Netherlands...
Netherlands
Budget was 700E cash for 4 days 4 nights. Apartment paid for by Visa. Price per night for Studio apartment with queen bed and full kitchen was 60E/night.
Apartment: No issues other than the low water pressure - you couldnt take a shower and run a tap at the same time. But none the less it had everything we needed for making it our Amsterdam basecamp. From Apartment to Centraal Station was about 15 minutes by bus so it wasnt crazy convenient but it also wasnt loud so. It was booked via AirBnB which I guess is the number 1 apartment booking engine for Amsterdam.
So we to Amsterdam and it was pouring rain. The train from airport to Centraal Station was only 4.40E and we hopped on bus 32 to get to our apartment rental in North Amsterdam. Apparently we got there just in time as the worst storm to hit in 29 years had just gone through and someone had died along a canal from a tree falling on them. While on the bus ride as we tried to see where we were going through the rain storm 4 different people asked if we needed help - I couldnt believe it, all perfect English and not hating that we were on their articulated bus with out luggage - amazing.
We arrived at our apartment and was greeted by our very friendly AirBNB host with free Netherland waffle cookies. Like our host in Amsterdam he gave us some tips on where to get food. We were starving so we tried this pub from 1908 and OMG compared to Barcelona the food was amazing and well priced. Holysloot we found food heaven compared to Spain.
We were a little frazzled from our trip and the downpour when we walked outside the train station so we just decided to walk around in the rain for a while to get our barings. The smell - there was no smell in North Amsterdam which was a pleasant surprise from the smell of BCN.
We connected the laptop and checked the weather. The next day it wasnt calling for alot of rain so we decided to rent bikes - found a few places near so got a bike map and decided to bike around. Rented bikes for 20E for the day per bike (old terrible bike but comfortable seat, had their been any hills in Amsterdam this bike would have been terrible but the Netherlands is like Sastachewan with more water so it was very flat so the bikes worked). We crossed the river on the free ferry and stopped at a Cafe (not Coffee shop - big difference) for breakfast. We checked the menu and it sounded good and the prices were very reasonable so we grabbed a bite - nothing spectacular but good food at good prices - cant ask for anything more than that. We biked around amsterdam making the loop at first on the oustide then again on the inside and then again the inside for some more. Almost died on the bike a few times but all in all crazy number of bikes.
A little odd was that on all bike paths scooters, motorbikes, and these weird Erkel golf carts are all allowed. It was a bit strange to see see scooters wizzing past you but whatevs - cant complain. The bikes seem to own the way in Amsterdam you dont have to stop for anything it seems least bit pedestrians. We spent about 6 hours in an around old amsterdam just biking along, stopping every so often to take pictures. Amsterdam is a very strange city to get your bearings in. The roads change names and because they arent at right angled its easy to get lost so we probably stopped every 30 minutes to check the map just to make sure where we were
.
We brought a few croissants and fruit with us which held us over so we decided to then cross to North Amsterdam and bike up there. We biked to Holysloot and stopped in at a great little eatery there - again great food and reasonable prices. The drink scam is there but when you arent paying 50CAD for your meal you can stomach 3.50CAD for 200ml of pop. We then biked to Monnikendam and had dessert and headed back to drop off our bikes before 7pm and since there were no lights on these bikes we wanted to be back before sundown
.
We went to get groceries at Albert Hijn ? and retired early as we planned to go to Zann Schans the next day and we had booked a boat tour around old amsterdam in the evening as well as a Red Light walking tour that evening as well.
We got to Zann Shans (I would call it basically the Netherlands version of Heritage Park). You get to see a little town how it would have been in the 1700/1800s. You also get to see working windmills and a clog making shop, cheese making, spice milling, chocolate making so it hits all those with 1 stop. We spent about 60E on cheese which was by far our largest item purchase on our whole tripf. It was very interesting - we made the mistake of taking the train and not the direct bus as we thought it would be faster, the problem is the train station is quite a distance and we missed the 2/hour bus connection. I highly reccomend this if you are at all interested in Dutch history with windmills, canal making, spice production etc. My wife wanted to go to Volendam so we took the train to Purmerend and then bus to Volendam. Cool little fishing village We made our way back to Amsterdam and got on the last 5pm boat tour around the old City.
Maybe its different in the summer but I wouldnt recommend the boat tour as while it gives you interesting tidbits you are quite low in the boat so its difficult to see things and on the 75 minute tour there maybe was 25 minutes of info through the headphones. After we headed to a eatery in old Amsterdam near the RLD on a recommendation given to us by the lady running the Chocolate making hut in Zaan Schans - amazing dutch food and very good prices. It was a little daunting as there was no written menu with prices and the waiters had everything memorized - but the food was very good and we had 2 appatizers, drinks, and meals for 45E and no tip required.
