Things To See In Amsterdam

Clustered around Museumplein, Amsterdam’s big three institutions are in easy reach of each other. Each is magnificent in its own right, but together they form one of the world’s great cultural hubs. Your treat for getting around them could be an Art Deco spa or a go on a swing that’s 100m up in the air. If you just want to take a breath, we’ve included our favourite green spaces here too…

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Van Gogh Museum

INDOORS

Rijks Museum

This is one of the world’s great museums. Not because it has an international collection to rival MoMA or the Louvre, but because it is a proud and magnificent showcase for Dutch art – which happens to include some of the finest masterpieces ever seen. Rembrandt’s Night Watch is here, and you can see it in more detail than ever before thanks to some new tech; there are four of Vermeer’s best, including The Milkmaid; and even a quartet of Van Goghs. And don’t miss the Cuypers Library – a beautiful, neo-gothic temple of learning.

Visit RIJKSMUSEUM.NL

Van Gogh Museum

He barely sold a work in his lifetime, but Vincent van Gogh must now rank as one of the world’s favourite artists. His bright colours, thick lines and unflinching self-portraits catch eyes wherever they are, but this is where you can see more of them under one roof than anywhere else. Sunflowers, The Bedroom and Almond Blossom are all part of the permanent collection here. The exhibitions tend to be outstanding too – there’s one at the time of writing that explores the great German artist Anselm Kiefer’s connection to Van Gogh.

Visit VANGOGHMUSEUM.NL

Stedelijk Museum

The Stedelijk is Amsterdam’s home for modern and contemporary art. It has the surroundings to match: on the corner of Museumplein, close to the Van Gogh and the Rijksmuseum, its 21st-century wing – known as the ‘bathtub’ – is an arresting addition to its original red-brick home. Inside, you’ll find works from all of the most exciting art movements of the last 150 years, from Bauhaus and the Netherlands’ own De Stijl right up to big names of today like Koons and Kusama.

Visit STEDELIJK.NL

STRAAT Museum

Graffiti has come in off the street and now has a museum of its own. In a big old warehouse in the city’s dockside NDSM Wharf neighbourhood, the STRAAT Museum has invited 170-odd street artists of renown to create in situ the massive pieces that now form its permanent collection. Around and about, you’ll find rotating exhibitions about the history of street art, and all the other trappings of a contemporary museum.

Visit STRAATMUSEUM.COM

Rijks Museum

Moco Museum

The name of this relatively new addition to Museumplein is a shortening of modern and contemporary. And that’s exactly the art it specialises in. From Basquiat and Banksy to Hirst and Haring, the biggest and most popular names of the last hundred or so years are all gathered here – perfect for a fast-moving, greatest-hits recap of the last half century in art.

Visit MOCOMUSEUM.COM

Foam

In a bright and airy canal house on the north bank of Keizersgracht, Foam showcases the power of photography. Regularly changing exhibitions are beautifully curated. One of the latest, The Underground Camera, zooms in on the work of Dutch Resistance photographers, who worked as the city starved under German occupation during World War 2. It has just been recognised by Unesco as worthy of entering its Dutch Memory of the World Register – the first photographic legacy ever to make it in.

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Cobra Museum

Cobra is a Dutch art movement from the middle of the last century. In the aftermath of World War 2, a group of radical young talents chased total artistic freedom as a counterpoint to the horrors of conflict. They drew their share of haters in their own day, but their colourful pieces still hold the attention today.

Visit COBRA-MUSEUM.NL

Sauna Deco

On the Herengracht canal in the city’s historic centre, Sauna Deco is a unique proposition: a spa with interiors lifted from a century-old Parisian department store. There’s no denying it, the fixtures, fittings and stained-glass windows of Le Bon Marché lend themselves wonderfully to their new purpose. As well as a classic sauna, steam room and cold plunge pool, you’ll find an infrared cabin and experienced therapists offering shiatsu, sports and deep tissue massages.

Visit SAUNADECO.NL

Stedelijk Museum

A’dam Lookout

In one sense, it’s easy to get high in Amsterdam. In another, it’s not. The Dutch capital once gave its name to New York (New Amsterdam as it was) but the skyscraper never took off in the old place and it is not blessed with observation decks. There is one, however. Over on Amsterdam Noord, a boat ride away from Centraal station, A’dam Lookout sits on the top floor of a 100m-tall tower. For the truly fearless, it’s got an ‘Over the Edge’ swing.

Visit ADAMLOOKOUT.COM

Anne Frank House

Since it opened more than 60 years ago, the Anne Frank House has shown generations of visitors the horror of Nazi Germany’s treatment of Jews. Once heard, the story of the young girl in Amsterdam who defied creeping Nazi oppression until it was overwhelming is never forgotten. It is best told within the walls of the house where she hid with her family for more than two years.

Visit ANNEFRANK.ORG

EYE Filmmuseum

Whenever it’s in shot, you’ll find your eye drawn to the EYE Filmmuseum’s strikingly white and modern home. On the Amsterdam Noord waterfront, it’s a low-slung and angular counterpoint to the A’dam Lookout tower next door. Inside, there’s room for four cinemas, exhibition spaces and a glass-walled café. Even if the history of film is not your thing, it’s worth getting up close to the building – one of the most successful bits of ‘starchitecture’ we’ve seen.

Visit EYEFILM.NL

Boutique Cinemas

Dotted around the city, Amsterdam has an eclectic array of one-off cinemas. The jewel in the collection is art-deco Pathé Tuschinski, a movie palace of sweeping grandeur. Other favourites include the Kriterion, whose own history goes back to World War 2. On the waterfront of Amsterdam Noord, FC Hyena has been a key piece in the neighbourhood’s cool regeneration since it opened in 2018. In boutique surrounds, it shows a mix of the latest releases and cult classics, and has a great natural wine list.

Visit PATHE.NL, KRITERION.NL & FCHYENA.NL

Vondelpark

OUTDOORS

Westergas

Westerpark begins just where you think it might, on the western edge of Jordaan and the historic centre. Such large green spaces will always have appeal, but this one also hides Westergas – a sprawling cultural hub fashioned out of 17 old factory buildings. You could spend a day out here and not get round all of its cafés and restaurants. As night falls, there’s the Pacific for dancing, Radio Radio for live DJs, and Westweelde for the full industrial techno club experience.

Visit WESTERGAS.NL

Vondelpark

Amsterdam’s biggest park is also its most famous. Running south-west from Museumplein, it’s a near perfect example of an urban green space – a place you’ll find couples wandering its paths and footbridges in search of exactly the right bit of lawn to spread a rug on and pop a cork. It even has its own Picasso sculpture. A donation from the man himself on the occasion of the park’s centenary, he called it ‘The Bird’ but it’s known to locals as ‘The Fish’. Seek it out and decide who you’re with.

Visit IAMSTERDAM.COM

Mokumboot Boat Rental & Tours

There are two classic ways to get around Amsterdam. You’ll want to get on the water at some stage and, when the time comes, Mokumboot is a name to know. As well as offering guided cruises on old-fashioned sloops and private tours with skippers, it can set you loose on an electric vessel of your own (no licence required).

Visit MOKUMBOOT.NL

A-Bike Rental & Tours

The other classic way to get around Amsterdam is by bike. There are plenty of companies ready to lend you two wheels, and A-Bike is a reliable, no-fuss option. Its up-to-date range spans e-bikes and pedal-powered tourers to tandems and even cargo bikes you can carry two kids on. It can also fix you up with a guide if you’re not quite ready to join the peloton of locals on your own.

Visit A-BIKE.NL

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