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Stuff to do around Amsterdam?

sou1 so1di3r

sou1 so1di3r

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 26, 2008
779
13
Denver, CO
Hey all, I'm going to be spending 4 days in Amsterdam next month and was wondering if anyone had any advice on good places to see things to do etc.

I figured I might try to get OUT of the city for maybe one day.. like explore the countryside or something?

Are there day trips or other things I should go check out?

I love all the normal things any 21 year old male should, clubs, parties, beer, weed, etc, so I know I will have tons of fun in the city.

Any good brewery tours or anything?

THanks :D
 
Weed at coffee shops, beer that'll knock a gorilla on his head and hoards of low self esteem girls with daddy issues ready to send you home with an STD farewell and the ability to be eskimo brothers with half the city.

Enjoy. :p
 
He's going to Amsterdam, not Germany.
sou1 so1di3r said:
I figured I might try to get OUT of the city for maybe one day.. like explore the countryside or something?

Are there day trips or other things I should go check out?
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You can do the touristy thing, there's tons of trip available to be booked. Or just wing it, Amsterdam is small enough that you are out of the city by bicycle in under half an hour. Countryside is especially nice to the north and along the Amstel river.
Any good brewery tours or anything?
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Brouwerij 't IJ would be worth a visit.

.tsooJ
 
Take a Canal Boat Ride.

Visit Anne Frank's House.

Go to Madame Tussauds / Amsterdam Dungeons.

Sit in a cafe in the Red Light District and people watch (this is actually very interesting, the characters you see going through those little doors, and the turnaround of the girls).

Take a taxi ride to go see Dutch Windmill and take a walk a long the canal.

The Touristy thing to do is to smoke weed, watch sex shows etc. These things are great, but Amsterdam offers so much more.
 
Some of the museums are really interesting; try the Rijksmuseum, the Rembrandt museum and, if you can handle the queues, the Anne Frank house which is a museum.

After that, as others have said, walk around, drink coffee, take a canal tour and perhaps see the countryside. Amsterdam is a really lovely compact interesting city, it has great public transport and is very easy to get around. Bicycles are easily hired too, and, as the country is flat, and the cities are bicycle friendly, it is a great place to cycle around.

Cheers
 
If you want to spend a day out of town, three ideas I can recommend from personal experience are:

  • Arnhem - Nice little town, but primarily the Airborne Forces Museum.
  • Enkhuizen - Small harbour town on the Ijsselmeer, nice town plus Zuiderzee Museum (Indoor and outdoor, very interesting).
  • Gouda - historic town, cheese market etc.
  • Alkmaar - as Gouda.
All of the above can be easily reached by train from Amsterdam Centraal Station.

As an addition to attractions in town, try Boom Chicago - a great comedy show coupled with a good bar and food. Boom also publish an excellent free guide to Amsterdam.

Boom Magazine (PDF).
 
Hahah I think I'll pass on the shrooms. I've tried them a few times at home, I'll stick to the herbs.


Would love to rent a bike and go exploring, maybe I'll just do that. I lobe cycling after blazing, one of my favorite things to do :)
 
Visit the coffee shops AFTER you know your surroundings well enough. The street names are a minimum 30 letters long and if you get paranoid (like I did) you could end up catatonic for a few hours on a stool looking for a snickers.

I did, about 15 years ago. :D

I am a real puss though (with any substance) so you and Lee may have better mileage on your journey.

I loved the city *after that night was over.
 
Don't get suckered in to visiting the sex museum. Or Moulin Rouse.

The Heineken Experience is good though. As are the Cafe's. And the nightlife. ;)
 
Wander. There's plenty just to observe there. The canal circuit is easy enough to navigate. If you walk off a side street you'll eventually end up in another canal so you really shouldn't get lost. However sometimes getting lost can be half the fun. Some of the areas in the red light district are a bit dodgy so put the expensive toys away when walking around. You shouldn't take photos of any of the "window women" anyway.

Pro tip: stick to Sativas (rather than Indicas) if you're going to get stoned and go walk around.
 
Thanks for the tips! I'll admit I do feel slightly nervous making this trip by myself. Hopefully I can befriend some locals or something (not the prostitutes though...)
 
leekohler said:
Do mushrooms and go to the art museum. That's what i would do. Fun. :)
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lighthouse_man said:
They've been banned.
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They've banned the art museum?! That seems a bit harsh, some of them were rather good! :eek:

:p

There are some good galleries around the Museumplein, including the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh and the Stedelijk (I think the latter may be undergoing rennovation though?).
 
sou1 so1di3r said:
Thanks for the tips! I'll admit I do feel slightly nervous making this trip by myself. Hopefully I can befriend some locals or something (not the prostitutes though...)
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No mates want to go? Not that it's a big deal going alone but it's always more fun to have someone to bounce commentary off of.

Don't shy away from streets like this They're full of interesting sights. (next to the Bulldog, about here, if I recall correctly.)
 
Jaffa Cake said:
They've banned the art museum?! That seems a bit harsh, some of them were rather good! :eek:
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You know, not enough lucid customers.

iBlue said:
Don't shy away from streets like this
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The tunnel to hell, as in Dante's Inferno, can be intimidating if you're traveling by yourself, and not because of where you'll end up, it's because of the characters you'll encounter in your journey...
 
lighthouse_man said:
The tunnel to hell, as in Dante's Inferno, can be intimidating if you're traveling by yourself, and not because of where you'll end up, it's because of the characters you'll encounter in your journey...
Click to expand...

Is this for amusing dramatic effect? It's bizarre but not that scary. It was filled with tiny rooms only big enough for a bed and a sink with women reaching out to lure in the punters. Sometimes you just need to see things for yourself.
 
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