Spring Break in Amsterdam

For Spring Break this year we went to DC to visit our older son at the beginning of the Spring Break week of our younger son's school. He had work to do, so we only stayed a few days, which then left the end of the week open for other travel. Our youngest had never been to Amsterdam before but he had heard all of our stories about it and really wanted to go.  The benefit was that we knew we could fit in a lot in just a few days.
 
We left on Wednesday night and arrived in Amsterdam on Thursday morning. When you need to maximize your time in Europe, the overnight flights work the best. The only trick is to remember that after the dinner service is done on the plane, you really need to go to sleep so that you are rested and the morning. If not, then its almost impossible to rally and enjoy the next day.
 
We arrived at Schiphol right on time at 10:35 am. After collecting our bags we grabbed the train to Centraal Station. As advertised, the station is very centrally located and is an easy walk to many hotels. For this trip we stayed at the Intercontinental which was just a short subway ride away. The trains in Amsterdam are terrific, and we were able to easily take the subway to the stop nearest our hotel.
 
Our hotel for this trip was the InterContinental Amsterdam on the Amstel River. We cannot say enough wonderful things about this beautiful and historic property. The staff was terrific, the food was wonderful and the view from breakfast every morning was everything you would want Amsterdam to be. 

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Day 1 (Thursday):
We started our first day with a late lunch at Café de Oude Wester, which worked out perfectly since it was just around the corner from next adventure. It is also near the Anne Frank House if you are in that area and looking for a good, affordable meal.
 
When visiting a city that has its history shaped by water, I am a big proponent of exploring the city by water on the first day. So - I booked a wine and cheese cruise canal cruise with Flagship Amsterdam. The boat was closed in which worked perfectly since it was a still a little chilly, but it was sunny, our guide was wonderful, and the wine and cheese were a delightful accompaniment to the Amstel river. As a result, our son got to orient himself a little to the city, experience the architecture, and see both the Skinny Bridge and the Dancing Ladies buildings (the historic buildings that are leaning on each other) from a unique perspective.

After our cruise, we explored the area and headed towards the shopping district near the Skinny Bridge, which also led us back towards our hotel. We had to change quickly once we got there because we were headed out to the UEFA Europe Conference League game of Ajax vs Aston Villa! The Aston Villa fans had apparently been chanting along the canals that afternoon, but we had just missed them. Not only did we get to experience Johan Cruijff Arena (as seen in the Amsterdam episode of Ted Lasso) but Liam got to experience his second professional football game in Europe. The chants and people watching were outstanding. And it totally made the experience. For the record, the trains in Amsterdam are amazingly efficient and easy to navigate, so we had no problem getting to and from the Arena. But we were starving by the time we got back to the hotel, so we ended up having a late-night snack at our beautiful hotel before recharging for Friday. We highly recommend trying to go see a football game while you are there if they happen to be at home. It was an amazing experience.
 
Day 2 (Friday):
When you have limited time in city, you don’t have a lot of flexibility in terms of your time. And since you don’t want to miss the places and events that are important to you, I always make two recommendations. Number 1: buy timed tickets ahead of time for at least of few of the places you know you want to go. For example, we had booked this trip relatively late, so we were unable to get tickets to the Anne Frank House. That indicated to me that the city would be busy while were there, so I went ahead and got early morning tickets to the Van Gogh Museum. I knew that the self-guided audio tour is very good, so I reserved that as well.  That really helped us to enjoy our visit, as well as linger in front of the paintings that spoke to us without dealing with the massive crowds that I knew would be there later in the day. (Note: since we visited, the Van Gogh museum now limits the total number of guests each day. So if you are planning to attend, I would purchase your tickets as soon as you can.)

