There are lots of trams, buses all night, the metro and trains

The underground Metro is expanding with a North South line under the city as of this update.

For cyclists, good bikeways with well marked bike lanes on most roads, and separate traffic lights just for us.

Mass-transit Basics:

Single-ride tickets valid for one hour can be purchased from the tram and bus drivers for €2.50

If you are going to use public transportation in Amsterdam or the Netherlands you are going to have to know about what we call a "strippenkaart" (strip ticket)

It is far more practical to buy a strippenkaart (strip ticket) that includes from 2 to 45 "strips," or ticket units.

The best buy for most visitors is the 15-strip ticket for €6. A new service for visitors is the Circle Tram 20, which rides both ways around a loop that passes close to most of the main sights and offers a hop-on, hop-off ticket for one to three days. By tradition, Dutch trams and buses work on the honor system: Upon boarding, punch your ticket at one of the machines situated in the rear or center section of the tram or bus. The city is divided into zones, which are indicated on the transit map, and it is important to punch the correct number of zones on your ticket (one for the basic tariff and one for each additional zone traveled). Occasional ticket inspections can be expected: A fine of about 125. Euro is the price for "forgetting" to stamp your ticket.

The transit map published by GVB is very useful. It's available at the GVB ticket office across from the central railwaystation, or at the VVV tourist information offices next door. Also reprinted as the center spread in What's On in Amsterdam, the weekly guide to activities and shopping published by the tourist office.

The map shows the locations of all major museums, monuments, theaters, and markets, and it illustrates which trams to take to reach each of them.

Main information office: Prins Hendrikkade 108-114, Tel. 020/551-4911

Currency Converter Page

Trams:

One of the best ways to travel for visitors and residents alike, is by tram. They are frequent, fast and dependable. You can buy a ticket from the driver, the conductor at the back of the tram, or a machine in the middle of the tram, depending on the sort of tram it is.

However, it is considerably cheaper if you buy a `strippenkaart' from a tobacco shop, post office or railway station beforehand, for about €7.50 for 15 strips. On most trams you stamp these yourself in the yellow machines in the tram: Each journey uses one strip plus a strip for every zone you travel in.

If you stay within the centre of  town, that is one zone, so you leave one strip blank and stamp the second. If you travel over a zone border, you are traveling in two zones, so you leave two strips blank, and stamp the third.

On some trams there is a conductor: you get on at the back of the tram and the conductor  stamps your ticket for you.  Once stamped, a ticket is valid for an hour  regardless of how often you change tram or bus.

Several people can travel on one strippenkaart: you just stamp it for the first person, and then for the second, and so on.

There are also day and week passes available. Day and week passes and strippencards are valid on all trams, buses and metros, and also on trains within the city boundaries (not to Schiphol airport: then you have to buy a train ticket). You must stamp a day or week pass the first time you use it only. You should hail a tram to indicate you want to get on.

Press the button near the door to open it. If the tram has a conductor you must use the rear door to get on.

You have to press one of the red STOP buttons inside the tram to indicate that you want to get off at the next stop (although there is rarely a stop where no one wants to get out).

Again press the button near the door to open it when the tram has stopped.

There is a free map of all tram and bus routes in Amsterdam available from tourist offices or the  GVB office by Central Station. There is the Circle Tram, number 20, which runs from Central Station on a circular route that runs past many tourist attractions.

The trams run until just after midnight ( the last trams leave Central Station at 12.15 ). After that there is an hourly service of night buses from Central Station.  

Trains:

Trains in the Netherlands are fast, frequent, comfortable, punctual and reasonably priced. Many stations have a taxi-sharing scheme called "Train Taxis" which cost only € 3.50 nlg . Ask for a "Train Taxi ticket" when you buy a train ticket. If you want to book a train trip when in town go to Central station or any train station for that matter.

The Schiphol Rail Line operates between the airport and the city 24 hours a day, with service to the central railway station or to stations in the south part of the city. The trip takes about 15 minutes and costs € 4.: Tel. 06/9292

There is a taxi stand directly in front of the arrival hall at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. All taxis are metered, and the fare is approximately €35 to various points within central Amsterdam. Service is included, but small additional tips are not unwelcome.  

Some stations have a travel office run by the railroad. They are very helpful and will save you a lot of money copared to travel agents and other third parties. If you want to look up a train schedule go to Dutch Railways.

