If you read my last post, you will know that I am currently writing a series of posts about my interrail travels in July. My previous post was about the first place we visited which was Brussels, today’s post will be about the next place we visited which was Amsterdam.
We arrived in Amsterdam around 3pm and headed straight to Zaandam where we were staying. I could not recommend Zaandam more, it is a really beautiful place to stay if you are going to Amsterdam on a budget. Just a short train ride from Amsterdam, Zaandam is a cute little Dutch town where accommodation is much cheaper and it is a lovely place in itself. There are lots of shops and amenities in the town centre, as well as several hotels. We stayed in the EasyHotel which is just a budget chain hotel, but for the price it was definitely one of the best places we stayed the whole time we were travelling.
Once we were at the hotel, we quickly got showered and ready and took the train into the centre of Amsterdam. The train station is very close to everything in the city centre, so we were able to explore the heart of Amsterdam right away. We spent the evening exploring the city, visiting Dam Square and then stopping for a drink outside a pub in the sunshine. We tried to go to the Hard Rock Café, which is in an amazing canal side location, however it was fully booked so if you want to go there definitely try and book in advance. Instead, we ate at an Irish pub which is located just next door. The food there was pretty good, and a much cheaper way to experience the scenery of the canals while enjoying a meal and some drinks. After our meal, we headed towards the Rijksmuseum. There is some stunning architecture around this area, as well as a beautiful park and the Van Gogh Museum. From here, we then took a tram back to the train station where we headed back to our hotel in Zaandam.
The next day we woke up early and decided to explore Zaandam for a while before we headed back into Amsterdam. It really is a stunning place, with unique architecture and beautiful scenery – it is a shame that a lot of people visit Amsterdam and miss out on seeing Zaandam. At about 10:30am we took the train back into Amsterdam Central for what ended up being one of my favourite days of the whole month we were away. We purchased a combination ticket which allowed us to go up the A’Dam tower and go on the hop on hop off sightseeing canal tour. We first headed to the A’Dam tower, where we also paid the extra 5 euros to ride on the ‘Swing Over the Edge’ which I would really recommend doing. You get an amazing view of the city, combined with the thrills of swinging out from a sky scraper building. Even if you don’t fancy the swing, I would recommend the tower as you still get the views and there is a lovely bar up on the rooftop viewing platform. After we got back down on the ground, we then got onto the canal cruise which stops just outside the tower. We also really enjoyed the river cruise, it is a great way to see the city and find out more about it’s history as well as experiencing a trip along the canal. Once we got off the canal, we then took a walk around to see some more of the sights such as the famous Anne Frank Huis. After our busy day, we found another canalside restaurant, this time an Italians, where we had a lovely meal. We then headed to Wynand Fockink, a bar which was recommended to us by many people who had visited Amsterdam.
Sadly after this, we had to head back to Zaandam as we were up very early the next day for our train to Berlin which will be my next post.
Amsterdam was not what I expected at all, but it is a beautiful and chilled city where you can enjoy amazing food and stunning views as well as many hidden gems.
Emily Ashton 