A visual round-up of highlights in the capital city of the Netherlands for those groups seeking inspiration for an Amsterdam adventure.
The Anne Frank Museum
Formerly the building that the famous Jewish writer and her family hid in to escape the Nazis during World War Two, this museum is a must for your visit. It’s currently undergoing a major renewal project in order to give visitors more in-depth information about the life story of Anne Frank. Groups can expect fast-track entrance on arrival and don’t have to queue, entering instead via a special group’s entrance.
The Hermitage Amsterdam Museum
63 acclaimed Dutch Masters are currently on loan here from the State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg, Russia. Highlights include six Rembrandts plus works by Gerrit Berckheyde, Ferdinand Bol and Jan van Goyen, as well as many more. The exhibition is running until 27th May 2018.
Pictured: Rembrandt van Rijn’s Flora, 1634. (Photo credit: State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg).
Bike tours
What about cycling? This is something Amsterdam is famous for and an easy activity to enjoy no matter what size group you are. A guided cycle tour can be an exciting way to explore the city - Arrangements Yellow Bike, for example, is a tour company that takes your group to various landmarks, while Amsterdam GPS City Bike Tour sees groups work together to explore independently with the help of a GPS device.
Pictured: Bikes in Amsterdam.
The famous canals
Amsterdam is also easy to meander on foot, especially if you want to soak up the atmosphere, wander the canals and pose for phots on the many bridges and crossings. Exploring on foot also gives visitors the chance to see up close the tall, thin – and sometimes higgledy-piggledy-looking – buildings that line the waterways. Take your cameras; these living quarters are very different to those in the UK.
Pictured: Views of the canals in Amsterdam.
Museumplein
A part of the city that also might appeal to photographers – and culture vultures – is Museumplein, described as the ‘beating heart of Amsterdam’. This area is home to the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum and the Stedelijk Museum of Modern Art, so offers plenty for all to enjoy. Those visiting in the winter months can enjoy the square being transformed with a vast outdoor ice rink.
Pictured: The Rijksmuseum in the area known as Museumplein.
Worth noting…
A new high-speed rail link from Eurostar is hoped to open this Easter, offering passengers the chance to hop aboard a direct service from London to Amsterdam. The trains are expected to call at Brussels and Rotterdam before terminating at Amsterdam Centraal, with a journey time of approximately three hours and 50 minutes. Keep an eye out for further updates at www.eurostar.com.
GLT associate editor Rachel Bailey travelled to Amsterdam with Cruise & Maritime Voyages on a four-night Amsterdam & German Christmas Markets itinerary in December. Versions of this cruise itinerary will be available to groups this year and next year. You can read an article on some of the features onboard CMV’s Columbus here for some information on the cruise line’s style.
For more on Amsterdam and all that groups can enjoy there, visit www.iamsterdam.com.
