In late September, my partner and I set off on a ten-day Europe trip together. Over the ten days, we visited London, Amsterdam, Brussels, and Bruges and had a fantastic time in each place. In this post, I’ll be breaking down everything we did during our three days in Amsterdam. Neither Will nor I had visited Amsterdam before, so we both were so excited to get to explore a new city. We had excellent food, walked about 20,000 steps each day, visited fantastic museums and art galleries, and took in the city from bikes and the canals.

Three Days in Amsterdam – an Itinerary

Where We Stayed

For our time in Amsterdam we rented an Airbnb in the Rapenburg area very close to Amsterdam Central train station. The Airbnb worked out perfectly for us. Our host was fantastic and we were able to walk into the centre of the city easily. Our host greeted us and gave us some great recommendations for where to eat, get groceries, and the best ways to get to the city centre.

Day One

Our Amsterdam adventure started with an early morning flight from London Gatwick Airport to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. From there we took the train into the city, arriving at Amsterdam Central Station.

What We Did

After getting settled in at our Airbnb, Will and I took to the streets of Amsterdam to begin exploring this incredible city.

Visited Anne Frank House

Anne Frank House was a must visit for me when we started planning our trip to Amsterdam. Walking through the museum, learning about the lives of the people who hid there during the Nazi occupation of Amsterdam and those who helped hide them was a sobering and emotional experience. I would highly recommend this museum to anyone planning a visit to Amsterdam. Will was on the fence about this one because it is quite somber, but after attending he agreed that it was well worth while.

If you know anyone who has visited Amsterdam before, you’ve likely already heard how crucial it is to book your museum tickets/passes in advance. While waiting in line for our time slot at Anne Frank house, we saw numerous tourists walk up to the staff to ask if any tickets were available, the response was no. That isn’t unique to Anne Frank House. I’d suggest booking tickets well in advance for any museum you plan to visit – Van Gogh, Moco, Rembrandt House, the list goes on.

Took a Canal Boat Tour

Something that was high on our list of things to do in Amsterdam was a canal boat tour of the city. When it comes to canal tours, there are so many options. We walked around the canals and ended up joining an one-hour Flagship Amsterdam tour that was departing from beside the Anne Frank House museum. Our guides were friendly and shared some great information about Amsterdam’s heritage and history. The tour was well worth while!

What We Ate

de Koffieschenkerij (The Coffee Parlor)

Once we stepped off the train at Amsterdam Central Station, we wandered into the city centre to explore a bit before our 1pm Airbnb check-in time. We stopped at de Koffieschenkerij – which translates to “The Coffee Parlor” – for a latte and a sweet treat before heading to our Airbnb. The cafe is is one of Amsterdam’s many beautiful, historic brick buildings and has an adorable little patio out front. We sat indoors, but the inside of de Koffieschenkerij was just as cute; with big windows, exposed beams, and house plants on just about every surface. Check out their Instagram to see pictures of the patio and interior of the cafe.

Fabel Friet

After visiting Anne Frank House, we were in need of a snack to tide us over until our dinner reservation. Fabel Friet was the perfect pre-dinner snack. Fabel Friet is a popular spot, but they are so efficient at moving people through that only about 5 minutes elapsed between us entering the line and leaving with our fries in hand. We shared an order of fries with Parmesan cheese, truffle aioli, and ketchup. These certainly hit the spot!

De Brabanste Aap (The Brabant Monkey)

After our canal tour, we had a bit more time to kill before dinner. We wandered around the streets of Amsterdam and ended up at De Brabanste Aap for a drink. We were able to sit out on the patio, which overlooks one of the canals while we enjoyed our drinks.

Sampurna

Our dinner at Sampurna was one of my favourite meals on our entire trip. When we were planning our trip in the summer, my uncle had suggested that we do a rice table – known as a Rijsttafel, in Dutch – one night for dinner while we were in Amsterdam. An Indonesian rice table is an elaborate meal of many small plates served with rice. A rice table is similar in style to Spanish Tapas in the sense that you order many small dishes that are meant to be shared.

The rice table is considered a traditional Dutch dish that originated from Indonesia. This means that rice tables are specific to the Netherlands and therefore can be found on the menus of many restaurants in Amsterdam. The rice table was created as a result of Dutch colonialism. Dutch colonists were inspired by the vibrance and flavour of Indonesian food and used this as inspiration for the creation of the rice table, which is inarguably Indonesian. The history is quite interesting and you can read more about it here.

Although Amsterdam has many different restaurants offering rice tables, we selected Sampurna because it was noted by Reditters to have one of the most authentic rice table offerings in the city. Sampurna has three different set-menu rice tables to choose from. We opted for the Kuning rice table, which included a great mix of fresh salads, delicious meats, and some vegetarian options too. The atmosphere of the restaurant was fabulous and the food was absolutely delicious. We both left very full and happy after our meal.

Day Two

Our second day in Amsterdam was by far our busiest. We left our Airbnb early to have breakfast in the city before a day packed full of museums, biking, and Stroopwafels.

