Places to visit in Amsterdam with little time to spare?

[Martha2]

I will be visiting Amsterdam for the second time in late August/early September for business. Last time I was there for a conference, I had so little time to enjoy the sights that I was only able to visit the Anne Frank House (which was definitely worth it).
I know that I should visit the museums and plan to, but would like some suggestions of other places that would be worthwhile to check out. (
I have already walked through the RL dist., been to the sex museum and visited the coffee houses and brown bars)
I'll appreciate any suggestions!

[boots]

Hi
We are planning a trip in the spring and have found intersting places outside the city, to visit. From a "typical" period style village to the war memorials and just plain beautiful countryside, including the windmills! You may enjoy getting out of the city.

So what did you think of the RL district and the sex museum. I have it on my list, but the ladies I'm traveling with, will go to the district, but no more. Guess it's a trip on my own to the more
liberated locations.

Linda [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif[/img]

[Martha2]

It's certainly interesting, but I wasn't overly impressed with the RL district. The sex museum really should be called the history of pornography museum. Funny to think of the Victorian men and women that way.
The coffee houses were fine, but I much more enjoyed the atmosphere of the brown bars. Friendly, comfortable pubs - some with some fantastic artwork covering the walls and ceiling.
Next time I visit, I would like to venture out of the city to Haarlem and the seaside.

[tangiergal]

I went to Amsterdam in May of 2003 and had a great time. My first piece of advice is to pick up a guide by "Boom Chicago", I think they have a website too. They are an American comedy troupe and are associated with 2nd City (home of lots of SNL cast mbrs). I wish I gotten it my first day and avoided the very touristy canal boat ride. One nice thing is that everyone speaks English and they are so friendly!!! The Rijks Museum is a must see (I think parts of it might be closed), and I also really enjoyed Van Gogh Museum. Two sites I really enjoyed were the Amelstkring(sp?)-a hidden Catholic Church, and a quiet community in the heart of the city for single women (I forgot the name). I would recommend walking around the Red Light District, it is a weird yer truly a unique experience. It was rainy & cold most days there, I was finally able to sit in cafe on my last day there...it was great to sit & relax and just people watch. I took a day trip to Delft which was great, however you can pass on the cheese market in Alkmaar...very touristy!!!

[ongmont]

Boom Chicago is a pretty good comedy evening - of course, humour is very subjective and ymmv. But they also ran amd may still run a smallish sightseeing boat up and down the canals, much more informal and casual than the "better established" ones. www.boomchicago.nl
Cheers
O.

[Ada]

The best way to see much of Amsterdam in a short period is to make one of the canalboatrides.
They last about 1 hour and leave ao opposite Central Station.
There also special sailings (mostly in weekends) incl. dinner and/or cheese and wine sailings.

[judyzoo]

I definitely agree that a canal boat ride is a must; even the "touristy" ride was worthwhile. The canals are, after all, a big part of Amsterdam. Also, I'd suggest that you enjoy a ristaffel meal. And, there's the Heineken brewery.

[Unregistered]

places in amsterdam..... pufff, many many many first rent a bike so you will be able to enjoy amsterdam as a citizen. enjoy coffeeshops, but not too much because you wont remember what you saw. Musseums are all toguether, reserve 1 morning at list for them or you will regret in the future. It is nice to visit the city or to have dinner in a cruise around the chanels. The flowers street , the jew neibordhood (jordan) and watterloo market are places that you can not ignore. Heineken museum is a place that a beer drinker can not escape, u will regret if not. and if you get tired of you see everything of amsterdam, visit Rotterdam, all new city rebuild after WWII that does not have anything to do with Amsterdam but is a right new modern european city.

[Ada]

Jordan is not a jew neighbourhood, just a ordinary (now more or lees upscale)_ neighbourhood with that name.
The old jew neighbourhood hardly exists anymore, but some of it can be found around waterlooplein.

[oregonsixteen]

I have 3 full days in Amsterdam in Aug 2006. How many places can I visit and which are the "must see" places? Thanks!!!!

[Ada]

In the city there is enough to see and do for 2 days.
If you still have time, take a train to Koog-Zaandijk and visit Zaandse Schans with old still working windmills etc.
Or the nice old city of Delft, maybe incombination with Haarlem.

[oregonsixteen]

Thanks for the suggestion. I'm visiting Amsterdam with 2 other people who haven't visited before. The last time I was in Holland, I saw Utrecht and a bit of Amsterdam. What can we do in Delft and Haarlem?

In the city there is enough to see and do for 2 days.
If you still have time, take a train to Koog-Zaandijk and visit Zaandse Schans with old still working windmills etc.
Or the nice old city of Delft, maybe incombination with Haarlem.

[Ada]

In Delft you can walk around the old town which also has some nice canals.
http://www.delft.nl/webEN/

If you like visit Royal Delft:http://www.royaldelft.com/index.cfm? and
see how the original Delft Blue is made and/or buy this in the shop. On Marktplein there are some beautiful old buildings and of course the big Nieuwe kerk, in which the dutch royals are buried.

In Haarlem the townhall and the big old church in Marktplein are worth a visit. Nice shopping in various surrounding streets.
Famous is the house of Coby ten Boom house whre during WWII a.o. jewish people were hidden. http://www.vvvzk.nl/engels/index.htm

Not too far from Amsterdam is Zaanse Schans:http://www.zaanseschans.nl/

Have some great days!

[giggster11]

We took Mike's Bike Tours in Amsterdam. Money we thought well spent. We rode around to a few places in the city and got plenty of history and culture. We rode out of the city and into the countryside to check out a windmill that Rembrandt used in paintings, and to a cheese farm and clog factory. It was an interesting tour. We saw the Red Light District as well, Anne Frank House, and did plenty of canal walking.

[lars89]

No visit to Amsterdam would be complete without visiting Red Light District area. It is the Amsterdam’s primary tourist attractions. It covers a huge area in the City's oldest part and has been servicing the requirements and desires of tourists and locals for five hundred years. There is a wide variety of adult shops and entertainment mixed in with a few surprising attractions such as the Erotic Museum and the Hash & Marijuana Museum.