Amsterdam: Quick trip recommendations

Documenting recommendations from a 2018 Amsterdam visit~

Amsterdam is one of those great destinations for someone whose never been out of the US or is worried about language barriers since most people speak some English. The other nice thing about Amsterdam is it's SUPER walkable and bike friendly. We took the train maybe once to get from one side of Amsterdam to another (after getting in to the city from the airport). 

Where we stayed

We stayed in Amsterdam Hotel Mercier; 5 years ago it had JUST opened and was totally a hidden gem, so I hope it's still as nice. Like the rest of Amsterdam, rooms are tiny (think like London sizes) but the hotel had so much character. We were in a Deluxe room and that still felt small so maybe splurge a bit and upgrade from the small/comfort rooms. Hotel Mercier is very centrally located and almost kitty corner from the Anne Frank museum if you want to visit (we could hear the bell toll in our room during the day). 

Amsterdam activities

I highly suggest doing a canal tour - we went through Those Dam Boat Guys and they had loooooots of colorful history and knowledge to share (so might not be for the faint of heart / those who give the red light district a wide berth lol).

Definitely take at least an afternoon to visit the Rijksmuseum. You will (very likely) need advance reservation tix for the Van Gogh and Anne Frank museums. 

Rijksmuseum

Visit the Vondelpark during the day- it's a super pretty walk but apparently gets sketchy at night. Spend time walking around the city and getting lost (if you're an architecture fan like me) - I love seeing details of the old buildings/how tiny the bricks are.  

I ran out of time but wanted to visit the Our Lord in the Attic Musem - it's a cool hidden church Catholics attended when the religion was forbidden (I didn't have the chance to go because it was closed, but it's still on my bucket list!) If you go, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Food

Moeders is great for dinner - We got SUPER lucky and were able to get in without a reservation, but make one if you can. They specialize in dutch classic comfort food (like what your dutch mom would make, hence the name).  It looks like they've opened a second location since I visited, which means more tables!

Don't forget to get stroopwafels; they're a must in the Netherlands! I personally went to Van Wonderen Stroopwafels (the chocolate dipped ones reeled me in), but there are plenty of places that sell these.

Flying Standby to AMS

To get to AMS, we hopped on Delta's direct flight from SLC to AMS. We got the last 2 seats; 1 in Comfort+, and the other in regular economy. There's nothing like hopping on a plane and waking up in Europe- it's so much nicer than having to connect on the East coast. 

If you have early morning plans to leave AMS airport, the Yotel in Schipol is super convenient! It's airside (after security) which cuts down on travel time, security line time, and is such a stress-reducer. We caught an early AM flight to BCN so this was helpful. 

 --

Wanna stay in the loop? Never miss out on future posts by following me!