Arriving by air a Schipol the station is clearly marked and there are trains about every 15 minutes with a journey time of approximately 20 minutes, price 4 Euros single, if using the machines look out as the deafult is first class you just need to change this. On arrival at central station there is a tourist information office outside for travel & hotel info and also the GVB office of the Tram & Bus company, the best option these days is a travel card for 24, 36, 72 & 96 hrs you swipe these cards as you get on a tram or bus and also when you get off, they are excellent value.
Amsterdam is not cheap for hotels compared with other European Cities, particulalrly in the summer when the city is very busy.
There are lots of hotel web sites to check for the best option, some of the nicest locations are round the Singel, Prinsengracht, Herengracht & Kaisergracht canals.
NH City Centre Hotel, Souistraat is a very central chain hotel with good facilities but small rooms however the location is good.
The Ibis Hotel at the station is reasonably priced, the rooms are small.
Van Onna - Bloemgracht 102 Tel 626-5801 in the excellent Jordaan area prices cheap and include breakfast no frills but recommended. Tram from the right hand side of Rail Station, alight at Westermarkt.
Amsterdam Prisengracht - Prisengracht 1015 Tel 623 7779 very nicely appointed and friendly good situation nr Rijksmuseum
Torren Keizergracht 164 - Tel 622 6352 very friendly old -fashioned hotel
Hotel Nadia Raadhuisstraat 51 - Tel 620 1550 website www.nadia.nl Opposite Anne Franks House. Family run Hotel
De Reiger Nieuwe Leliestraat 34 Jordaan area excellent brown bar and restaurant no reservations, recently reviewed by top Amsterdam Critic and awarded 9/10 so even more popular now but they will put you on a list and you can have a drink while waiting the food is still top quality with great choice
De Belhamel Brouwersgracht 60 Tel 622-1095 Beautiful canal side restaurant excellent food booking advised downside is it is rather cramped and can be a bit on the warm side
Sluizer Utrechtsestraat 41 45 2 restaurants one specialising in meat the other fish (but both do have both meat & fish choices) excellent trendy modernish restaurants there is also a beautiful conservatory upstairs above the meat one. Excellent menu, great quality food and good service
Tempo Doeloe Utrechtsestraat 75 Tel 625 6718 very smart Indonesian restaurant supposed to be the best in Amsterdam booking essential very helpful service upmarket wine list but quite happy if people stick to beer. They now have a cheaper version next door which is less formal.
Kantil & De Tijger Spuistraat 291 large and very popular Indonesian Restaurant very good value good, friendly service
Nam Kee very good and cheap Chinese Restaurant on the edge of Nieumarkt Square one of its seafood dishes was the title of first a book and now a film in Holland.
New King Zeedijk 115 is another Chinese with a great name and the food is really good.
Nearby is Chao Phraya, Nieuwmarkt 8-10 one of many Thai restaurants in the area, food is very good, reasonably priced and it has an outdoor terrace.
Bazaar Albert Cuyp Straat 182, The Pijp - this is a converted church in the middle of the market street, it specialises in middle eastern cooking and is a fun place with good quality and very reasonable prices.
BurgerMeester, Albert Cuypstraat 48 has some the best burgers ever, it is a very small place, with only soft drinks but the quality and variety is fantastic.
Opposite is one of teh best bakers where you can sit inside and have coffee and cakes.
Mamouche, Queillinjstraat 104, The Pijp, a Moroccan restaurant, very modern with some slightly different dishes, very popular so advise booking
Piet de Leeuw, Noorderstraat 11 has recently been recommended as having the best steaks in Amsterdam in a lovely brown bar setting - apparently booking is required
Chris Bloemstraat 42 Amsterdam’s oldest bar in the heart of the Jordaan area very local
T’Smalle Egelantiersgracht 12 on the edge of the Jordaan lovely bar good food
Nieuwe Leliestraat in the street of the same name also in the Jordaan very local bar
Spanger en Van Twist Leliegracht 60 lovely canal side bar/restaurant
Café De Waag Nieuwmarkt 4 great building conversion to bar and restaurant
Lokaal ‘t Loosje Nieumarkt 32-34 great local brown café good beers and prosecco by the glass at a very reasonable price
Duende Lindengracht 62 Fantastic Spanish Bar with tapas, live music & flamenco in the Jordaan Area great market in the street on Saturday also Café Thysen at the end on the canal smart local bar
Cafe Van Zuylen, Torensteg 8, a modern cafe bar with a good atmosphere and very busy, not far from the Magna Plaza shopping centre.
Het Molenpad Prinsengracht 653 one of the nicest brown cafes good food
Hoppe Spui 18 not the oldest bar but nearly very pleasant old brown bar does good soups etc.
Wynand Focking - Pijlsteeg 31 is an old bar and tasting house specialising in Genever gin, it is just off Dam Square behind the Krasnapolsky Hotel.
De Pisener Club - Begijnensteeg 4 - make your way behind the leather curtain for one of the original unspolit bars- near the Beginhof
Café De Jaren Nieuwe Doelenstraat 20-2 nr the Flower Market at the top of Rokin great modern café bar with lovely views a terrace on the Amstel and excellent selection of refreshments and eats
Café Danzig Nr the Stoppera Opera House on the Amstel canal has a lovely terrace for refreshment and snack slow service but the view makes up for it
Oosterling Bar Utrechtsestraat 140 lovely old fashioned bar and off-licence not far from the Riijksmuseum
Tasting houses for Dutch Gins De Drie Fleschjes Gravenstraat 18 Near Dam Square
Beer Specialists In de Wildeman Kolksteeg 3 Central towards Central Station.
There are a number of really good bars on Zeedijk or close by, although this used to have a bit of a downmarket reputation it has some really lovely traditional bars and places to eat. In T'Aepjen, Zeedijk 1, a lovely brown bar if you are really lucky you may get the DJ Barman with his record players and collection of 45's.
Almost opposite is De Ooievaar, Sint Olofspoort 1, another gem of a bar, and round the corner In de Olofspoort, Nieuwebrugsteeg 13.
The area of the Museums Rijksmuseum (Old Masters), Stedelijk Museum (Modern) and the Van Gogh Museum, - all close by with park area with shops and bars linking them.
Science Museum NEMO On the harbour side by the Shipping Museum very hands on - great setting
FOAM new museum of photography on Kaisergracht 609
Beginhof hidden behind the north side of the Spui Square in the centre a beautiful collection of houses and churches
Daily Market in Albert Cuypstraat worth a visit lots of good bars and restaurants nearby in Ferdinand Bolstraat & Frans Halsstraat not far from the Museum area
Utechtsestraat between the Prinsengracht and the Herengracht has some very good restaurants, bars and cafes including the three restaurants mentioned above
The Stedelijk Museum is currently being housed in the old Post Office building at the Dockalnds near the station with special exhibitions if you go make sure you go up to 11 the bar, restaurant and club on the eleventh floor and visit the new library next door.
Before or after a wander round Vondel Park have a walk along Cornelis Schuystraat and Pieter Cornelisz Hoofstraat for very upmarket shopping and in teh former some nice places to eat including Tramezzino and incredibly upmarket sandwich bar.
If you need a break from the crowds, hop on a train from Central Station to Haarlem, trains every 15 minutes journey time 20 minutes, the town is lovely almost like a small version of Amsterdam but without any tacky shops.
Last Updated August 2009
