Tulip fields will probably still be in bloom. I would visit the Keukenhof Gardens even if you're not a big flower guy, they're pretty spectacular.

Zaanse Schans on the far north end is sort of an open air museum of traditional Holland with windmills, old houses, cheese making shops, wooden clogs and all of that stuff.

Lots of good art museums in AMS. And if you don't get your fill there you can take a day trip to the Kroller-Moller museum. It's in the middle of a giant park and you can rent a bike and ride around.

Haarlem is a good day trip. If you want to go further, Antwerp is a really cool place to visit as well.

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Posted by purpgold718

Amsterdam, NL

Member since Sep 2008

763 posts

Posted on 3/23/25 at 1:12 pm to Merlin1200

Hey,

quote:
I am heading to Amsterdam for a week in early May. What are some can't miss things you'd recommend doing while there?

So I think you’ll have most of the year-round things already on your list and a lot of things are weather dependent, i.e. you’ll want mostly sunny weather and minimum 65°F to truly enjoy is them, these denoted with an asterisk

- Rijksmuseum
- Van Gogh musuem (buy your ticket/book your timeslot at least couple days in advance, more if planning to go on a weekend day)
- Stedelijk Museum (modern art, located in the Museumplein (Museum square) near the other two.
- Renting a bike and cycling around town especially through the Vondelpark* bring a blanket/sarong and a light picnic (beers, weed, bites, whatever) and find an inviting plot of grass to plop down and people watch; and/or alternatively go to the Blauwe Theehuis, it’s a brewpup owned by the Brouwerij ‘t IJ (sometimes referred to as the “windmill brewery” - because of their OG brewpub location in a windmill on the eastern side of the cuty center) - enjoy a cold one right in the middle of the park.
- Generally just strolling around the grachtengordel (canal belt) and Jordaan districts.

quote:
and want to do some day trips within an hour of the city.

- The Hague - visit the Mauritshuis & MC Escher Museums
- Delft - quaint classically Dutch town, easy enough to combine with the Hague due to its proximity
- Utrecht - the country’s 4th largest city, it has a unique double-tiered main canal in which houses and bars, restaurants and businesses are built into the canal wall, with a second embankment of “werf” in front of them.
- Noord-Holland cycling circuit* - rent an bike (or e-bike if you want to exert less effort) and cycle to the North of Amsterdam to the villages of Broek-en-waterland, Monnickedam, Volendam, Marken and Edam; it’s ambitious but all can be done in a day, you’ll see lots of traditional quaint Dutch countryside along the way; alternatively you can also get to these places by private tour or self-guided using the local bus network

quote:
Love food, hole in the wall pubs, art, and just exploring new places/things.

For hall in the wall pubs, I recommend Café Belgique, Café Soundgarden, Checkpoint Charlie, De Nieuwe Anita and Café Brecht - all of these places have a nice mix of Dutch & International (mainly resident locals vs tourists) clientele, so they won’t feel overly touristy.

For food let me copy paste what I have in several other posts and add below.

quote:
Would you recommend a pre paid train card or just pay per ticket? Any tips are appreciated!

Not sure what pre-paid options are offered specifically for the trains (NS, not GVB which is the local Amsterdam city transport provider) for non-residents. Without overthinking the easiest is if you have a Apple Wallet or chipped card with contactless then you can use that to “check in and out” when boarding/disembarking - then it will just be charged directly to your card.

If you want the convoluted answer we need to backtrack a bit. You can by a Museumkaart (museum card) which allows you access to 100s of museums nationwide including most of the most famous ones (Moco Museum in Amsterdam and Escher in the Hague are notable exceptions) for a whole year for only €60.

Problem is you need a Dutch address for the card to be sent to, so you could try and register and ask your accommodation if they’ll receive the mail on your behalf - at most museums you’ll still need to go to the online ticket booking platform and book a €0 ticket/time-slot (this will definitely be the case for Rijks and Van Gogh at least).

If you do this with success then scrap the city card and either use your contactless card pay as mentioned or you can by the 24, 48 hour multi-day passes from GVB which will give you unlimited rides on GVB operated buses, trams and metros for the indicated period - but obviously you need to make adequate use of it to make it worthwhile.

Not sure the fares - I have a special OV chipkaart (Dutch Oyster Card, basically) with a subscription that gives me 40% discount on standard fares weekends and non-peak hours and pay a monthly bill for it.

