There’s plenty to discover away from the Dutch capital’s tourist trail, so step away from the centre to explore the different districts of Amsterdam
De Pijp
Well-heeled De Pijp, with its independent boutiques and restaurant tables filling pedestrianised streets, has been attracting students and creative types since the 1960s – but a stroll through the area offers a glimpse further back into the city’s history too.
All the roads here are named after Golden Age painters (some even display the artists’ self-portraits), while architecture buffs will find plenty of examples of early-20th-century Amsterdam School buildings, which borrow from other expressionist styles such as art deco and art nouveau.
Architecture-wise, take a look at Coöperatiehof, built to house the city’s expanding population of workers during the Industrial Revolution, and the De Dageraad housing complex, whose curved brickwork looks like a steamer ship sailing on waves.
Albert Cuypstraat, where there’s been a working market for more than 100 years, is a good place for a taste of Dutch food, with authentic bitterballen (fried breaded balls of veal and potato, served with mustard), and superlative €3 stroopwafels.
For more of the flavours De Pijp has to offer, book clients on a food-themed walking tour with knowledgeable guide and historian Marten Koerse, through Withlocals (which pays commission to UK agents). He’ll talk about how De Pijp has changed through the years, via sustenance stops around the neighbourhood – tasting everything from herring and pickles to Dutch apple pie.
Wash the food down with a cold lager at the Heineken Experience’s tasting bar, or take a refreshing stroll through leafy Sarphatipark.
Sloten
The old village of Sloten, sketched by Rembrandt on visits to his wife’s family, has kept its character despite being absorbed into the city over a century ago and now adjacent to Schiphol airport.
Visit Molen van Sloten, one of many attractions included in the commissionable I Amsterdam City Card. Tours explore the history and workings of the draining mill – built to pump water away from the city – and show how milling families lived. A small Rembrandt exhibit reveals a little about the artist’s life via waxworks donated by Madame Tussauds. Walk around the village to find an old church and labourers’ cottages, or stop at IJshoeve for ice cream.
Oud-Zuid
As well as being one of the city’s fancier areas, elegant Oud-Zuid (‘Old South’) is home to the Museumkwartier, where you’ll find some of the city’s most famous art museums.
The Rijksmuseum tells the history of the Netherlands and showcases artworks by Dutch masters such as Vermeer, Van Gogh and Rembrandt. If that’s not enough, there’s the Van Gogh Museum, while the Moco Museum and Stedelijk Museum are the places to head for contemporary international works. Head to the ever popular Vondelpark for a stroll through the rose garden or grab a beer and settle in under a blue-andwhite striped umbrella at the Blauwe Theehuis taproom for some people watching.
NDSM
Just over a decade ago, NDSM was a disused shipyard with a few artists’ workshops in shipping containers. Now, this dynamic neighbourhood houses cafes, restaurants, bars, independent businesses, galleries and exhibition spaces in ex-industrial warehouses.
Arrive on the free ferry from Amsterdam Centraal station to see NDSM from the water, then explore the outdoor art – from colourful murals to a blue-and orange basketball court. Straat (pictured) is an indoor museum of street art, while the NDSM Loods warehouse is home to dozens of artists’ studios. Grab a waterside deckchair for a postart beer and a bite at sustainably minded restaurant Pllek.
Centrum
Characterised by its concentric waterways flanked by tall canal houses, Centrum is where you’ll find the most typically ‘Amsterdam’ views and many of the city’s best museums.
Visit Rembrandthuis (pictured), a museum in the former home of the Dutch painter, and Anne Frank House before wandering the cobbled streets – keeping an eye out for bikes adorned with flowers, courtesy of ‘Flowerbike Man’, who decorates bicycles as a way to help his wife with memory issues.
For a fascinating perspective on the city, Rederij Lampedusa offers canal tours (sold through operators such as Contiki and Uniworld) on boats that carried refugees across the Mediterranean.
The tour highlights how immigrants have shaped the city.
Westerpark
The area’s namesake Westerpark – a long, sprawling green space – was created in the 1840s to give the growing working-class population a recreation area. These days, it’s a cultural destination
with buzzy restaurants, bars, hotels and venues in the middle, housed in what was once a gasworks – there is even an events space in an old gas cylinder.
For a more modern take on the Dutch master painters, Fabrique des Lumières in the Westergasfabriek turns classic paintings into immersive video projections with accompanying sound. Evenings at Westergasfabriek are for bar-hopping or dancing at one of the many festivals held here. Venture out of the park for the uniquely curved, redbrick Museum Het Ship, which was once a social housing project and is now a museum devoted to the Amsterdam School of architecture.
Best of the rest
Oud-West
This neighbourhood’s leafy streets are home to bougie cafes and De Hallen, an old tram depot housing independent boutiques, a weekend craft market and an international food hall.
Overhoeks
Take the ferry to Amsterdam Noord for two particularly fun attractions. The A’Dam Lookout observation deck offers panoramic city views and a rooftop bar, while This is Holland is a simulated flight experience.
Book an Amsterdam city break
Inspiring Travel, which has added Amsterdam to its citybreak portfolio, offers three nights’ room-only at Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam from £1,575 per person based on two adults sharing in March 2025, including Eurostar travel.
inspiringtravel.co.uk
Osprey Holidays offers two nights’ B&B at the four-star Monet Garden Hotel Amsterdam from £374 per person, based on two sharing, with easyJet flights from Gatwick on March 18, 2025.
ospreyholidays.com
AmaWaterways’ 14-night Magnificent Europe itinerary from Amsterdam to Budapest features two nights’ B&B in Amsterdam pre-cruise. Prices start at £6,239 per person based on two sharing, departing on June 12, 2025.
amawaterways.co.uk
Where to stay in Amsterdam
Bright colours abound at nhow Amsterdam Rai (pictured, above) with rooms themed on countries – from Japan to Scotland – and fun touches such as free pick ’n’ mix in the lobby. Rooms from €120, including breakfast.
nh-hotels.com
Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam is set across six grand canal houses in Centrum, with an outdoor courtyard and a mix of fancy suites and characterful lofts with wooden beams. Rooms cost from €627.
hilton.com/waldorf-astoria
Eco-focused Conscious Hotel Westerpark (pictured, below) is in the Westergasfabriek area. There’s an organic, zero-waste restaurant and rooms are comfy and stylish, with leafy views. Rates start at €90 on a room-only basis.
conscioushotels.com
PICTURES: Joseph Briaire; Shutterstock/De Jongh Photography; Jan de Ridder; Nooij; Mirte Vreemann; Jan de Ridder; Shutterstock/Ivo Antonie de Rooij
