Not a traditional "museum" by any stretch, but with Amsterdam being the city boasting the world's…read moremost museums, I can see how the claim is made with places like this. It's a really nice spot, and the guy who runs it is extremely open and friendly with a wealth of information. He truly lives for this! If you arrive before it opens, you'll see people gathered around the door entrance, and you're there wondering what kind of place this really is. Doesn't look big from the outside at all, and looks like a shop more than a museum. Once you get inside the small space, you're greeted with black lighting above which illuminates all of the fluorescent artwork. There are paintings and sculptures with bright colors across the spectrum. Then you walk down these steps into the dark basement and see his special rock collection with the makeup of the rocks highlighted under the black lighting. Reminded me of geology class. Cool place, quick 30 minute experience.

If you are interested in learning about florescent minerals, history, and art then this place is…read moreenjoyable. Nick is a nice artist who invites you to learn more about the interesting glowing minerals. I really enjoyed this place and can't wait to put up my piece of art I bought from here!

Fun history of Bols and the distilling of different flavors of alcoholic liqueurs…read more Self-guided tour with audio. After you pay for your ticket at the front desk, you put your jackets and loose items in a locker (free) and pickup an audio tour device and program it for your preferred language (easy). You get a yummy cocktail to savor at the end! And there's a fun gift shop to peruse, where we bought tulip glasses for the purpose of drinking Genever . We enjoyed the Espresso martini and Red Light Negroni at the bar at the end. Both were made skillfully and tasted delicious! The highlight of the experience, honestly, was meeting Lars (aka "Larson") and Julia at the front desk. They were hilarious with each other and delightful with us. They helped us package the 6 tulip glasses in paper within styrofoam boxes for sturdy protection during travel. They are the true stars of this operation.

I enjoy distillery tours when I travel. I browsed the list of attractions that accept the I…read moreAmsterdam card and came across Bols Amsterdam. It's located near Museumplein by all of the major museums which was so convenient. I was interested in doing a cocktail class with the tour, but wasn't sure if I could book the class with the I Amsterdam card. I sent an email through the website and a DM on Instagram and no one responded, which was disappointing. When I arrived, I inquired about it. They offered to let me upgrade my ticket, but I declined. Once I got checked in, I received a vial of a mystery flavored genever to taste at the end of the tour. The tour is self guided and it is truly a sensory experience. The tour starts with the history of Bols, then goes into the process of making genever. There are interactive elements throughout. It was really cool to see Lucas Bols' original recipe book from 1820. Towards the end of the tour, I tried the mystery genever in the sensory booth. I don't remember the flavor, but it was red and it was sweet. The sensory booth contains a camera that records your reaction as you're tasting it. At the end of the tour, guests are able to enjoy a complimentary cocktail. The bar area was really cool. They have a flair booth where you can learn how to spin and throw cocktail bottles. They also had house music playing which created a fun vibe. The bartender that made my drink was Serchan (pronounced "Sar-John"). He was so nice and let me sample a couple of genevers. I ordered the First Aid cocktail. It was citrus forward and refreshing! He also printed out a receipt with the cocktail recipe. I threw some cash in the tip jar and learned that they accept cash in any currency! This was a fun experience! Any activity where I can have a delicious cocktail and learn something new is right up my alley.

One of the must see museums when visiting Amsterdam…read more We also enjoyed taking a break at the cafe located inside the Rijksmuseum.

I am so bummed!! After being there for 5 hours, I still failed to make it to the 1700-1800 and the…read more2000s zones!! This place is HUGE! I now understand why tourists would plan an entire day there. Unfortunately, I had 2 other stops that day that I couldn't miss, so I had no choice but left at 2pm. I am soo glad I made it to the main hall first to see Rembrandt's Night Watch (granted it was through a piece of glass due to the restoration process). I would've been devastated if I couldn't. Love the info cards for almost all of the major art pieces to explain in detail on how it was created. Some tips: Buy your ticket ahead of time. Get there 15 minutes before your entrance time to get in line and for bag check. No water inside the exhibits. The coat check is your only option if you don't show up right at when they open. The lockers filled up within minutes. Don't be fooled by the opened ones because that means the lock is broken. Definitely worth a stop at the gift shop. (Like I said above) Plan to spend the whole day there.

If you're looking for an amazing live band to dance to, this is the place. It's almost like it's a…read moremini-concert. Extremely talented group of people here.

It was a cool spot to check live music. I actually didn't find many like it that played Jazz/Blues…read more One issue, I saw that they offered rum for 5 euros, I asked for a rum and coke and they were like that will be 8 euros. I was like damn, I thought it was 5 euros, the bartender said, you asked for a coke, that's why it's extra. Ok, I got screwed there!

Paradiso had a very cool atmosphere as it was built inside the church. Get tickets before for a…read morelower fee. We paid €20 on a Friday night and it wasn't crazy fun of a crowd. It was latin night where the salsa was fun but there weren't that many people.

This place is right along the river behind the Hard Rock Cafe. It's hard to miss this enormous…read morechurch looking building. My one gripe, which I expected because I've been to Amsterdam before, is the 4 euro membership charge for concerts. I'm sure it's well known among locals but beware that your ticket price will not be the only charge. The inside of this venue is beautiful. We were there to see Kevin Devine. He was playing in the smaller room upstairs. They had a full bar and a very intimate feel. Sound and lighting was great. Always an awesome time when I get to see KD.

