5 Unique Day Trips and Things to do in Amsterdam With Kids

Amsterdam may not easily come to mind as a family-friendly city known for its Red Light District, Heineken and its many “coffee shops”. My husband and I visited by ourselves many years ago and recently, with our 13-year-old son. We found the city offered a lot for families looking for a culture, varied food, activities, unique experiences and interesting day trips.    

1. Cruise the Canals

It is known as the Venice of the North due to its many canals. We highly recommend starting an Amsterdam visit with a one-hour guided canal cruise as an orientation of the city and its history especially for first time visitors. There are several varieties of cruises offered from themed ones like pizzas, hamburgers to dinner inclusive. Many cruises start outside of Central Station so pick one that appeals to your family.

Read more about our guided Amsterdam canal cruise.

2. Sample Cheese

Attention cheese lovers! You will love walking around Amsterdam. There were several cheese shops around the city that offered many free samples.

The shop workers were very informative about the different kinds of cheese and how they were made. Do not just pass by the shops. Go in, learn and sample. My son was loving cheese sampling all around the city throughout our trip.

3. Eat Dutch

The Dutch may not be known for their food but Amsterdam offers many great opportunities to sample local specialties kids will enjoy. In addition to cheese, be sure to eat some stroopwafels(baked thin waffle with syrup in between), kroket (deep fried roll with meat inside), Dutch pancakes (with various toppings) and sweet or salty licorice  

Try other international foods around the city too. We found that Argentinian and Indonesian food is widely available in Amsterdam with many restaurants scattered around. Check out food halls like De Foodhallen or street markets with many vendors like the Albert Cuyp Market.

4. Visit the Flower Market

Located in the city center, visitors can explore the world’s only floating market. The Amsterdam Flower Market is a wonderful place to explore. The market has been around since 1862 and filled with flower shops on houseboats.

We enjoyed walking around here and seeing all the colorful flowers, especially the tulips, during our spring visit. It was a great place to buy affordable and export ready flower bulbs to take home. The shops also sold many souvenirs from magnets to clogs.

The market is located on the Singel canal between the Koningsplein and the Muntplein. It was an easy and relaxing walk along the canals from Dam Square for us.   

5. See a Castle

We were pleasantly surprised to find a castle just outside of Amsterdam. The 13th century Muiderslot was located about 9.3 miles (15 km) from the city center but looked straight out of a fairytale book. A moat with a drawbridge, turrets and towers surrounded this medieval castle.

Unfortunately, the castle was still closed during our visit. But, we were still able to walk the grounds. Visitors can join guided tours and explore the chambers inside the castle that demonstrates the Dutch Golden Age’s richness and grandeur. These tours with various themes are usually offered from April to October.

There was a beautiful garden outside for families to explore. Check out the theater plays and workshops for kids. They can also participate in children’s quest around the castle grounds. Families can also visit the falconer and interact with the birds of prey too.   

There are also other castles along the countryside. Check out the 14th century De Haar Castle near Utrecht if you have time.

6. Go Shopping

My teen daughter wasn’t with us on this trip but I know she would have loved Kalverstraat and Leidsestraat, which are the two main shopping streets. We spent a bit of time at Kalverstraat’s cobblestoned street with the many shops there. Pop into De Bijenkorf department store and Magna Plaza both by DAM Square.

I also enjoyed window-shopping along The Nine Streets (De Negen Straatjes) in the historic Jordaan canal district. There are many galleries, boutiques and vintage stores that can keep many tween and teen girls busy for hours.      

7. Learn at Museums

Amsterdam has so many unique and world-class museums that visitors can spend days exploring them. There are reportedly about 75 museums around the city that cater to anyone’s interest from art, science, cheese, tulips to cats or microbes. It is a matter of finding the time to explore as many of them as you want within your itinerary.    

