Amsterdam
Amsterdam walking tours
Amsterdam rewards walking more than almost any other European capital, because the thing worth seeing is the street pattern itself. These are private tours, shaped around who is in the group.
Ask about an Amsterdam walking tour
Introduction to Amsterdam
The tour most first-time visitors want. It runs from Amsterdam Centraal through part of the Red Light District to Dam Square and the Flower Market, and takes two to three hours depending on the route. Along the way it covers how a swamp at the mouth of the Amstel became the richest city in seventeenth century Europe, why the houses lean forward, and what the hooks at the top of them are still used for.
Jewish Amsterdam and the Second World War
A slower, heavier walk through what was the Jewish quarter. It takes in the Holocaust Names Monument, the Jewish Museum from the outside, Wertheimpark and Waterlooplein, and continues to the Anne Frank House if time allows. Amsterdam had one of the largest Jewish communities in Western Europe before 1940. This tour is about what that community was, not only about how it ended.
The Jordaan
Built in the seventeenth century for the workers who were not allowed inside the canal ring, the Jordaan spent three hundred years as the poorest district in the city and the last forty becoming one of the most expensive. The walk follows that reversal through its courtyards, its hofjes and its remaining brown cafés.
The Red Light District
The oldest part of Amsterdam, and much older than what it is now known for. The walk covers the history of the neighbourhood, the Oude Kerk standing in the middle of it, and the connection between this quarter and Wall Street in New York, which is less of a coincidence than it sounds.
How the walks are put together
All four can be combined or shortened. Groups arriving by coach are picked up where the coach can legally stop, which since the 2018 city ordinances is no longer the centre. Cruise passengers on a short call usually take the introduction tour, which fits the time ashore without rushing.
Common questions
How much walking is involved?
Two to three hours at a conversational pace, on flat ground, with stops. The route can be shortened or given more sitting time for groups who need it.
Can you combine two of the walks in one day?
Yes. The introduction tour plus the Jordaan is the most common pairing, usually with a break in between.
Do you run tours in bad weather?
Yes. Amsterdam is a wet city and the tours run anyway, though the route shifts towards covered stretches and the pace picks up.
