edit Amsterdam Travel Guide

• Rijksmuseum - masterpieces exhibition. The largest and most prestigious museum for art and history in the Netherlands
• Vondelpark - the only large park in the older part of the city. Especially in the summer it's lively and crowded. Meet the locals there.
  
• Westerkerk - a large and beautiful church with a great view, sometimes all the way to the coast...
• Make sure to check out the many cafes in the city.

Amsterdam has one of the largest historic city centres in Europe, with about 7 000 registered historic buildings. The street pattern is largely unchanged since the 19th century - there was no major bombing during World War II. The centre consists of 90 islands, linked by 400 bridges. Its most prominent feature is the concentric canal ring begun in the 17th century.

By plane

Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (IATA: AMS), situated 15 km south-west of the city, one of the busiest airports in the world. From Schiphol there is a direct train to Amsterdam Central Station, for € 3.60, in 15 minutes.

By train

Most trains arrive and depart from Amsterdam Centraal Station (with one extra 'a' in Dutch), located between the old centre and the IJ waterfront. Other train stations are Bijlmer-ArenA, Amstel, Muiderpoort (all southeast), RAI, Zuid-WTC (both south), Lelylaan and Sloterdijk (both west). Schiphol airport also has its own train station, which functions as a major hub within the Netherlands. It has at least seven trains an hour to Amsterdam Centraal, with additional trains going to other Amsterdam stations.

Direct trains run to Brussels connecting with Eurostar trains to London Waterloo and Ashford (Kent) in England.

By car

The western part of the Netherlands has a dense (and congested) road network. Coming from the east (Germany), the A1 motorway leads directly to Amsterdam. On the A12 from Arnhem, change at Utrecht to the A2 northbound. From the south (Belgium), the A2 goes directly to Amsterdam: the A16 /A27 from Antwerp via Breda connects to the A2 south of Utrecht. From The Hague, the A4 leads to Amsterdam. All motorways to Amsterdam connect to the ring motorway, the A10. From this motorway, main roads lead radially into Amsterdam (the roads S101 through S118).

The speed limit on Dutch motorways is 120 km/h, except where indicated. On most sections of the A10 ring motorway around Amsterdam, the maximum speed has been lowered to 80 km/h. These limits are strictly enforced and there are many speed cameras.

By bus

Most international bus services are affiliated to Eurolines, which has a terminal at Amstel Station (train station, metro station 51, 53, 54, tram 12). One bus per day is usually the maximum frequency on these routes. There are other international bus services, but they are often aimed at very specific markets, e.g. Polish migrant workers. There are almost no long-distance internal bus services in the Netherlands, and none to Amsterdam.

By boat

The maritime Passenger Terminal Amsterdam is close to the city centre, but is only for cruise ships. The nearest ferry port is IJmuiden (ferry from Newcastle upon Tyne). There are also ferry terminals at Rotterdam Europoort (ferry from Kingston Upon Hull), and Hook of Holland (ferry from Harwich). More information, timetables and ticket prices for these ferries is available at Ferries To Amsterdam: http://www.ferryto.co.uk/amsterdam.html

By Car

By Mass Transit

Public transport within the city is operated by the GVB, Gemeentevervoerbedrijf (http://www.gvb.nl/english/default.asp). There is a metro with four lines, including a short underground section in the city centre, but it mainly serves the suburbs. The tram (15 lines) is the main form of public transport system in the central area, and there are also dozens of bus routes. Regional buses, and some suburban buses, are operated by Connexxion and Arrival. Most tram stops have a detailed, but not very legible, map of the system.

By Foot or Bike

Amsterdam's center is fairly small, and almost abnormally flat, so you can easily get to most tourist destinations on foot - from the train station, within a half an hour.

A pleasant way to cover a lot of ground is to rent a bicycle. The are approximately three-quarters of a million people living in Amsterdam and they own about 600,000 bicycles. The city is very, very bike-friendly, and there are separate bike lanes on most major streets. In the city centre, however, there is often not enough space for a bike lane, so cars and cyclists share narrow streets. If you are not used to that, be very careful, and also watch out for other cyclists. Avoid getting your tire in the tram rails; it's a nasty fall. Always cross tram rails at an angle. There are bike rental shops at stations, and several others in and around the city centre. Bikes cost about € 9 to € 20 per day.

Make sure to get a good lock, and to use it. Amsterdam has one of the highest bicycle theft rates in the world, see the Netherlands page. Note also that if buying a bike, prices that seem too good to be true are stolen bikes. Any bike offered for sale to passers-by, on the street, is certainly stolen. There's an old Amsterdam joke; if, to a large group of bicycles going by, you yell out, "Hey, that's my bike!" about five people will jump off "their" bikes and start running.

• MacBike Bicycle Rental. Perhaps the most ubiquitous bicycle rental agency in Amsterdam, their bicycles are painted red with a MacBike sign on the front, everyone will know you're visiting. The bicycles are reliable, and in very good condition. Several locations around the city centre for assistance or repairs. Online bicycle reservations at their website: http://www.macbike.nl

Police

Fire Department

Hospitals

Crime

You should take normal precautions against pickpockets and baggage theft, especially in the main shopping streets, in trams and trains, at stations, and anywhere where tourists congregate.

Smoking

The main central shopping streets run in a line from near Central Station to the Leidseplein: Nieuwendijk, Kalverstraat, Heiligeweg, Leidsestraat. The emphasis is on clothes/fashion, but there are plenty of other shops. They are not upmarket shopping streets, and the north end of Nieuwendijk is seedy. Amsterdam

• The Keukenhof - an elaborate park and floral exhibition
• Haarlem - the closest of the historic cities, only 15 minutes by train.