• If you’re an art lover, the Rijksmuseum offers a vast collection of masterpieces from Dutch powerhouses like Rembrandt and Vermeer to other prints, drawings, photos and antiques from around the world. If you prefer modern art, the Stedelijk Museum has one of the world’s best collection.
• Another can’t miss attraction for art lovers is the Van Gogh Museum. It houses the world’s largest collection of his work that includes over 200 paintings and 500 drawings.  
• One of the city’s most popular attraction is the Anne Frank House. Visitors can see the secret annex where the young girl hid with her family for two years during World War II.

The museum features various exhibits of a vast collection of historical documents, photographs and artifacts about Anne’s short life, the people she was in hiding with and the wartime persecution of Jews. Her original diary is also on display.  

There is a free audio tour in nine languages to enhance the experience. Get your ticket online as soon as possible and book your time slot. Tickets sell out months in advance.

• It was hard to miss the NEMO Science Museum. The green copper building resembled a ship rising out of the water. The family-friendly museum has five floors of science and technology exhibits. Kids will love all the interactive and educational activities and workshops from lab science experiments to building bridges.      

8. Take Day Trips

One of the best decisions we made on this trip was to rent a car and explore the outlying areas beyond Amsterdam. These places are also accessible by public transportation.

Zaanse Schans

If you can only do one day trip from Amsterdam, we recommend going to Zaanse Schans, Located about 12 miles (19 km) from the city center, this was a great place to learn how this area’s residents lived and worked during the industrial revolution.

There were many things to do here from visiting working windmills, watching clog making, cheese sampling and learning at several museums. Kids will also enjoy the small animal farm and participating in workshops.

Read more about tips and things to do in Zaanse Schans during our day there.

Keukenhof Gardens

If you are visiting the Netherlands during spring, you cannot miss Keukonhof Gardens. It is usually only open between late March to mid-May. The world’s largest flower park did not disappoint with its countless flower displays that could brighten anyone’s day. Over 7 million flower bulbs are planted here every year.

It was an extraordinary place to visit. Of course, there was a windmill to visit here too. We highly recommend renting a bike and following some of the bike trails to the colorful flower fields. It was a great way to see the area and see some of the flowers up close.  

Volendam

Our visit to this quaint and historic fishing village was one of our favorites for a relaxing way to spend an afternoon. The old harbor was lined with traditional Dutch ships, fishing boats and colorful wooden buildings.

We enjoyed walking down the old harbor strip, De Dijk, which had many restaurants, shops and museums. Many souvenir items including sweatshirts which my kids love collecting were actually cheaper here than Amsterdam. We loved eating the fresh and reasonably priced seafood from the vendors. There were also stores to sample cheese and stroopwafels.

During warmer months, there are some water sports activities to try. Visitors with more time can also take a ferry to the nearby peninsula of Marken. This was a traditional fishing village but houses were on small hills or on stilts. There are several buses from Amsterdam Central Station that travel to Volendam or Marken and take less than an hour.

Giethoorn

Our favorite day trip in our itinerary was the historic village of Giethoorn known as the “Dutch Venice”. Many of the old village’s houses are only accessible by boat, bike or foot. There were no roads but canals to get around.

We really enjoyed renting one of the “whisper boats” to do a one-hour cruise around the village and on to the lake. It was a very peaceful and scenic way to see the 18th century thatched roof farmhouses while cruising under some of the wooden bridges.

Please read more about our day trip to Giethoorn here.

Haarlem

Located a mere 30 minutes from Amsterdam and known as the “City of Flowers”, Haarlem was a charming city to explore. We enjoyed walking its quaint streets and hanging out at Grote Markt Square. The beautiful St. Bavo Church looms over the city center.

There are interesting museums, plenty of stores for shopping, green spaces, charming squares and even the chance to explore its canals. We found the city to be lively and a fantastic way to see another part of Holland. This is also easily accessible by train from Central Station to Haarlem’s Art Deco train station.

Like many of our trips, we usually have a limited time to explore cities. Here is a list of other family-friendly activities we would love to do during a return trip. Hopefully, you can do them with your families.

