Amsterdam City Breaks, Amsterdam Hotels and Amsterdam Flights

If you are planning a Amsterdam city break and are looking for an Amsterdam hotel or apartment, the following information may help by giving you an overview on the city of Amsterdam.

Amsterdam started out in the 13th century as small fishing village. According to legend, it was founded by two Frisian fishermen, who landed on the shores of the Amstel River in a small boat with their dog. The damming of the river gave the village its name. Today it is the capital of the Netherlands, is is an harmonious blend of ancient and modern - a city of peaceful canals, cobbled streets and colourful nightlife. Whatever you are looking for in a city break, you will find it in Amsterdam. The city has kilometres of attractive canals, some truly great art collections, stunning architecture and fascinating museums.

Few early buildings survive, except the medieval Oude Kerk (the Old Church, with little houses on its sides), the Neuwe Kerk (New Church) and the Houten Huis (Wooden House). The historical centre was largely built during the Golden Age in the 17th century, when Amsterdam was one of the wealthiest cities in the world, with trade links to the Baltic, North America, Africa, Indonesia and Brazil. Its stock exhange was the first to trade continuously. This period saw the building if the classical Royal Palace on Damplein, the Westerkerk, Zuiderkerk, and many canal houses including De Dolfijn (Dolphin) and De Gecroonde Raep (the Crowned Turnip).

Amsterdam has many outstanding museums, including the Rijksmuseum, the Stedelijk Museum and the Rembrandt House Museum. The Van Gogh Museum houses the largest collection of the artist’s work in the world. Anne Frank House on the Prinsengracht is where the Jewish diarist hid during World War II to avoid Nazi persecution, and is well worth a visit.

Amsterdam is famous for its canals. The three main canals extend from the IJ Lake, and each of these marks the position of the city walls and moat at different periods in time. The innermost is the Herengrachts (Lord’s Canal). Beyond it lie the Keizersgracht (Emperior’s Canal) and the Prinsengracht (Prince’s Canal). They are best enjoyed by boat, or by bicycle along the surroundings streets. Smaller canals intersect the main canals, dividing the city into a number of islands, and nearly 1,300 bridges criss-cross the waterways of this beautiful city, known as ‘Venice of the North’.

Amsterdam is also known for its nightlife, with it’s bustling cafes, restaurants, clubs, traditional ‘brown’ bars, cinemas and theatres. These are mainly created around the Leidseplein, the Jordaan and Rembrandtplein.

Location of Amsterdam:
In north Holland province. 33 miles northeast of The Hague. 38 miles north of Rotterdam. 9 miles northeast of Schiphol Airport with frequent trains to Amsterdam Central Station.

Serving Airports:
Amsterdam Schipol [AMS]
Flight time from the UK: approximately 1 hour

Shopping in Amsterdam:
Excellent, with a wide variety throughout the city centre. Main shopping areas include fashionable PC Hooftstraat and pedestrianised de Kalverstraat; upmarket shops around Museumkwartier and Spiegelkwartier; antiques on Nieuwe Spiegelgracht; innumerable small speciality stores in the lanes of the old town and around Jordaan district. Magna Plaza is a pleasant shopping centre (one of the few in the city). De Bijenkorf on Dam Square is a well-established department store. 21 markets including Cuypstraat, the oldest street market, and Singel Canal's floating flower market. Clogs, dolls, Delft pottery and miniature windmills are all popular souvenirs. Cheeses, cigars and liquers are also excellent, and sellers at the Singel flower market will pack flowers for you so thay are travel-proof.

Eating out in Amsterdam:
Over 700 eateries, which tend to be intimate and characterful. A large number of Indonesian restaurants and Argentinian steakhouses, plus a wide range of international options including Chinese, Indian, tapas, Turkish, Lebanese and sushi. A particularly good selection in the Jordaan district. The Dutch are not known for their cuisine, except perhaps pancakes; fish features heavily on menus, and cheese or cabbage soup are local specialities. For a delicious, cheap snack have a falafel with serve-yourself salad like the locals. Take a coffee at one of the grand cafes or sample haring [garnished herring] and broodjes [bread rolls overflowing with the filling of your choice] from the street stalls. If you want something substantial, try traditional erwtensoep [pea soup] with bacon and pumpernickel at one of the "brown" cafes.

Amsterdam Temperature Chart :

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Temp °C	3	4	5	8	13	15	16	17	15	10	7	3

Average daily temperature °C

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Disclaimer:
By its very nature much of the information in our destination guides is subject to change at short notice and travellers are urged to verify information on which they are relying with
the relevant authorities. Corona Holidays [UK] Limited cannot accept any responsibility for any loss or inconvenience to any person as a result of information contained above.

Amsterdam

Amsterdam City Breaks, Amsterdam Hotels and Amsterdam Flights

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