At the Airport:

Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport - Arrivals and Departures

Schiphol Airport is not far from Amsterdam.

The Schiphol Rail Line operates between the airport and the city 24 hours a day, with service to the central railway station or to stations in the south part of the city. The trip takes about 15 minutes and costs €4.: Tel. 06/9292

Amsterdam Schiphol Airport is 18 kilometers (12 miles) southeast of the city and linked directly by rail.

Contact Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport - Real time arrival and departure information in English. Multi language quality web site

Tel. 06/350-34050

Schiphol has been voted the best airport in the world several times, and not without good reason:

The shops there are great. You might want to leave yourself some extra time for shopping.

If you want to know what to take back for people, Dutch chocolate and cheese are very good.

There are also nice stoneware bottles of Dutch gin (called Jenever) in two types Jong (young) and Oud (old).The Dutch also invented Brandy (Brandijwijn means 'burnt wine')  which they call "Vieux"

The Dutch call it by a French name and the French call it by a Dutch name (typical Dutch / French thing)

Schiphol's Duty-free Shops are online also so you can even order online and pick your goods up when you leave.

AIRLINES

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (Tel. 800/374-7747) is the national carrier of the Netherlands.Other airlines serving the Netherlands

Delta (Tel. 800/241-4141),

Northwest (Tel. 800/447-4747)

TWA (Tel. 800/221-2000)

United (Tel. 800/241-6522)

Flying time to Amsterdam from New York is just over seven hours; from Chicago, closer to eight hours; and from Los Angeles, 11 hours.

Airlines that serve the Netherlands from the United Kingdom

KLM City Hopper (Tel. 020/7750-9000),

British Airways (Tel. 020/8897-4000),

Aer Lingus (Tel. 020/8899-4747). Flying time to Amsterdam from London is one hour; from Belfast, 1 1/2 hours.

BETWEEN THE AIRPORT & TOWN

From the airport there are trains day and night, six times an hour through the day, hourly in the dead of night, and which take about 20 minutes to Central Station (CS). A single journey costs about €10. and can take 30 min. total time to Central StationOr you can pay €50 for a taxi, and be at your accommodation in 10 minutes. The choice is yours.

Airport Taxi service:

PHONE MINGUS Taxi service AT 062 494 0178

Or contact us here at Experience Amsterdam and we can set up an Airport or Central Train Station pick up for you arrival in town.

KLM Road Transport operates a shuttle bus service between Amsterdam Schiphol Airport and major city hotels. The trip takes about half an hour and costs €10. one-way.

Tel. 020/649-5651 or 020/649-1393

Getting To Amsterdam on Land or Water:

By Bus Bus/ferry combination service between the United Kingdom and the Netherlands is operated from London to Amsterdam by Euro-City Tours (Tel. 020/8828-8361).
You can travel from London and between Brussels and Amsterdam (but not between cities in the same country) by Eurolines (52 Grosvenor Gardens, London SW1W 0AU, Tel. 020/7730-8235, fax 020/7730-8721).

By Car European highways leading into the city from the borders are E19 from western Belgium; E25 from eastern Belgium; and E22, E30, and E35 from Germany. Follow the signs for Centrum to reach center city. Traffic is heavy but not stationary at rush hour.  

By Train British Rail International (Tel. 020/8834-2345 or 020/8828-0892) runs three trains a day from London to Amsterdam.

Amsterdam does have several train substations, but all major Dutch National, as well as European International, trains arrive at and depart from Centraal Station (Tel. 06/9292 for national service information, tel. 020/620-2266 for international).

The station also houses the travel information office of NS/Nederlandse Spoorwagen (Netherlands Railways).

http://www.POferries.com

Bikes:

Traditionally, Dutch bikes have no hand-brakes, but backpedal brakes. If you think you can't handle this, ask for a bike with hand brakes. When cycling, cross tram tracks at a sharp angle to avoid getting your wheels caught in the rail.

For obvious reasons, lock your bike to something solid when leaving it unattended, and lock the frame, not just the front wheel. (Otherwise they unbolt your front wheel, take your frame and someone else's front wheel, and have a complete bike).

When renting a bike, you will be required to pay a deposit,and you should take some form of identification. A passport seams to make them the happiest unless your Dutch and have a local address.

Rain gear and good waterproof boots are a good idea if you really want to enjoy your cycling adventures in this beautiful but often rainy city.

Join us on the bicycle lanes and experience Amsterdam ...the Dutch way.

