Tours in Amsterdam

[villager]

Thinking of doing a TA next April on the Emerald. Does anyone know What tours are offered in Amsterdam? We are thinking of spending a couple of nights here after cruise so we're interested in sights around where the ship docks or maybe Tulips. Thanks

[Shogun]

Hi There

 

Not checked but is your ship docking in Amsterdam, or is it going to Rotterdam with tours to Amsterdam

 

 

yours Shogun

[Aussie Gal]

Go to the European Ports board and you will find more information there.

 

Jennie

[bcnvcanada]

We have done this t/a several times. The most recent was this year. From the dock to Amsterdam it is a 10 minute ride to the centre of town, a 500m walk to the train station and depending on the train from 50 minutes to and hour plus away. Princess's tours are to Anne Frank's house, or to Van Gogh museum, or a canal tour. If you are going back to Amerstdam all of these are easily done. Amsterdam has a great tram system which makes is easy to get around. If you walk a bit all sights are easily do able by foot. Tulips, depends on the weather. This year the tulips had been cut and bulbs were awaiting harvest. The famous gardens the Keukenjhof still had tulips, and they replant several times a season. Next year in you are in the Netherlands you might check out the Floriade. It will be held in Southeastern area of the Netherlands. It is a world's fair on flowers and gardening. It is only held every ten years. It is totally awsome. Easily done in a day on a train from Amsterdam.

[villager]

Thanks for your help. We will be docking at Rotterdam and thought we would save the things right in Amsterdam until after the cruise. Shogun, were you on the cruise from Canada to Ft Lauderdale a couple of years ago? :D

[Shogun]

Hi villager

 

Yes I was stayed on to go into Caribbean, loved the Crown Princess.

 

Rotterdam is a nice city in its own right Euro mast and all that

 

but plenty to see out side of Rotterdam.

 

yours Shogun

[caber]

Hi Villager,

 

We were on the Crown with you also. It was a good cc group.

 

We were in Amsterdam a couple of years ago and took a good tour with this company.

 

http://www.lindbergh.nl/

 

They run bus tours. I can recommend them.

[eveline44]

Thanks for your help. We will be docking at Rotterdam and thought we would save the things right in Amsterdam until after the cruise. Shogun, were you on the cruise from Canada to Ft Lauderdale a couple of years ago? :D

 

I would definitely go to Amsterdam if you have limited time. Rotterdam is nice, but I am sure you wil like Amsterdam much more. You must see the canals of course! You can take a boat tour opposite the central station, not far from the cruise terminal. It costs between 10 to 15 euros per person, depending on the tour you take. If you want something cool, take the diner tour at night. It costs about 70 euro's and dinner and drinks (wine too) is included. The tour is usually 2 hours.

 

You can also go to the Anne Frank house, but expect a large waiting line...

Don't forget to do some shopping at the Kalverstraat. It starts at the Dam Square, where you can also see the Palace. You can easily do all of this yourself (on foot). The flowermarket (near the Kalver tower (Kalvertoren) is a nice place to buy flower bulbs (although they are expensive).

 

And do check out the Wallen (red light district). Beautiful old architecture there.

 

You can even rent a car and go to Sassenheim and Noordwijk beach (not far from de Keukenhof). Lots of tulip fields in that area! De Keukenhof is also nice.

 

Ow yes, I live near Amsterdam, so if you have any questions, please ask ;)

[TravelScholar]

One of my favourite restaurants in the world is in Amsterdam. It's an Indonesian restaurant called Indrapura, and it's located on Rembrandtplein ("Rembrandt Square"), which is accessible by tram. Highly recommend the Rijstafels there!!

 

Utrecht is a short 30 min train ride from Amsterdam Centraal station, too. They have a unique cathedral there, which was partially destroyed by a hurricane. You can climb the bell tower via a very interesting guided tour. Utrecht is a very walkable city and a nice escape from Amsterdam.

[eveline44]

One of my favourite restaurants in the world is in Amsterdam. It's an Indonesian restaurant called Indrapura, and it's located on Rembrandtplein ("Rembrandt Square"), which is accessible by tram. Highly recommend the Rijstafels there!!

 

Utrecht is a short 30 min train ride from Amsterdam Centraal station, too. They have a unique cathedral there, which was partially destroyed by a hurricane. You can climb the bell tower via a very interesting guided tour. Utrecht is a very walkable city and a nice escape from Amsterdam.

 

If you want to go outside of Amsterdam I can recommend The Hague, where our government is situated. You can see Het Binnenhof there (government buildings), but you can't go in. You can easily get there by train. I went to college in Utrecht. It's a nice old city with canals too, but it's not very big. The Utrecht central train station has a lot op shops too. The tower you mention is called de Dom. http://www.google.nl/search?um=1&hl=en&biw=1680&bih=796&gl=nl&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=utrecht+dom&oq=utrecht+dom&aq=f&aqi=g2&aql=&gs_sm=e&gs_upl=2803l3281l0l4l4l0l2l2l0l157l272l0.2.