My second recommendation is to get a guided tour with a docent at the large museums. We did that for the Rijksmuseum and I am so glad that we did. Kids always seem to listen to others more than their parents, so I find they glean more from a dedicated tour with an educated guide. And again, when you are trying to maximize your time in a city, it helps to also maximize your time at large institutions. A guide can help you to navigate the logistics of the crowds to your best advantage. And while you are there, don’t miss the Rijksmuseum Library – you have probably seen it on Instagram, and it is even more beautiful in person. They have finished the refurbishment of the museum since the last time I was there, which included the creation of the gorgeous and enclosed entrance and museum café. We grabbed lunch at the café before we left, and both the food and the views were lovely.

After we left the museum, we wandered back through the city to absorb the ambiance and explore. We were on the hunt for the perfect bridge and canals photos, some cheese shops, and the flower market. Along the way we found some amazing Artisan Fries (a city institution at Heertjefriet, Mannekenpis, Vleminckx, or Ter Marsch & Co.), and cheese to bring home from their fantastic cheese shops such as the Amsterdam Cheese company (there are many locations), and Cheese & More (also many locations). We then made our way to Dam Square where you’ll find the Royal Palace, the National Monument, De Nieuwe Kerk (New Church), and shopping.
 
And while Dam Square is a bustling hub of activity, we also wandered down some quiet, lovely streets with bicycle parking galore, which also made for some classic Amsterdam photos. We had dinner at an Indonesian restaurant called Tujuh Maret, and it was an amazing meal. We were adventurous and had the Rijsttafel (Rice Table) for 2 people. It was as beautiful as it was memorable. And when we got back to the hotel we saw that we had ended the day with over 22,000 steps.

Day 3 (Saturday): Rotterdam
We wanted our son to see the windmills since it is one of the things they are very famous for. We had been to the nearby Zaanse Schans restoration village before really enjoyed it, and we highly recommend it for everyone, especially for families with kids since it’s so convenient to Amsterdam. But we wanted a new adventure for as well, so we decided to go see the Unesco Kinderdijk Windmills in Rotterdam. Rotterdam was a short train ride from Centraal Station, and we arrived in the very modern Centraal Station in Rotterdam. We took an Uber to the windmills since it isn’t on a train line, but that gave us a chance to experience the layout and vibe of the city. We thoroughly enjoyed the park, and you can even see the windmills working!
 
Afterwards, we took and ferry back to the main area in Rotterdam (and from the ferry we saw the stadium for the Feyenoord Football Club!). We got to see the famous cube houses, as well as experience the food hall inside the Markthal building (where we found the Amsterdam Cheese Company and bought more vacuum-packed cheese to bring home). From there we explored some more of the city (and saw their massive bike racks) as we made our way to the Central Station for our train back to Amsterdam. Our verdict? We could totally live in Rotterdam. We loved it!
 
Upon our return, we were starving and our feet were tired so we landed on a fun revolving sushi restaurant called Zushi that way along the water, and then we enjoyed the beautiful evening lights on the along on the Amstel as we made our way back to the hotel.

Day 4 (Sunday – Departure Day):
Having navigated the unique traffic in Amsterdam on foot for a couple days, we felt like we could all handle it on bikes.  It can get complicated for while you are on the “right” side of the road as an American, you are also dealing with a tram lane and a pedestrian lane that all often intersect.
 
So we rented bikes! We explored for the day until we needed to head to the airport. And we loved it!  My son kept saying that he wished we had rented them on the first day so we could have ridden the whole time. So it was a hit.
 
We biked around the museums and through the beautiful Jordaan neighborhood. There are lots of antique shops in this area, and they have a flea market every Saturday morning called the Noordermarkt. We missed it since we had travelled to Rotterdam on Saturday, but I would highly recommend it if it fits into your schedule.
 
After the neighborhood we headed to the famous Vondel Park.  We had a great lunch at Proeflokaal’t Blauwe Theehuis before heading back to return our bikes and then head to the airport.  It was a lovely way to end our trip.
 
Note about the bike rentals:
The bike shop will inform you of this, but you need to observe Amsterdam bike etiquette. And that means that yin additional to staying to the right and being aware of everything around you, you must always lock your bicycle when you park it. And you are only allowed to park the bike in the metal bike racks. The rental bikes come with locks but there are very unusual, so make sure to get a tutorial.
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