9. Do a football stadium tour

If you are soccer/football fans, visiting the Johan Cruijff Arena and doing a stadium tour may be on the itinerary. This was The Netherlands largest stadium.

My husband and son are soccer fans and wanted to do the 75-minute behind-the-scenes guided tour of exclusive areas. But, we couldn’t fit it into our schedule and they were already touring several UK football stadiums the following week. They both regret it now.  

This is the home of Ajax football team. Attend one of their games or maybe the Dutch National team if you’re here during their season. We will never forget coming out of the ArenA train station which was by our hotel and being greeted by hundreds of the Dutch national team’s fans sporting orange gear after a big game.

10. See Amsterdam from Above

While the city is known for sightseeing using its canals, seeing it from above would also be a wonderful perspective. The A’DAM Lookout observation deck is located on top of the A’DAM tower across from the Central Station.

It offers 360° panoramic views of Amsterdam 22 floors high. There is a revolving restaurant here too. For daredevils, you can swing 100 m “Over the Edge” of the tower.       

11. Explore Green Spaces

Exploring the cities’ green spaces have always been a big part of our trips. Vondelpark is Amsterdam’s largest park and located near the Museum quarter. There are plenty of areas for walking, picnicking, biking and bird watching. Kids can enjoy several play areas and a large playground. There are free concerts during certain times of the year.

Amstelpark is another favorite park. Located along the river Amstel, it was filled with gardens and wide paths for strolling. It looks very family friendly with a mini golf course, a train, pony rides, petting farm and a maze. There’s also the 17th century Rieker windmill to see.

12. Rent a Bike

Amsterdam is known as the “Bike Capital of the World”. There are about 1.91 bikes per household here. The small streets are very bike friendly and you will be among many of the locals biking around. It is one of the best ways to explore the city’s neighborhoods and attractions.   

There are many guided bike tours for families like withalocal on a clog bike or with BajaBikes (ages 8 and up).  Most tours are about three hours. I would feel confident doing these bike tours with guides especially with teens. We absolutely loved our guided bike tours around Paris and Versailles.

Families can also do their own tour by renting bikes from some vendors if you feel confident enough with the traffic and crowds or if you have older kids. Look for many rental bike shops (bike is “fiet” in Dutch) near Central station, Leidseplein or Dam Square. There are tandem bikes or carriages attached to bikes for younger kids.     

Our Spring Itinerary

This was our springtime itinerary that was quite busy and filled with more day trips since we had a rental car. You can do many things in Amsterdam in a few days especially if you’re visiting during the summer with longer days.

We combined our day trips to see more towns and nearby attractions. I hope you can use it for some inspiration beyond exploring the city center.     

Day 1:Amsterdam Sightseeing

Start your Amsterdam sightseeing at the Central Station. We recommend starting with the one-hour guided canal cruise as an orientation of the city.

Walk through Kalverstraat for some shopping and will take you to DAM Square. There are many restaurants along the side streets.

Choose a walking path that will take you to the old canal district and to the Flower market. We followed the road that took us the Anne Frank House. Walk a little further and you will get to the Tulip and Cheese Museum. You can take the tram back to Central Station.  

My guys didn’t want to visit the major museums so we spent more time walking around the city. If you’re going to be visiting museums and/or the Anne Frank House, I would save that for the second day.

Day 2: Amsterdam Sightseeing or Day trip to Zaanse Schans

Visit any of the museums and spend some time in Vondelpark with the kids afterwards or you can do a day trip.

We spent our second day by going to Zaanse Schans via our rental car with a quick stop in Zaandam to see the quirky Inntel hotel. It looked like it was made up of stacked traditional wooden houses.

We were in Zaanse Schans for about 3.5 hours here including eating lunch and leisurely strolls through the area, visiting a windmill and some museums.

