Amsterdam – City Card

Eating

Budget: Pancake Bakery (Prinsengracht 191, 625, 1333), canalhouse café chain with 70 types of pancake; Walem (Keizersgracht 449), bright, friendly café open all day and evening with good value light menu.
Mid-Range: Stoop (Anjeliersdwarsstraat 4-6, tel. +639 24 80), stylish, popular restaurant in Jordaan district with adventurous menu; Balthazar’s Kitchen (Elandsgracht 108), open Wed-Fri, serves Mediterranean cuisine in stylish and popular setting. Booking essential.
Luxury: Supper Club (Jonge Roelensteeg 21; tel. 344 6400), the trendiest restaurant in town, where you lounge on white mattresses and cushion and wait to be served; D’Viff Vlieghen Restaurant (Spuistraat 294-302), city centre restaurant serving Dutch cuisine (with silver service) in sumptuous surroundings of five converted canalhouses; Designer hotel Blakes (Keizersgracht 384) has the swankiest restaurant in Amsterdam, serving Asian cuisine to the rich and famous.

Drinking

Budget: Lokaal t’Loosje (Nieumarkt 32-34), popular place serving great local beers and cheap snacks; Café t’Smalle (Egelantiersgracht 12), cosy candlelit brown bar in Jordaan district; T’Arendsnest (Herengracht 90), good for lovers of Dutch beers.
Mid-Range: Wolvenstraat 23 (Wolvenstraat 23), trendy lounge bar that’s lively all day and night; Het Papeneiland (Prinsengracht 2), 17th century tiled building and now a popular café.
Luxury: Nomads (Rozengracht 133), exotic Arabian den open till 3am; Felix Meritis Café (Keizersgracht 324), where the cultured set enjoy their aperitifs in a refined setting.

Shopping

- Department stores include Bijenkorf (Dam Square), Magna Plaza (Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 182) and Metz & Co. (Keizersgracht 455).
- The best individual shops are in the backstreets running perpendicular to the canals, an area now known as Nine Streets.
- For designer brands, go to PC Hoofstraat, a street behind the Rijksmuseum which is lined with upmarket boutiques.
- Amsterdam has some great chocolate shops, particularly Puccini Bomboni (Staalstraat 17) and Australian Homemade (Singel 437).
- The main market is the Waterlooplein flea market, Mon-Sat, and don’t miss the floating flower market on Singel, every day.

Beyond The City

All major cities in Holland are within a 2-hour or so train journey from Amsterdam’s Centraal Station.
Haarlem, 15 minutes away, is a lively city, and Leiden, 35 minutes away, has pretty canals and good museums.
For seaside resorts, head to Bergen, Egmond and Castricum, 30 mins north of Amsterdam.
Rotterdam, Holland’s second largest city, is good for nightlife.
The historic town of Delft is famous for its blue and white ceramics.
The Hague (Den Haag), 45 minutes away, has great art galleries and a big jazz festival in July.
Utrecht, a university town 30 minutes from Amsterdam, is a pleasant place to stroll around its shops and sample its chic cafes.

Cost Of Living

33cl bottle of beer - €1.50
One-litre bottle of mineral water - €2.50
36-exposure colour film - €7
City centre bus ticket - €1.60
Adult football ticket - €25
Three-course meal with wine or beer - From €30

Key Phrases

Hello – Dag
Goodbye – Dag
Yes – Ja
No – Nee
Please – Alstublieft
Thank you – Dank u or Bedankt
Excuse me – Pardon
Do you speak English? – Spreekt u Engels?
I don’t understand – Ik begrijp het niet.
Where is the… - Waar is….?
Train station – het trein station
Tram stop – de tramhalte.
Bank – de bank.
Tourist office – de VVV.
What time does the train leave? – Hoe laat vertrekt de trein?
I’d like a single/return ticket – Ik wil graag een enkele reis/een retour.
Do you have any rooms availale? – Heeft u kamers vrij?
How much is it? – Hoeveel is het?
I need a doctor – Ik heb een dokter nodig.
What time is it? – Hoe laat is het?
Call the police/an ambulance! – Haal de politie/een ziekenauto!

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