From Utrecht to Amsterdam or Den Haag???

[worldcitizen]

I will be in Utrecht for most of next week for a conference, which ends on Friday afternoon.

So, I would have an option of staying until Sunday in the Netherlands before driving back home.

How far are Amsterdam and Den Haag from Utrecht and which of these two cities would you recommend for a Friday night/Saturday visit?

Thanks for your insight :-)

both lovely although I'd stay well clear of the seedy parts in Amsterdam. Its not even remotely exotic or fun and there is much more to the city.

Are you on your own?

No, with a colleaugues, we're at least 2, but maybe even 4 or 5. All of us were never there.

Den Hag is pretty and quiet and a stroll around town is about 2 hours tops. A night out in Scheveningen is good to mingle with the expats and a little stop at the casino if so inclined.
Next day I would do a half day in Delft or luch seaside at Nordwijk.

In Amsterdam, it depends. There are klots of very trendy cool restaurants /lounges. There are also a couple of very grown up clean coffeeshops a bit like jazz bars. Not sure foreigners are allowed still or if that's what you would want to try?
On saturday, there are a lot of itineraries you could do depending on your interests.
Oud Zuid (south of the Van gogh museum and East of the Vondelpark is boho land (think a miniature westbourne grove) with delis and shops. Walk back towards Van Baerlestraat and accross to Albert cuyp market (think portobello/ladbroke grove & ethnic diversity).
The canals west of leidsplein (called 9 streets) are very cool and lead on to the Jordann, an arty neighborhood). A nice place for lunch, cafes is around "Spui" place.
There is also a great design trail if you like that? The Droog store on a canal of Rembrandtplein is fab.

what are your interests?

Okay, we have interest in art, museums and such things which are very unique to the Netherlands.

We are there for an International Criminological Conference until FRiday afternoon and would be able to stay there until Saturday late afternoon/evening, instead of leaving Utrecht right away.

So we thought maybe Den Haag?

Its pretty compact so a great way to see the city is a cycle tour maybe?
here is a reliable operator

As I said, the centre is compact so very easy to do a walking tour too. go to the tourist info centre on "spui" (or visit the website). they start there. There are a few lovely galleries and arcane antique shops. be sure to mention that as if I remember correctly they can direct you towards that sort of thing on the walk on top of the usual royal residences, International court of justice etc...

Then go to Scheveningen (a neighborhood by the sea) for a drink and dinner. You will drive past the Prison where those indicted by the ICC are held. Its just accross from a parking lot behind the casino...very odd..I sat in the audience when Mladic's case was hear by the ICTY in 1992...A piece of trivia that might interest your group...
You can have afternoon tea at the old kurhaus hotel or stay for a drink and dinner at night.

If I were to pick a museum I would say the Mauritshuis to see the classic 17th century masters and if you have more time the Gemeentemuseum for more contemporary pieces such as Mondrian.

HTH

Thanks sooooooo soooooooo much!!!!! That would be so much up our alley :-)

Our group is also quite mixed from the UK, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Germany, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, U.S., Ukraine, Hungary and The Netherlands.

So Master what you've suggested sounds great and very relevant. Thanks to everyone on here.

MN is such a great pleace

Enjoy! Den Haag is a quaint charming city that has probably more to offer than Amsterdam for a very short break.

I would actually really recommend Delft rather than Scheveningen as somewhere to carry on to from Den Haag. You can reach it by tram from Den Haag very quickly.