3 days in Amsterdam with older teens

[NotDonna]

I’ve left it really late but have booked accommodation and flights for next week. Annoyingly Anne Frank House is fully booked. They’ll not want to look at art galleries. Does anyone have any tips or links to itineraries or guides or have ideas for things to see, do and areas to meander around. A canal trip is a must but what else?

If they are over 18 the Ice bar is fun! Also there's a river cruise tour thing which was good x

Can you not queue for AF house if you don't have online tickets? I wouldn't normally bother to queue for anything but AFH really was a special and memorable place to visit.

I've been to Amsterdam several times but the focus was always art, museums, Heineken and cannabis...

Other ideas:

Shopping in the "9 Streets"
Lunch at a creperie/waffle house
Hire bikes and cycle around

If you wanted to do Anne Frank's House, can I suggest the Portuguese Synagogue? It's an amazing building and all the history of the community is presented very well.

Amsterdam comes up every few days here. Do a search and you’ll get loads of recommendations, albeit for almost all the same things. Seems a longish way to go just to eat pancakes though.

escapeworld.nl
This is really fun for teenagers! We went twice on our recent trip to Amsterdam.

A’dam Lookout
Our House Museum
Amaze
This is Holland

I did a guided walk of the Jewish District which ends at the Anne Frank house. That was really interesting. And the canal boats go from just outside too.

www.foodhallen.nl
Good place for lunch!

Patatje oorlog are lush as streetfood- like triple cooked chips smothered in real satay sauce with raw onions. The Indonesian food scene is big. The rice table experience Rijsttafel is on offer in many restaurants if they like spicy food.
If the daffodils are out already (probably a bit early) you must take a short train ride to see them at Keukenhof. Then there is the Red Light District 😳for a wander around.

The keukenhof is not in amsterdam but not too far away and is currently open. It’s where they have the tulips and you can also hire bikes from just outside and cycle round the tulip fields.

zaanschans is also not too far from amsterdam and has windmills you can go in.

there Is the Heineken experience but I am not sure if there is an age limit.

the red lights secret museum is good if you go to the red light district.

definitely do a boat trip and just lots of waking round the city.

I haven’t been but the ship building museum is supposed to be good.

you could do a day trip to utrecht and go up the dom tower and dom under. There are also lots of other cities you can get to easily by train.

Try booking a meal in cafe Bern - best fondue on earth, then down to Rosalia’s menagerie for a cocktail. Graff diamonds is also so fun - and free!!

You can book keukenhof tickets online, you get the metro to Europaplein and then get an express bus 30 mins to the gardens.

Definitely a canal trip.

Even if they don't like art galleries they might find the Van Gogh quite cool - my DDs did.

This has been SO very helpful thank you! They’re both over 18 now so most things will be ok age limit wise.

ADam
The BodyWorks Museum
The Microbe Museum and Groot

15 year old loves them.