Things to Do in Amsterdam: Canals, Museums & Bikes

Amsterdam has more museums per square kilometre than almost any other European city. The Van Gogh Museum holds the largest collection of his work anywhere, the Rijksmuseum covers 800 years of Dutch art, and the Anne Frank House tells the story of the secret annexe on Prinsengracht. Museums in Amsterdam also run smaller and stranger: the Rembrandt House, the Moco for street art and pop, NEMO Science Museum for families, and Red Light Secrets in the old centre.

The Canal Ring is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and a canal cruise from Amsterdam Centraal or the Rijksmuseum is the easiest way to read the city from the water. Above ground, cross the bridges of the Nine Streets, walk the Brouwersgracht, and take a break in Vondelpark or the Hortus Botanicus. The Royal Palace on Dam Square and the Westerkerk tower add the grand set pieces.

Food in Amsterdam runs from market stalls to tasting menus. Albert Cuyp Market in De Pijp has over 260 stalls and has been trading since 1905, which is where to try fresh stroopwafels, poffertjes and kibbeling. The Foodhallen in Oud-West puts dozens of kitchens under one roof in a converted tram depot. For traditional Dutch food, look for bitterballen in a brown café, herring from a street cart, and pancakes on the canals. Some of the best restaurants in Amsterdam sit in De Pijp, the Jordaan and along the Amstel.

Rembrandtplein and Leidseplein hold most of the big Amsterdam night clubs and live venues, including Melkweg and Paradiso, and both squares stay busy well past midnight. De Pijp and the Jordaan trade that for craft beer bars and tasting rooms. Shopping in Amsterdam splits between the Nine Streets for independent boutiques, De Bijenkorf and Kalverstraat for the department stores, and Noord for design studios.

The oldest part of the city and the base most first-time visitors pick. Dam Square, the Royal Palace, Amsterdam Centraal and the Red Light District all sit inside it, and the Anne Frank House is a short walk along Prinsengracht. The four main canals curve around the centre, so almost everything here is reachable on foot. It is also the busiest and loudest area, which is worth knowing before you book a room.

Built as a workers' district in the 17th century and now one of the most expensive parts of Amsterdam. The Jordaan is full of small galleries, specialist shops, brown cafés and street markets such as Noordermarkt and the Lindengracht market on Saturdays. Narrow streets and hidden courtyards make it good for slow walking, and the Anne Frank House sits on its eastern edge.

The most mixed neighbourhood in the city and the one food-focused visitors head for. Albert Cuyp Market runs down its spine six days a week, Sarphatipark gives it a green centre, and the side streets are lined with Surinamese, Turkish, Syrian and Dutch kitchens. Nights here are bars and tasting rooms rather than clubs, and the Heineken Experience sits at the northern end.

Three of the best attractions in Amsterdam stand around one square here: the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum and the Stedelijk. Vondelpark begins a few minutes west, the Concertgebouw hosts classical concerts most nights, and P.C. Hooftstraat handles the designer shopping. Quieter and greener than the centre, with tram links that get you to Dam Square in about ten minutes.

We recommend: first-time highlights

We recommend: museums and canals

We recommend: neighbourhoods, markets and food

We recommend: windmills, tulips and the coast

The easiest day trip from Amsterdam and the one most people picture when they think of the Netherlands. Trains from Centraal reach Zaandijk Zaanse Schans in about 17 minutes, and the open-air site recreates an 18th and 19th-century Dutch village with working windmills, a cheese farm and a clog workshop along the Zaan.

Keukenhof in Lisse opens from 19 March to 10 May 2026, with peak colour usually falling between 10 and 25 April. Getting there from Amsterdam takes around 1 hour 20 minutes by train and combination bus, and the tulip fields in the surrounding bulb region are free to cycle past.

Fifteen minutes by train and noticeably calmer than the capital. Haarlem has its own canals, a large market square under the Grote Kerk, the Frans Hals Museum and a set of hidden almshouse courtyards. It also puts you 10 minutes from the beach at Zandvoort on the same line.

Two old fishing villages on the IJsselmeer, reached by regional bus from behind Centraal in under an hour rather than by train. Volendam has the harbour front and the traditional dress photo studios; Marken, a former island, has green timber houses and a lighthouse walk. Many visitors add the cheese market town of Edam.

The closest stretch of North Sea coast, about 25 minutes by direct train. Wide sand, beach pavilions that serve food from spring to autumn, dunes behind the town for walking, and the Circuit Zandvoort motor racing track a short way north.

A village in Overijssel with canals instead of roads, thatched farmhouses and more than 170 wooden bridges. It takes about two hours each way, by train to Steenwijk and then a local bus, so treat it as a full day out or take a guided tour that includes the boat.