FritzG Posted April 23, 2015 #1 Share Posted April 23, 2015 Has anyone used the hoho bus and/or canal trip? I see pro's and con's for each one especially since the canal trip only runs once an hour. We're planning to do Amsterdam on our own in September, and we usually find hoho's to be an easy way to see the sights at our own pace. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orchestrapal Posted April 23, 2015 #2 Share Posted April 23, 2015 How many cities can you see from a canal? We have always done a canal cruise where ever one was offered. It is very special, while a bus is a bus! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreestyleNovice Posted April 23, 2015 #3 Share Posted April 23, 2015 Canal trip, hands down. You will see the beauty of Amsterdam from a slower and much more enjoyable pace. There are multiple companies offering canal tours btw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ine Posted April 23, 2015 #4 Share Posted April 23, 2015 Indeed both sometimes take a lot of your time, waiting for bus or boat. You might opt for a GVB daycard valid for all trams and buses to get to those places you want to visit. http://en.gvb.nl/gvb-dag-meerdagenkaart Apart from that you can make a canaltour of about one hour to see it from the water. Around Centraal Station and Rokin you find many tours offered. https://www.canal.nl/en/canal-cruise-amsterdam http://www.lovers.nl/en/ http://www.rederijplas.nl/en/ http://www.rederijkooij.nl/en Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WatchHill Posted April 23, 2015 #5 Share Posted April 23, 2015 (edited) I've done two canal trips - one in the day time was nice. However, the best one was toward evening as the lights came on and we enjoyed wine and cheese as we sailed along the canals. I've also done combination walking and bus tours in Amsterdam, visiting museums and the flower market, but the canal trips are unique to the city. Darcy Edited April 23, 2015 by WatchHill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tartanexile81 Posted April 23, 2015 #6 Share Posted April 23, 2015 Indeed both sometimes take a lot of your time, waiting for bus or boat.You might opt for a GVB daycard valid for all trams and buses to get to those places you want to visit. http://en.gvb.nl/gvb-dag-meerdagenkaart Apart from that you can make a canaltour of about one hour to see it from the water. Around Centraal Station and Rokin you find many tours offered. https://www.canal.nl/en/canal-cruise-amsterdam http://www.lovers.nl/en/ http://www.rederijplas.nl/en/ http://www.rederijkooij.nl/en Thank you for the information Ine. I've had a look at the websites but it's hard to decide which company to choose. We'll be in Amsterdam in just over 3 weeks for an overnight visit and we were going to buy our tickets in advance. Gray Line looks like the best bet in terms of the route that covers the main tourist spots / frequency (never been to Amsterdam so forgive me if that sounds stupid to you) Thanks for your great advice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crusingnut Posted April 24, 2015 #7 Share Posted April 24, 2015 I've done two canal trips - one in the day time was nice. However, the best one was toward evening as the lights came on and we enjoyed wine and cheese as we sailed along the canals. I've also done combination walking and bus tours in Amsterdam, visiting museums and the flower market, but the canal trips are unique to the city. Darcy Do you recall which canal tour you took in the evening? I've read it's beautiful when the canal is lit up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ine Posted April 24, 2015 #8 Share Posted April 24, 2015 Rederij Kooy has cheese and wine cruises at night http://www.rederijkooij.nl/en/our-canal-cruises Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WatchHill Posted April 24, 2015 #9 Share Posted April 24, 2015 Thanks, Ine. I need another trip to Amsterdam in the early fall and want to do an evening canal trip, then board a river boat going down the Rhine. I'm looking out at the tulips that are in bloom - many of which I purchased at the floating flower market. Darcy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UKBayern Posted April 25, 2015 #10 Share Posted April 25, 2015 The Hoho bus should be a definite no. Busses cannot drive along the canals, and by looking at the map it is as I feared, the route is almost only on the busy modern throughfares (Weesperstraat, Prins Hendrikkade, Plantage Middenlaan, brrrr.... just ter-ri-ble). What I personally would do is start with a one hour boat trip to see the highlights from the water with a short explanation. I see that the Hoho-boat does not cover a lot of the canals either. Amsterdam is a very compact walkable city, and the public transport is excellent. DIY is the way to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HRPro Posted April 25, 2015 #11 Share Posted April 25, 2015 Rederij Kooy has cheese and wine cruises at nighthttp://www.rederijkooij.nl/en/our-canal-cruises We will be visiting the Rijksmuseum and the Ann Frank House during our day in Amsterdam in September. Which would be the location closest to one of those sites to take a canal cruise. Unfortunately, the evening cruise would be too late for us as we will need to take the train back to Rotterdam that evening, but we would like to take a late afternoon/early evening canal cruise. Since I've never been to Amsterdam, I'm not sure which would be the most convenient location for the canal cruise. Many thanks for your help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ine Posted April 25, 2015 #12 Share Posted April 25, 2015 From Anne Frankhuis those near Centraal Station, Plas, Lovers and Canal.nl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCruisers Posted April 25, 2015 #13 Share Posted April 25, 2015 We very much enjoyed the Canal Boat ! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreestyleNovice Posted April 25, 2015 #14 Share Posted April 25, 2015 We will be visiting the Rijksmuseum and the Ann Frank House during our day in Amsterdam in September. Which would be the location closest to one of those sites to take a canal cruise. Unfortunately, the evening cruise would be too late for us as we will need to take the train back to Rotterdam that evening, but we would like to take a late afternoon/early evening canal cruise. Since I've never been to Amsterdam, I'm not sure which would be the most convenient location for the canal cruise. Many thanks for your help. Maybe the early evening in September will be in a nice dusk. Trains run all night long between Amsterdam and Rotterdam btw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Aurora Posted April 25, 2015 #15 Share Posted April 25, 2015 We have been to Amsterdam twice, and while we have taken canal tours (not the canal museum "bus") each time, which are delightful, we've found that Amsterdam has an excellent tram/bus system. Very easy for a visitor to understand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LondonTowner Posted April 25, 2015 #16 Share Posted April 25, 2015 The HOHO bus we took in Amsterdam also included a canal trip. We caught the bus from Central Square. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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