At 8pm we headed over to the Victoria Hotel for the Randy Roys Red Light tour. I wasnt really sure what to expect but the reviews on Trip Adviser were very good and at only 15E each we figured we had to do it, just to see it as were were a little hesitant to walk around the RLD ourselves. The tour was amazing - I highly reccomend it. Its put on by either a lady or an older gentleman and they walk you around the old City and the RLD giving you a history lesson, and very open and frank discussion on everything from the Coffeeshops to the RLD and just alot more history along with the RLD walk and history. For the same price as the canal tour its not even close as to which one was worth the money. This tour could have cost 40E and I still would recommend it over the 15 Canal tour.
After the tour we walked around the narrow alleys of the RLD just to soak in the strangeness of the whole place. To see the drunk English and the Russians being Russians. I had been here before on a school trip in 1994 and it was so different than what I remember. No one soliciting yelling at you, I couldnt find the memorable post cards that I remember. I went to in a Coffee shop and got one to go - their coffee is much stronger than what you can get in Canada so the next day I was still a bit stoked from all the caffeine. My wife doesnt drink coffee so she didnt partake. Normally I dont either but the Amsterdam has such a rich coffee heritage that you have to try it once.
The next day we booked a WW2 walking tour which went through alot about the Juud experience in Holland, the guy was very friendly and a bit nutty nerdy professor ish. I expected it to be more about the Dutch resistance and less about the Juud experience but none the less it was good. We had a 2pm Old amsterdam walking tour booked so we decided to hit the Naval museum in between - got there at 9am and it was very interesting - I expected it to be more about the naval/merchant fleet and less sort of history of maritime travel etc - none the less it was worth the money but not a museum I would go back to.
About a month earlier I found out about this weird museum tour they had tonight that started at 5pm and went to 2 am and you got admission to all the museums so we skipped other museums and headed to a Thai place that the RL tour recommended to us called the Little Thai Prince - not sure if in Spain we jsut had bad luck with the recommendations but in Amsterdam every place was a home run. Great Thai place and very lucky to get in with only 10 tables in the whole place (like all AMS eaterys it seems). After we got to our Old Amsterdam walking tour - for me this was far better than the canal tour for seeing Amsterdam and the history lessons of the reasoning for the city architecture and the canal and tram placements and it was only 20E pp.
After we stopped for a waffle dessert (again wowzers - hard to believe someone in Cgy couldnt make a go of a sweet waffle place with whip cream on top). So simple and yet so good - I have a sweet pallette and it was almost too sweet for me. For some reason I am used to plain waffles and not sweet ones with the sugar mixed in with the batter. I could have had 3 of them but only had 1 (damn wife).
At 530 we started our museum adventure. Our AirBNB flat landlord told us the Rijksmuseum was by far the best to see so we went there - very cool museum but we burned 3 hours in there. I had been to the Anne Frank house and while I remember it being "moving" I dont remember it being overly interesting and since the lineups everytime we went by were easily a few blocks long we decided to skip it and went to the Van Gogh museum instead. Again we burned alot of hours in there so the last one we went to was the Resistance museum which I highly reccomend for any WW2 history buffs. We left there at 130am and head to the RLD for waffles again - cant get enough and to browse the windows again - we even go to see a few satisfied clients leave which is just funny to see.
We got back to our flat at 3am and since we were leaving the next day we went to bed.
Overall I would give Amsterdam a A+ rating. I would 100% go back. There is so much to do in such a relatively small City. We had grand plans of takin the train to the Haag and Belgium but it was just such a fun city with things to do around it that we decided to stick around Amsterdam.
Im 33 and I could easily see Amsterdam as a place I would go back to. I would say anyone from 20-40yo with kids would find AMS an enjoyable vacation spot. I could easily spend a few weeks in AMS and use it as a base camp for the rest of Holland as there was a Market Garden tour I was really interested in taking but just couldnt.
Weather was a nice English summer - so rainy and dreery with patches of sun but it didnt seem to matter.
English: A+ even the 80yo guy at the Zaan Schans lumber mill could speak enough English. I didnt meet anyone working there who couldnt speak English.
Food: A - if it wasnt for the worlds worst Donair near the Ajax Amsterdam shop it would be given an A+ but that donair was just so terrible that they only get an A
Friendliness: A+ everyone was very helpful and friendly. Unlike in Spain I didnt feel like I as a tourist who couldnt speak the language was a burden to them, in fact everyone made me feel welcome. It might have been that we had gotten there 2 weeks before their Christmas but who cares - everyone was awesome. We bought 4 different Christmas decorations as our family will be having our first Christmas this year with a tree.