What We Did

Visited the Van Gogh Museum

Vincent Van Gogh is my favourite artist, so I was thrilled about getting to visit the Van Gogh Museum. I was fortunate to see some of Van Gogh’s art displayed in Paris at the Musée d’Orsay when I visited in 2018, but the Amsterdam Van Gogh Museum is a whole other experience. The museum is a multi-level building displaying a wide variety of Van Gogh’s work and the work of artists who inspired him. For me, it was very interesting to see his early work, which mainly depicted Dutch peasants and was void of the signature bold brushstrokes and vibrant colours that Van Gogh became known for.

Took in the Modern Art at Moco Museum

Something nice about Amsterdam is that many of the museums are concentrated in one small area of the city near Vondelpark. Once we had finished exploring the Van Gogh Museum, we got a latte as a mid-morning pick-me-up and walked over to the Moco Museum.

Moco Museum is a small modern art museum located in a historic brick home. When we visited, the museum had art by Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Yayoi Kusama, Banksy, and KAWS, among others. I’m not usually a big fan of modern art, but I did enjoy visiting Moco. There were some interesting interactive exhibits mixed in throughout the museum, which I loved.

Explored Vondelpark by Bike

As I mentioned above, many of Amsterdam’s museums are concentrated near Vodelpark – a 120 acre park with ponds, trails, and restaurants embedded throughout. Amsterdam has a huge biking culture, but the thought of taking to their busy bike lanes with hundreds of seasoned bikers was a bit daunting, so instead we opted to bike through the trails of Vondelpark.

We rented two bikes from MacBike for three hours, which gave us an ample amount of time to bike around the park and get lunch before returning the bikes to the shop. Will knows that I don’t particularly love to bike, but for some reason he equated this with me not being able to ride a bike. So, imagine his surprise when he found out I was in fact a competent biker. Ha!

Walked Through the Albert Cuyp Market

After our bike ride through the park we were on the hunt for some famous Dutch Stroopwafels. The number one recommended place, based on our research, was located in the Albert Cuyp Markt. The market is located in the popular De Pijp neighbourhood and is open Monday through Saturday every week. Vendors at the market offer a range of different products including art, clothing, fresh food, and delicious treats.

Learned About Heineken’s History at the Heineken Experience

Once we were sufficiently full of Stroopwafels, we headed to the Heineken Experience to learn about the history of Heineken beer and tour the oldest Heineken brewery. As you may have guessed, this destination was chosen by Will, as I’m not a beer drinker. Not liking beer aside, I did enjoy our time at the Heineken Experience. It was cool to learn about the history and see how the beer is made. Two free beers per person were included with the tickets, so I had my first (and perhaps last?) full beer of my life – Will was thrilled. Remember, I don’t like beer, so this was a feat.

What We Ate

Factory Girl

Our first full day in Amsterdam began with breakfast at Factory Girl. The restaurant was on the way from our Airbnb to the museums we had planned to visit, so it worked out perfectly. We made a reservation to make sure we wouldn’t be late for our time slot at the Van Gogh Museum, but that’s really not necessary if you plan to eat early like we did.

If I’m being honest, the food was good, but we weren’t blown away by it. Amsterdam has tons of great breakfast and brunch spots that I would probably choose over this one if I were to visit again. I ordered the Toastie, which was sourdough bread with eggs, paprika spread, gouda, and a small mixed salad. Will ordered a sandwich on sourdough bread with spicy sausages and this really tasty red pepper sauce on the side.

Proeflokaal ‘t Blauwe Theehuis (The Blue Tea House)

After we had biked around Vondelpark a few times, we stopped at the Blue Tea House for a quick lunch in the park. The food was nothing to write home about, but it did the trick for us. The real appeal of this spot was the availability of outdoor seating. We were able to sit out in the sun while we enjoyed our very mid lunch.

Rudi’s Original Stroopwafels

One cannot visit Amsterdam without trying a Stroopwafel! On just about every block in the city you can find a place selling elaborate Stroopwafels with crazy toppings and sauces, but if you want an authentic Stroopwafel experience, I’d suggest you skip those tourist-driven spots. Rudi’s Original Stroopwafels was the number one recommended place to have an authentic Stroopwafel, based on our research. Unlike the tourist trap places with the crazy toppings, Rudi’s only offers plain and chocolate dipped Stroopwafels – and they make them right in front of you! Will and I each got one plain Stroopwafel, which we ate as we walked through the Albert Cuyp Market.

Day Three

Whenever I visit a new city, I like to leave a day – if I can – with no concrete plans. Instead of rushing off to one tourist attraction after another, I like to be able to spend the day exploring the neighbourhoods and trying local foods without any set in stone plan. We spent our third day in Amsterdam doing exactly this.

What We Did

Amsterdam Bakery Tour

Before coming to Amsterdam, I’d research the best bakeries and noted down some recommendations from friends and coworkers. For our third day in Amsterdam, we spent the morning and early afternoon touring around the city from one bakery to the next, sharing one thing off each menu. In total, we visited four bakeries. I’ve outlined what we got at each destination below.

