Tour guides Netherlands > Amsterdam

5 ideas for guided tours in Amsterdam

• Rijksmuseum – Amsterdam State Museum

  

  The Rijksmuseum doesn’t shout. It lets the paintings do that. Between Stadhouderskade and Museumplein, you walk through galleries that stretch for what feels like miles. Over 8,000 pieces. Names you know — Rembrandt, Vermeer, Van Gogh. And many you don’t.

  Begin upstairs. Second floor. That’s where “Night Watch” hangs. Crowds gather. Some stare. Others move on, slow and quiet. Outside, gardens soften the brick: sculpture, a greenhouse full of forgotten vegetables, a small water maze.

  Feeling hungry? The Rijks restaurant is tucked inside. Yes, it has a star. No, it’s not stiff. Just good food in a place that knows how to slow down.

• Jordaan

  

  The Jordaan isn’t polished. It wasn’t meant to be. The streets twist a little. Trees lean over narrow sidewalks. You might hear music through a cracked window. Or smell bread. It lingers.

  It began as a workers’ neighborhood. Immigrants too — people who were searching for something softer than where they came from. Now, the Anne Frank House is here. Westerkerk, tall and stoic, not far. You can climb it. The view might stay with you longer than you expect.

  Markets unfold in the morning. Brown cafés open by evening. Café Chris has been pouring for centuries. Locals know the names — Paradox, Tertulia, Mr. K & CO. Ask around. You’ll find them.

• Vondelpark

  

  Some parks feel designed. This one doesn’t. Vondelpark, open since 1865, just breathes. Named after poet Joost van den Vondel, whose statue still stands, watching the crowds pass by.

  Paths curve. Lakes sit quiet. Trees scatter shade. Inspired by old English gardens, but more relaxed. About 45 hectares of green, crossed by bikes, runners, kids chasing nothing.

  In summer, an open-air stage wakes up. Music, plays, maybe a film. You sit in the grass. The sky turns. Somewhere in it, the 60s never quite left.

• The Bloemenmarkt

  

  Along the Singel canal, just next to Rembrandtplein, you’ll see it. Bloemenmarkt. A market that floats — literally. Shops rest on old barges, tied tight to the edge.

  Since 1862, flowers have bloomed here. Tourists stop for tulips. Locals pass by without looking. You’ll find seeds, bulbs, blossoms in every color. The tulip became a Dutch symbol long ago, after drifting in from Central Asia.

  Beyond the stalls: cafés, souvenir stands, postcards that never get sent. But something about the scent — a little wet, a little sweet — makes you slow down.

• The Beguinage

  

  A few steps from the rush of Kalverstraat, the city softens. Begijnhof. A quiet courtyard, shaped by time. Built around 1350, once closed by water, reachable only by bridge.

  It sheltered women. The beguines. Faithful, unmarried, often widowed. Fires came and went. Wood disappeared. All but one house — Het Houten Huys, number 34 — still standing, still wooden.

  Today, it feels paused. Red brick, green lawn, a small chapel. Nearby, Spui square wakes up on Fridays for old books. Sundays, artists set up — Artplein-Spui — paint, metal, sketches, all sold hand to hand.