I was informed by several travel blogs that this is a tourist trap, but honestly, SO WHAT IF IT…read moreIS?? In my opinion, t's absolutely worth the time and money for a 90-minute Heineken experience! Not to mention, my husband and I each got 2 beers for free!! We had to wait a little bit to get in, even though it was a weekday. The lockers were almost full, but I heard that there was a coat check area. The tour guide was very interactive with the audience and we also had moments to sit down and watch a 360 degree video in an elevator. I didn't pay for the roof top extra access, because I wanted to spend more on souvenirs and customized beer bottles. Next time if I ever go back to Amsterdam, I would absolutely go back again just for the gift shop and the beer.

This is a classic experience that just have to do when you go to Amsterdam. Tickets are available…read moreonline as well as in person and there's plenty of tickets available for each time slots. The staff was friendly and after listening to something in the beginning you go through your own pace through the rest of the experience. You do get a small beer halfway through as well as one in their taproom. They also have a gift shop and rooftop bar!

CLOSED. Sign's gone. Sad to have missed it. Anywhere else…read morehave decent pinball in Amsterdam?

It is a small arcade with a decent selection of games and machines. Even boardgames. Best of all -…read morethey have 5-6 pinballmachines. Even they latest - Wrestlemania. You change money for tokens - €1 for 1 token or €5 for 6. So the pins are 1 per credit. It gets crazy at times when herds of drunk people floods in. But on a Saturday night around midnight it was still pretty calm for being an arcade. They serve food and drinks (soda and great selection of bottled beer). Don't mind the neighborhood, you are perfectly safe to go here.

I am beyond amazed that I get to see the actual Sunflower painting!! O.M.G!…read more I'm not posting any artwork here, because I don't want to take away anyone's experience. If I could go back to Amsterdam, I would definitely go back to this museum again. Yellow is such a joyful color. After visiting the museum, it has a deeper meaning to me. I went through entire museum floor by floor, showroom by showroom. Every corner has something that amazes me. I also got a chance to see how Van Gogh actually looked like! My goodness. I couldn't believe my eyes. A few tips: 1- you must make a reservation online ahead of time. I saw many people got turned away while I was waiting in line for security check. 1b- it's okay to be in line 15 minutes before your supposed arrival time. 2-it's best to buy the audio tour ticket along with the entrance fee instead of buying it on site. It was sold out when I got there. 3-there is a book store on the top floor, and you can actually take home a blank Sunflower coloring sheet for free! It's on an easel at the corner by the window.

TIP - order tickets ahead in time online to make sure you can get in on the day/time you want…read more A beautiful looking museum. Lots of Van Gogh art works to view and take in. Self guided tour comes with a player with headphones to that you can learn about the different Van Gogh art periods and works of art. Overall the museum was okay. You see a lot of Van Gogh art but not much about his life and world around him. I preferred the Rembrandt House as it showed his home and living arrangements - it gave you glimpse of his life at that time. I think the Rijks Museum would be a better choice to see a variety of artists.

This festival takes place during the winter holiday season. I had really high expectations as it…read morehas been quite popular for a few years. I was told that there is a free boat tour where people line up in cues to get a ride, you can walk it along the canal edge, or you can do what we did and purchase a ticket online from "Those Dam Boat Guys". Personally, the later is great and well worth it. Our boat was small and gave us an intimate experience because the boat captain told us a little about the artistic lights and were could ask questions or slow down to take pictures. The lights are illuminated after dark which during the winter is quite early in the evening. Some of the lights were small displays and some were pretty magnificent. The whole festival takes less that 2 hours to view and it really is something to see both as a tourist or a local resident. I do suggest that the best viewing is when it is not a rainy evening so that you don't have an obstructed view from the boat.

Float thru an Amsterdam canal at night, drinking a beer and looking at light art?…read more Duh. FIVE STARS!

My husband and I are are crazy cat people, so when in Amsterdam, of course we had to visit…read moreKattenkabinet (The Cat Cabinet), a museum all about CATS! Kattenkabinet is a quirky museum with an eclectic collection of cat related objects such as paintings, figurines, and even a mummified cat from 200 BC. And of course there are actual cats living in the museum. Apparently there are five cats living in Kattenkabinet (per the sign, do not pet the black cat!), although we only saw two cats (none of which were the black cat). The museum is quite small (although there is an outdoor garden you can visit, but it was closed for the season), and we only spent about half an hour at Kattenkabinet. But at €10, the price is quite reasonable (and as a student -- my student ID had not yet expired -- I got in for half price), and CATS! If you like cats (or weird museums), Kattenkabinet is a must see! [Yelp collections: Europe 2024; Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Museums and Art Galleries; Cats; Cheap Thrills]

This was one of those unique museums I found when researching where to visit on our trip to…read moreAmsterdam. There were a plethora of museums to visit, but my girlfriend and I being cat owners, we wanted to stop by and see the eclectic and unique experience this art museum had to offer. Located on Herengracht, this is easily a museum you could walk right by and never notice, unless you had it marked and were looking for it. We were greeted with a black and white sign welcomed us, as we walked down into the front door of the canal house. It was rather crowded the day/time we arrived and paid for two admissions and started our self guided tour. It wasn't long before we saw a star of the museum, one of the cats walking around the inside of the lobby area. Lots of art work lined the stairwells and hallways, some from artists such as Picasso, Rembrandt and Toulouse-Lautrec among many others. Many beautiful rooms with narrow hallways and access to an outside garden. This area drew out attention with feline related movie posters and advertisements, along with a little cat napping under a bench. Inside we ran across a third cat that was quietly sleeping as visitors sat down for selfie. Everything in the canal house is cat related. It's really a unique opportunity to visit and experience this museum.