Amsterdam is the perfect city to spend 2 to 3 days, totally disconnected.
Indeed, this city is unlike any other, with its network of canals, its colorful and sometimes leaning facades, its magnificent museums, its good international restaurants, not to mention its bicycles!
I was able to visit this city for the first time in April 2022. As always, I had prepared the program well in advance to visit as many things as possible in a short time. Despite this preparation I had many surprises, because Amsterdam is truly an amazing city!
Here is my detailed report, with my most successful photos.
Day 1: From the "trendy" NDSM district to the historic heart of the city
For this first day, I first focused on the hotel area: the ClinkNOORD, which is also a very lively youth hostel.
This hotel / hostel is located in the “trendy” NDSM district (abbreviation for “Nederlandsche Dok en Scheepsbouw Maatschappij”).
The building that houses it is that of a former laboratory of the oil and gas giant Shell.
I can only recommend it, especially because of its value for money and its proximity to the center of Amsterdam. It is located right next to the shuttle boat pier which connects Amsterdam station to this area (NDSM).
So I visited this district, in particular the Street Art museum, which more than a museum is a place of exhibition of giant Street Art works. You can even watch some of them being created live, it’s really impressive.
The museum is located in a former shipbuilding warehouse, it is the perfect place to exhibit works of this size!
Then head to the center of Amsterdam by boat…
165 canals, 1,281 bridges, 1,000,000 bicycles… This city is truly amazing. I was able to discover it on foot and by boat, here are some photos taken during this afternoon.
What impressed me the most and that I advise you to see: the Dancing houses! These are 6 colorful and inclined houses, due to their method of construction (on stilts) and the marshy ground on which they were built.
If you do the tourist boat tour on the canals, you will necessarily pass by, and the guide will give you all the explanations on them.
Day 2: Royal Palace, Rembrandt House Museum ...
For the second day, I started with the visit of the Royal Palace. I was very lucky it seems, because it is rarely open to the public.
Many rooms are accessible and visible, the most impressive being the throne room, the banquet hall and of course the royal crown room.
You can also visit the old court, which was visible from the square (judgments and executions were thus public!).
You will also be able to see the royal balcony from inside the building, without being able to go there of course.
After this very interesting visit, I headed to the Rembrandt House Museum, on foot of course, to enjoy the city.
As its name suggests, the museum is located in the former home of the painter Rembrandt. We can therefore see where he lived, and see some of his works, in particular engravings.
Do not expect a museum with his greatest paintings, the purpose of this place is rather to show what the daily life of the painter looked like in his place of life. It is therefore very original and interesting!
After this visit, I ventured to the Hortus Botanicus, which is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world! Its greenhouses and suspension bridges are really worth seeing.
A passage then to the memorial of the Holocaust, and a wandering in the city at random of the districts.
Amsterdam wouldn’t be Amsterdam without the famous Red Light District, so I went there, and it is indeed very lively at night !
Here are the photos taken during this afternoon and evening.
