Amsterdam
Amsterdam is just a short hop from the UK, and its incongruous mix of sex and drugs, museums and galleries, attracts a diverse range of visitors. A cosmopolitan city, Amsterdam manages to combine a historical façade with a youthful heart.
Amsterdam was founded on a dam on the river Amstel in the thirteenth century, and swiftly rose in political and economic prominence as nearby rival Antwerp declined. The city went from strength to strength in the seventeenth century, with an influx of citizens and a burgeoning maritime trade. In a relatively short space of time, Amsterdam became the fulcrum of a vast trading empire that jostled with the international interests of the British and French in Asia.
Amsterdam failed to maintain its economic and political power into the twentieth century, but is still an important European city and major tourist destination. With its network of canals, relaxed drugs laws, and world class museums (such as the Van Gogh and Rijksmuseum), Amsterdam has plenty to offer.
With 165 canals, a cruise - either a highlights tour or a fully catered experience - is a must. Many good cafes and restaurants overlook the canals, and the Historic Centre with its infamous red light district is bisected by one of the major city waterways.
Amsterdam's main highlights are pretty much explorable on foot, although with 400,000 bicycles and widespread cycling lanes, pedal power can make a useful alternative means of transport. The streets can get crowded, particularly around Damrak and Dam Square - a central meeting spot for locals and tourists alike. There are always plenty of cafes - of the normal or of the 'smoking' kind' - that you can relax in after a bout of sight-seeing.
Whether you're an art lover or not the Van Gogh Museum will take your breath away. Housing dozens of the trademark vibrant works, this is the definitive Van Gogh collection. A short walk away is the equally impressive Rijks Museum - a treasure house of artifacts and featuring works by Dutch Masters such as Rembrandt.
Anne Frank Huis is one of Amsterdam's most popular and moving destinations, although the queues and the crowds can overwhelm at times. Preserved as it was left after the war, the house is a monument to the courage of one young girl and her family, who hid in the house for two years from the Nazis, before being betrayed and sent to the extermination camps.
Getting There
British Airways, KLM, British Midland, and Easyjet all fly direct to Amsterdam a number of times each day, and there are usually good deals to be had, so shop around.
Eurostar can take you direct to Brussels, where Intercity Expresses connect to Amsterdam. Travel time is a shade under five hours.
Eurolines Bus Services and Stena Line ferry links (to the Hook of Holland) are two lower cost options, although as you'd expect travelling time is significantly longer than for air travel.
PP Travel offer short breaks to Amsterdam, Click here for details.
More Information
Check out Visit Amsterdam or Visit Holland. For an 'alternative' viewpoint, visit Cannabis Cafe's site...
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