside town, good beaches so if the weather is favorable a good day out relaxing.

In Amsterdam typically stayed at:
Rembrandtplein, the square has numerous hotels close, lot's of bars/clubs etc. and probably chosen area to stay, relatively short walk to the Main Train Station where you would pass RLD, the Main Shopping Street for the city, Madam Tussauds, etc.
OR
Leidseplein, the square offers a little more, a bit more upmarket but is more expensive, longer walk to the Main Train Station, it is at the end of the Main Shopping Street, so you can see all of it though. Good blues and jazz places around the square.

Enjoy.

[gsyclaret]

Try the Banana bar in the red light district
You’ll have fun in there

Went in there, some stripper was gyrating with some guys tie, needless to say he binned it afterwards.

[Tricky Trevor]

Keukenhof in Spring is a must. Far more than the flowers. Last time we were there they hada birds display on and there is a windmill tour on site.
Leiden is great the station S. of the Central station has the best traffic interchange I’ve ever seen, P+R, bus and train stations all together but far more to it than just that fact.
You’ve already had all the best tips for the city.
Anne Frank museum
Rijksmuseum
Canal cruise
Diamond district
Ajax stadium
Anything else that might float your boat, sex, drugs, rock’n’roll.

[ewanrob]

Was soooooo looking forward to our trip, heyho doesn't look like we will make it. Only so long before non movement I would guess.

[fatboy47]

Been......not my bag.

Same with the Mrs.

Prefer Barcelona by a stretch.

[Billy Balfour]

Amsterdam is great for its museums, however, if you're going mainly for the booze and weed etc, you may as well save yourself a lot of time and money and hop on the X43.

[IanMcL]

Thought it was closed!

[FactualFrank]

Thought it was closed!

That's Hull.

[IanMcL]

That is very nearby though!

[pushpinpussy]

its a really sh it hole. full of dutch lads offering you drugs. most people off their heads on drugs and alcohol and it will cost you a small fortune for the pleasure.

[Quickenthetempo]

Someone I know has been moved out of his city centre hotel this morning to one outside of the city.

[Aclaret]

My advice if you are going without the Mrs....plenty of booze, sex museum, get turned on, do some window shopping, buy your goods then bang the ass off her. Get home, tell the Mrs you had a Great time but probably wouldn't go again without her. Good luck.