Explore Jordaan

Jordaan is one of Amsterdam’s trendiest neighbourhoods. The narrow canal-flanked streets are lined with boutiques, cozy pubs and cafes, and contemporary restaurants. A few of the bakeries we visited were located in Jordaan, so we were able to spend a good amount of time wandering its charming streets.

On Monday and Saturday mornings you can visit Amsterdam’s famous Noordermarkt in Jordaan. Unfortunately, we didn’t overlap with a time when the market was open and were therefore unable to go. The market is a favourite amongst locals and tourists alike due to its broad range of offerings. At Noordermarkt you can find antiques, books and prints, special textiles, glass and crockery, jewellery, vintage clothing, art, and on Saturdays, organic foods and furniture are available, too.

Magna Plaza

Magna Plaza is a large shopping centre in Amsterdam. We stopped in on our way back to our Airbnb to pick up some cheese for Will’s parents. We popped into Cheese & More by Henri Willig to look for this cheese and tried a whole bunch of samples too. The cheese was so delicious – I wish we could have brought some back to Canada!

Red Light District

Similar to how Stroopwafels are a right of passage for anyone visiting Amsterdam, you can’t visit the city without seeing the Red Light District. The Heart of Amsterdam’s Red Light District is in the De Wallen neighbourhood, right near the city centre. Will and I walked through on our way home after a late dinner so we could see what it was all about.

During the day there isn’t much to see in this area, but at night the canals are illuminated with red lights and there are crowds swarming around the streets. Prostitution is a legal profession in the Netherlands, but not on the streets. To get around this, prostitutes stand in the windows of the buildings of the Red Light District to bring in clients. Something to note about the Red Light District is that photography and videos are prohibited.

What We Ate

BunBun

The first stop on our Amsterdam bakery tour was BunBun. BunBun specializes in making buns from croissant dough. We shared one cheesecake croissant bun and oh my goodness was it ever delicious! This was my personal favourite spot on our tour.

Winkle 43

Right across the street from BunBun is Winkle 43, a classic cafe/bar famous for its Dutch apple pie. At first look, the apple pie looks like a coffee cake with a nice crumbly top, but once sliced, the cross section shows the apple-filled centre incased in a thick, crumbly crust. We of course shared a slice of the pie, complete with whipped cream on top. This spot was a recommendation from my coworker and was well worth the visit!

Saint Jean

Up next was Saint Jean Bakery. We ordered a pistachio and blueberry cruffin to share. I’m a sucker for anything pistachio, so this was a hit for me! We didn’t have a coffee here, but it would be a lovely place for that too. Honestly, they had so many delicious looking baked goods it was hard to just choose one.

Salvo Bakehouse

The last stop on our bakery tour was Salvo Bakehouse. This spot had another great selection of baked goods, but we had our hearts set on the pistachio cookie. The cookie was delicious, but incredibly rich. It didn’t end up ranking as high as I thought it would for me, but it was still tasty.

Linguini Trattoria

We rounded out our final day in Amsterdam with a delicious Italian dinner at Linguini Trattoria in Jordaan. The restaurant is a bit of a hole in the wall place – we walked by it a few times before finally noticing the sign, as it was covered by vines growing along the front of the building. Inside, the narrow dining room is lined with small candle-lit tables. It’s a great spot for an intimate date night.

To start, we shared the bruschetta. The dish included three different types of bruschetta: one classic tomato bruschetta, a burrata and fresh pesto one, and a prosciutto and stracciatella bruschetta, all served on fresh focaccia bread. For our mains, Will and I each ordered a pasta dish. I had the Rigatoni alla Calabrese and Will had the Gnocchi Burro e Salvia. Both dishes we absolutely delicious.

Travel Takeaways for Amsterdam

• Book museums in advance. As I mentioned earlier in the post, booking your tickets for Amsterdam’s museums in advance is a must! We saw so many people get turned away from the museums because they had not booked ahead. I’d suggest buying your tickets when you book your accommodations. By booking early, you have more flexibility to choose what time you visit each museum and you won’t have to worry about missing out.
• Make a Splitwise to track shared trip expenses. I’ve used Splitwise for every trip I’ve been on in the past year. It is such an easy way to keep track of who owes who what when you’re travelling in a group and sharing expenses. My roommates and I even use it now to keep track of our home expenses.
• No photos or videos when visiting the Red Light District. Keep in mind that all photography and video is prohibited in the Red Light District.
• Use Google MyMaps to plan out your trip. Google My Maps is my favourite trip planning tool! It allows you to pin locations on a map and group them into categories, and/or colour code them to create your own legend. I love to do this in advance of a trip to help me plan out my days. It’s so easy to take a look at the map and see which things I’ve pinned are close together and therefore would make sense to see on the same day.

Other City Guides

If you enjoyed this Amsterdam city guide, be sure to check out my other city guides:

How to Spend Three Days in New York City

Barcelona on a Budget: A Three-Day Itinerary

Nine Days in Paris

A (Self-Proclaimed) Local’s Guide to Vancouver

I hope you enjoyed following along on our Amsterdam adventure! If you liked this post be sure to leave a review of comment – I love to hear from you!

xx

Ashley

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