For obvious reasons, Amsterdam is always going to be a bit more adult orientated than other destinations, and a lot of the adult content is hard to miss, it’s not like you can stick to certain areas and avoid it. For this reason you should think long and hard before disembarking with a child. It is suprising how much there is to do that doesn't involve smoking or visiting the red light district but I have tried to be as honest as I can here, with family and adult attractions covered, but if your going to be easily offended please don’t click the read more button below.
The old city centre is formed from canal rings, which give you the feeling of space, freedom and peace. Walk through these canal streets or better – take a trip with a boat by boarding one of the tourist cruises or by renting the boat yourself. It’s a great, relaxing way to see the city, but some of the tours can be overly long, so if times an issue some of them may be best avoided.
The Rijksmuseum is the largest museum in the Netherlands, with more than a million visitors each year. The Rijksmuseum is currently in a prolonged renovation unfortunately, but a small part of it remains open. Its exhibition called The Masterpieces shows the most famous pieces of Dutch art from the 17th century, usually called the Golden Age of the Netherlands. Rembrandt, Vermeer and Hals reflect in their work different aspects of Dutch national character. You may also see the museum treasury, beautiful doll houses from the period and the traditional Delftware.
This modern museum houses some 200 paintings and 550 sketches showing Van Gogh in all his moods. This biggest collection in the world, combined with hundreds of letters by Van Gogh, and selected works by his friends and contemporaries, form the core of the museum's collection. A well worth visit for the art lovers amongst you.
Anne Franks House in the centre of Amsterdam is the hiding place where Anne Frank wrote her famous diary during the World War II. Just a few empty rooms in the hidden annex to the house will make an unforgettable impression if you realize that two families lived in these small quarters for more than 2 years hiding from the Nazis. The original of the diary is on display, as a part of the Anne Frank House's permanent exhibition. You probably won’t spend very long here, but it’s worth seeing if you’ve ever read the book.
This huge old protestant church with little houses clinging to its sides remains a calm heaven at the heart of the frenetic Red Light District. Its buildings, especially the Gothic-renaissance style octagonal bell tower, were used by sailors to get their bearings. A night walk in this are can be interesting, although not at all appropriate for the young ones. Leading us nicely on to…….
Red light District
It’s an experience, let’s put it like that. It’s also spread out on either side of the canal, so can be quite hard to miss. We were walking down a path, turned a corner and found ourselves right in the middle of the district. What I will say is that the ladies will ignore you if you just walk through, but if you make eye contact they will start gesturing for you to come over. And don’t think having your wife with you will be a defence, they’re quite happy to wave you both over, as my wife found out, much to her shock.
A bit of a cross between a museum and a shop, obviously selling nothing but vodka and vodka memorabilia, this is a great place for buying presents. I ended up buying a 3 litre bottle with a scorpion in the bottom, although I had it confiscated till the end of the cruise, when I brought it back to the ship that night.
It’s impossible to do Amsterdam, or most other cities in a day,so above are just some highlights of my favourite spots, let me know about yours here.
Happy Cruising
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