Amawaterways Pre-Cruise Tour of Amsterdam

[Shepsue]

We will be on the Sonata for the April 22, 2017 sailing and my wife and i will be arriving in Amsterdam on the 21st. We are planning to book a walking tour of Amsterdam and visit the Anne Frank house on the 22nd before first boarding the ship.

 

According to the documents that we received, we will be touring the city with our shipmates on the 23rd and I wanted to get feedback from anyone who has departed from Amsterdam as to what kind of tour experience they had with the ship's tour guides, specifically, was it a walking tour, a bus or tram based tour and whether they felt the tour covered enough of the city that would essentially then be a duplicate of the the private walking tour that I had hoped to arrange independently. If it is, then we can spend our time elsewhere (museums, shopping etc.).

 

Thank you for any feedback!

[LoneStarCruisinCouple]

Hi Shepsue,

Not sure as to what Ama provides but we last September did Jewels of Europe with Scenic and was a Bus tour and a little walking tour and a canal cruise. Not a bad job but we ourselves like you had arrived several days early staying at the Toren Hotel, as Scenic uses the Doubletree and is just like staying in a US hotel. We wanted a European Botique experience and the Toren is rated number one by TripAdvisor.

Anyways we hired Tom'TravelTours and was excellent. Tom is rated as one of the Best Travel photographers in Europe and was great as while we were touring and taking pictures he as well was taking photos of us. The location of the hotel was perfect as the Anne Frank house was just around the corner.

We had booked before we arrived with Jewels Dinner Cruises so we had a nice romantic cruise with wine and dinner. Had also made a booking with Five Flies and also Tempoe Doeloe which both are Michelin Star Restaurants.

Had met here on Cruise Critic two other couples that were from Canada an on our cruise and we had a meet and greet at the Roof Top for Cocktails an then went to Vermeer for dinner.

Great city but we found to be dirty enjoyed Budapest a lot better.

Wishing you Smooth Sailings and a FUNTASTIC Time.

 

Sent from my SM-G925P using Tapatalk

[Host Jazzbeau]

Welcome Shepsue to the River Cruising Forum! You have chosen a great first river cruise (IMHO).

 

The AMA website has a tab for Detailed Itineraries which will give you much detail about what is included each day on your cruise. The description of the included tour in Amsterdam at the beginning of your cruise is: "The famous canals of Amsterdam await discovery on your city tour. Begin with a scenic canal cruise and see the tall narrow homes lining the water, the Skinny Bridge, and the house where Anne Frank and her family lived in hiding during WWII. Next, you’ll walk to Begijnhof, known for its historic buildings dating back to the Middle Ages and have some free time to explore. Later, enjoy a panoramic city tour on which you’ll see the Royal Palace, Westerkerk and stop for photos at a Dutch windmill before returning to the ship." This sounds exactly like the tour we had at the beginning of our Enchanting Rhine tour on AMA in 2013 -- we enjoyed it a lot, it's just too bad it comes at the end of your time in Amsterdam as it makes a great introduction to the city.

 

The canal cruise and "panoramic" bus tour are narrated but you don't get off or go into anything. You do get off the bus near the Begijnhof, walk through the neighborhood [where you will have some time at the end], and then have a narrated walking tour of the Begihnhof cloister and its two churches. You also get off the bus at the "Rembrandt Windmill" for a photo op.

 

Your AMA Cruise Director may also offer a walk after dinner that will give an orientation to Amsterdam and might include the Red Light District [meh].

 

If you are looking for things to do that AMA won't duplicate, I would recommend the Rick Steves Amsterdam City Walk and visiting the Van Gogh Museum, Rijksmuseum, and Anne Frank House and/or Amstelkring Museum ("Our Lord in the Attic").

Edited September 9, 2016 by Host Jazzbeau

[FuelScience]

My wife and I flew into Amsterdam a couple of days early for a cruise last year and enjoyed it so much that we went back for a week in June just to do Amsterdam and the surrounding areas.

 

We decided that we wanted to stay somewhere a little different and more intimate, and we loved a little B&B called misc eatdrinksleep. It's just off of Nieuwmarket Square, and has six rooms. Three face the canal and three face the garden. Rachel and Pepijn are great hosts. There's no elevator, but they will carry your bags up and down the steep stairs.

 

I highly recommend the "free" walking tours. They typically leave from Dam Square, and take about 3 hours. That includes a stop for coffee and toilet break. Of course the Rijksmuseum is outstanding, but also consider the Maritime Museum and the Dutch Resistance Museum.

 

Our most surprising fun thing was probably our trip to the flower auction. On our first morning there we woke up early--jetlag. So we walked to Centraal Station and hopped on the bus to Royal FloraHolland. It's either the first or the second largest building in the world--depending on how you measure Tesla's gigafactory. The auction is over by 11:00, you need to arrive early. We took a 7:00 a.m. bus and got there around 8:00. The auction is interesting (single lots typically sell in a second or less in the Dutch auction), but the fascinating thing is to see the flowers being delivered to different points on the warehouse floor.

 

You might also schedule an hour or two for a cheese tasting at Reypenaer on the Singel canal. You taste 5 cheeses and drink about as many glasses of wine and port! Reservations are needed and cost is 15 euros.

 

As far as dining goes, we enjoyed doing an Indonesian rice table (Rijsttaffel) one evening. If you're willing to add another day or two to your Amsterdam stay, you'll find lots to do.

 

We've become big fans of Amsterdam. Very interesting and totally walkable.

 

FuelScience

[tribbs1]

I just want to point out that the Amsterdam tour will be conducted by a local tour guide - not someone associated with AMA Waterways.

[gnome12]

I just want to point out that the Amsterdam tour will be conducted by a local tour guide - not someone associated with AMA Waterways.

 

Is that not true of all excursions? It certainly was on my 2 Uniworld European cruises.