Places that rent bikes are as follows:

Rent your bike from our favorite Repair and Rental Bike-Shop MacBike

http://www.macbike.nl

Damstraat Rent-a-Bike  P Jacobszoondwarsstraat 11 (Near the Dam),020/625-5029

Bike City Bloemgracht 68 (Westerkerk), 020/626-3721

Taxi:

 

TAXI-CENTRALE- AMSTERDAM

24 hrs a day you can call the Amsterdam Taxi Controle Tel. 020/ 677-7777

Taxis are normally not hailed in the Netherlands, but taken from a taxi rank, of which there are many. The environmental advantage is taxis aren't constantly driving round looking for fairs.

Amsterdam taxis have GPS transceivers and are networked together, so that each driver can see how full or empty each taxi rank is, and so that  the central office can see which taxi is nearest for a particular call, and assign that one.

Taxi stands are at the major squares and in front of the large hotels. Or you can call Taxicentrale , the central taxi dispatching office. A taxi will arrive almost immediately but be prepared to wait if it is raining on a Friday or Saturday night. Taxis are good quality and cost around €1.50. per km regardless of day or time.

Fares are €3 plus €1.50 per kilometer. A 5-kilometer (3-mile) ride will cost about €7.
A typical ride to the outer edges of town even late at night or after the party (5:00 am) usually costs around €14.

 A 10% tip is usual for a Taxi, though not obligatory.

Water Taxi:

(Tel. 020/622-2181)

A Water Taxi provides a novel, if pricey, means of getting about. Water taxis can be hailed anytime you see one cruising the canals of the city, or called by telephone. The boats are miniature versions of the large sightseeing canal boats, and each carries up to eight passengers. The cost is €2 for the first 30 minutes, plus a €1. pick-up charge, with a charge of €.50 per 15-minute period thereafter. The rate is per ride, regardless of the number of passengers

Automobiles:

The speed limit in the Netherlands is 120 kilometers (75 miles) per hour, and driving is on the right. A valid driver's license from your home country is all that is required to operate a vehicle in the Netherlands.

European highways leading into the city from the borders are E19 from western Belgium; E25 from eastern Belgium; and E22, E30, and E35 from Germany. Follow the signs for Centrum to reach center city. Traffic is heavy at rush hour but not gridlock most of the time.

Auto Rentals:

A car, just for a visit to Amsterdam is not recommended. Even for longer distances it is far better to take a train. If you do want to rent a car while in Amsterdam it is easy and the specials and prices we have are really affordable... click on the selected auto*Europe web page

 
Car Rental companies

Local Contact with the BIG GUYS

Avis (Nassaukade 380, tel. 020/683-6061).

Hertz (Overtoom 333, tel. 020/612-2441).

Budget (Overtoom 121, tel. 020/612-6066).

Walking:

for an in depth walk around town...

Beware of walking on bike paths, which are distinguished by their red/brown color.

Most have white bikes painted on the path this means it's their territory and Bicyclists will show no mercy. Also take care when crossing roads, even at a green pedestrian light. Cyclists consider themselves  pedestrians in Amsterdam, and so tend to ignore traffic lights.

Amsterdam is very small and most distances are walkable, and walking can be pleasurable here, giving you a chance to appreciate the Amsterdam architecture.

Streets may change name along their length. Amsterdam is, structured as a half wheel. In the middle you have the old centre bounded by the canal called the Singel. It contains the Red Light district around the Oude Kerk, the Nes theater street, a quaint maze of small streets and quiet canals, and the Royal Palace at the Dam, with pedestrian shopping streets going north and south.  Surrounding the old centre, you have the three concentric ring canals Herengracht, Keizersgracht and Prinsengracht. (they're in alphabetic order which helps make it easier to remember).

All four canals (with the Singel) are nice to walk along. The Herengracht is the grandest, especially  along the 'Golden Crescent' to the east of the Leidsestraat, the Prinsengracht is perhaps the  friendliest with its houseboats.

The streets that connect the ring canals, especially in the section  between the Brouwersgracht and the Leidsestraat shouldn't be missed for their lovely individual shops. To the west of the ring canals, in the area on the map where the streets all run at an angle to the  canals, is the Jordaan, a lovely area to walk, with quiet canals, and tiny streets, and many unusual shops. You'll find a lot of the best restaurants and some of the most interesting bars also.

"low energy" walking tour