 

If you go by train or bus or tram next year you will need a special card. you can put money on it as a credit and use it to check in and out of the trains. Lose tickets will not be sold anymore from this year on. very inconvenient... nobody likes it, but what can we do?? :(

 

If you like to feel the old Dutch atmosphere, go to Volendam, a little fishing town not too far from Amsterdam. There is no train station there, so you will have to rent a car or take a tour.

http://www.google.nl/search?hl=en&q=volendam&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&biw=1680&bih=796&um=1&ie=UTF-8&gl=nl&resnum=1&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=li

 

Lol I really hope you have an excellent time in Holland. I wish I could show you around!

[eveline44]

Ow and the nice thing is that nearly everybody speaks English, so there is no real need to book an expensive tour. People will be happy to show you the way in English (at least most people haha).

[cruise514373]

If you want a nice taste of old Holland in an easily walkable area, try Delft. Delft is a small city about 15 miles north of Rotterdam. It's central area is given over to tourists (domestic and foreign) and most of it is pedestrian and bikes only. The town square has a beautiful old town hall and the "New" church. Just a few blocks from the square is the "Old" church whose spire leans like the tower of Pisa. There are numerous shops and outdoor cafe's - how can you go wrong in a place where Hieneken and Grolsch are domestic draft beers!! The tourist area is crossed by several canals, and you can take a canal boat tour if you like. The Delft pottery is outside the central area, so if you want to go there take a taxi. It is well worth seeing, and they usually have someone decorating a piece where you can watch.

 

From Rotterdam it is 15 minutes to Delft by train, and the old town area is a short walk from the station. Den Haag (The Hague) is also worth seeing but you would be pressed for time to do both. Delft is on the rail line between Rotterdam and Den Haag. Den Haag is about 10-15 min beyond Delft.

 

Amsterdam is a minimum 1 hour train from Rotterdam. Unless you just must see the art museums or the red light district, your time will be better spent in Rotterdam, Delft or Den Haag. Utrecht, Leiden and Gouda are also interesting places but a little longer to reach. All 3 have regular rail service from Rotterdam, and the stations are a short walk from the historic district in each case.

 

If you decide to stay in Rotterdam, there are a couple of small neighborhoods in the downtown area that have old buildings that escaped the WW2 bombing, and of course the cube houses and Euromast are worth visiting. All of this is easily reachable by the tram and subway systems.

 

Wherever you go in the Netherlands, you will find that almost everyone speaks some English and you will not be in any danger. However, you do need to be aware of pickpockets and thieves. Do not leave anything unattended and keep your purses and wallets in front of you, especially in crowds.

 

Just to plant one more seed. If diamonds are your thing, take the express train from Rotterdam Centraal Station to Antwerp, Belgium Centraal. It is a comfortable 30 minute train ride, and just outside the station in Antwerp is one of the largest diamond districts in the world. There are dozens of jewelers. The trains used to run on the hour but you'll have to check the current schedules (check the Nederlands Spoorwagen (that's the national passenger railway company) website for current information for both domestic and international schedules and fares.

[eveline44]

Delft is indeed a beautiful city to visit. It all depends on what you like to see.

 

I forgot to mention the Rijksmuseum where you can see the famous Rembrandt paintings. It's under construction, but you can still visit. Check the latest news on http://www.Rijksmuseum.nl

[villager]

You have all been very helpful. This is why I love Cruise Critic! After reading your comments, I think we will do Rotterdam & Deltf and stay in Amsterdam after the cruise. Eveline44, thanks for mentioning Volendam because that looks like something we would enjoy. The information about the transportation was very helpful,too. We have made a reservation at the Rho Hotel. Have any of you stayed there or know anything about it?

Would 2 or 3 days be enough or should we plan on staying longer? Looks like there are lots of great places to eat. :)

[Barbie075]

We were in Amsterdam after a cruise for three nights and just had a great time. As everyone has said you can do everything by foot and they have a great tram system which is also easy to use. We bought the I Amsterdam Card ahead of time and it was well worth the money. Gave us transport on the trams/trains and entry into museums.

 

We stayed at an absolutely great and I mean great B&B that was located a short walk from the trams. It is called Boogaard's B&B and they have a web site just google their name. Great accommodations and the breakfast outstanding!!

 

The Anne Frank house is definitely worth seeing. We went on line and got tickets ahead of time. They were for a specific time of day and we just walked right in -- there is a different entrance for pre-reserved.

 

Hope this is helpful to you.