Hope this helps, restaurants and bars to follow (with some overlap from suggestions above) - any more specific followup questions based on my feedback so far, just asi!

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Posted by purpgold718

Amsterdam, NL

Member since Sep 2008

763 posts

Posted on 3/23/25 at 1:52 pm to purpgold718

quote:
Hope this helps, restaurants and bars to follow (with some overlap from suggestions above)

As promised see below, note the restaurant Parakeet will have permanently closed by the time you arrive, all other info should still be relevant:

quote:
if you’re a confident urban cyclist do rent a bike as it’s the best way to get around, point your fingers intuitively left or right as turn signals (none this weird 90 degrees angle with your left arm shite).

Visit and cycle through the Vondelpark, do some sort of canal cruise - self-piloted with Sloep Delen or Mokum Boot are good bets.

If you’re really an avid cyclist and want a relaxing excursion away from Amsterdam’s hustle and hustle you can cycle northward to the quaint fishing villages of Monnickedam, Marken, Volendam and Edam the whole circuit can be done in a day.

For drinks and food I can throw some tailored recommendations in you let indicate your interests, OP, but a few favorites:

- Aarenssnest a quaint pub in the heart of the canal belt specializing in Dutch beers

- Brouwerij ‘t IJ, Amsterdam’s oldest and most well known craft brewery, there original brewpub is in the shadow of/attached to a historic windmill on the eastern fringes of the city center. They have another location called “Het Blauwe Theehuis” (the blue tea house) in the middel of Vondelpark which I prefer.

- Café Brecht - a Berlin style quirky cafe, modeled after a turn of century living room, they have a good rotating selection of German Beers and snacks, as well as some nicely priced seasonally rotating cocktails and natural wines. Slightly eccentric artsy crowd, but also yuppy-ish and trendy.

- Sins of Sal - trendy cocktail bar with high end bites inspired by latin American fare with a twist (primarily Mexican)

- Hannekes Boom - a favorite of locals and tourists alike, sporting a large waterfront terrace with several docks and lovely views onto the city center , on sunny days patrons arrive on foot, by bike or boat.

- FUKU Ramen - a high-end Ramen joint serving a very excellent value for money tasting menu, and hosting walk-in ala carte days on Sundays.

- Luminair - trendy rooftop cocktail perched atop the Hilton Doubletree next to Centraal Station, unparalleled views over the city center.

- Tales & Spirits - another excellent cocktail bar.

- Blauw - high-end Indonesian cuisine, which the Dutch have colonized/claimed as their own.

- China Sichuan - a formerly Michelin-starred Chinese restaurant boasting multiple locations around the RLD. They may have lost their star some years ago, but the food is still excellent and mouth numbingly spicy in true Szechaun style fashion

- Sea Palace - the big floating pagoda, near the central station, it’s not all gimmick they serve excellent Dim Sum here for lunch (Amsterdam has some top-notch Chinese restaurants if it wasn’t already apparent)

- Mozzico - serving up delicious authentic Italian (Roman-style) pizza, I recommend the Diavola

- Parakeet - a gourmet Nachos bar, American owned, they fry their totopos up in house. Inventive tasty cocktails and homemade salsa queso blanco

- A-Fusion - Asian fusion fare served in tapas style sharing/small plates. Not Michelin starred but accoladed (“Bib Gourmand”)

- Box Sociaal - an Aussie style brunch place with two locations. Good cocktails especially their house bloody mary.

- Plantage - an attractive elegant but not overly expensive institution. French influence pan modern European fare.

- De Kas - haven’t been but it’s a very highly regarded and Michelin-starred restaurant. kas means greenhouse and the idea is that they produce most of their food

- La Oliva - serving the best pintxos (tapas) in Amsterdam

- Café Soundgarden - a divey bar with a lovely canal-side patio/terrace, which is 420-friendly for those so inclined . Vibe is an eclectic mix of local Dutch and internationals, with tinges of punk and grunge. Great place to enjoy the fruits Amsterdam in the sunshine.

- Skatecafé + Garage Noord - two adjacent techno clubs in the North of Amsterdam (Noord), younger-ish crowd but this is one of the more popular clubs or pairs thereof, locally.

Stacks - American owned, the concept and decor is diner-style but it’s more high end with an emphasis on local and seasonal ingredients and experimental dishes