Drive about 12 miles (20 km) to the charming town of Edam known for their cheese. Walk around their cobblestone streets and sample their unique cheese. It was such a picturesque town to explore. Stop by Peter Gorter De Echte Bakker for some delicious pastries.  

We took a detour based on one of the local’s recommendation and drove a few miles to Henri Willig Cheese Farm. It was interesting to see how this cheese company started. We also saw where they kept the cows and how the machines milk them. There was a showroom on how cheese was made and plenty of samples for visitors.

End your day by driving about 2 miles miles (3 km) to the fishing village of Volendam from Edam. Shop and have dinner at one of the many restaurants or seafood vendors. Eat a stroopwafel or buy a Dutch pancake filled with fruits and sweets for dinner.

Day 3: Day trip to Giethoorn and Haarlem

We recommend starting this day trip early especially if you’re here during the busy season. Do the one hour guided boat tour or rent your own. Spend some time to walk around the old village and have lunch at one of the restaurants.

We stopped at Muidesrlot Castle on your way back to Amsterdam. Since it was still closed, we didn’t spend a lot of time here. It’s easy to see families spending a couple of hours here with the gardens and activities.

Visiting the city of Haarlem, which was less than 30 minutes away, was a spontaneous decision. We planned to walk around the Museum Quarter and Vondelpark in Amsterdam but decided to explore the outskirts. It was great to walk around Haarlem and have dinner there.

Day 4: Keukenhof Garden

This flower garden was the main reason I wanted to visit Holland during Spring. It was worth the three hours we spent here and even the teen boy enjoyed it.

We loved seeing the nearby flower fields up close with our rental bikes. You can rent them right by the Keukenhof parking lot. Read about our day trip to Keukenhof Gardens.

Tips for Visiting Amsterdam

• Wear comfortable shoes. We did a lot of walking despite the many tram routes around the city. It was the best way to explore and see some of the smaller canals.
• Save time and money by comparing these various sightseeing packages and passes.
  • I amsterdam city card. This offers a free canal cruise, unlimited use of public transportation (bus, tram and metro) within the city limits of Amsterdam. Visitors can see 50+ museums and attractions for free or at a discount. Cards are valid and can be purchased in increment of 24, 48, 72, 120 hours.
  • Amsterdam Holland Pass. There are three packages available: Small, Medium, Large that include tickets and divides attractions into two categories (Gold and Silver). The tickets are used for free entry to museums, attractions, canal cruises, guided Hop On Hop Off city sightseeing.
  • Amsterdam Pass. This offers free entry to over 30 attractions and museums including Hop On Hop Off (HOHO) bus tour. It is available in 1,2,3,5 day durations. It comes with a digital guidebook and sample itineraries.
• Look into the Transportation pass. Since we didn’t have many Amsterdam museums or attractions in our itinerary but was taking advantage of the local transportation, the GVB day ticket with unlimited travel on the bus, tram and meter worked well for us.

It is also available for multi-day uses and valid for 24 hours after the first check in. Tickets can be purchased online or in vending machines at metro stations or hotels.

*Have you visited Amsterdam?

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Where to Stay in Amsterdam

• Hampton by Hilton Amsterdam / Arena Boulevard – We stayed for four nights at this hotel. Located about 15-20 minutes by train from the airport and the central area, it is a convenient location and a great price point. It is located right by the Arena train stop with restaurants and an IMAX theater nearby. We enjoyed the complimentary buffet breakfast and the spacious rooms.
• DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Amsterdam Centraal Station– Several friends have stayed at this hotel and recommend it. Located near the Centraal Station and within walking distance to the heart of Amsterdam and its many attractions. Its SkyLounge offers great city views. Of course, they have the delicious and famous chocolate chip cookies.
• INK Hotel Amsterdam – MGallery – A friend was looking at this hotel and brought it to my attention. I would love to stay here next time. It is housed in an old newspaper building and the rooms look so neat. The hotel looks so interesting. It is also located in a great central location with a tram stop outside and within walking distance to many attractions.

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