Amsterdam attractions
Amsterdam is filled with fun attractions and museums, many of them can easily be reached with City Sightseeing Amsterdam’s bus or boat. If you only want to visit one attraction or museum on your visit, it is best to book a combi ticket. But if you want to visit several, you can book your attraction and museum tickets right here.
What to see in Amsterdam?
Amsterdam is filled with iconic sights and world-famous attractions. There are sightseeing options that are free to visit and there are attractions that require you to buy a ticket. Free sightseeing locations in Amsterdam include:
- The UNESCO World Heritage listed Amsterdam canals: you can always go for a walk along the canals
- The Vondelpark: this 19th-century urban park is a favourite with locals and tourists
- The Westerkerk: this iconic church is open to the public on most days and you can even climb up part of its spire, which is the highest in the city
- The Skinny bridge (Magere brug): a historic bridge that is lit up at night with thousands of lights
- The rooftop terrace of NEMO Science Museum: you’ll have a beautiful over the city from this rooftop terrace atop a museum, which sits atop a tunnel
- Windmill De Gooyer: though you can’t go inside, you can get really close to the windmill
What are the must-do attractions in Amsterdam?
There are plenty of things to do in Amsterdam that require you to buy a ticket. You can easily spend a day in the museum district, especially if you want to visit more than one of the museums there. The Rijksmuseum is the national museum of the Netherlands, the Van Gogh Museum has the largest collection of works by the famous Dutch artist, the Stedelijk Museum has one of the world’s most important collections of modern art, and the Moco Museum was the first museum in the world to host a Banksy exhibition.
The Jewish Cultural Quarter, Heineken Experience and Red Light Secrets all dive deeper into a specific part of the history of the city of Amsterdam. ARTIS Amsterdam Royal Zoo is far more than just a zoo, it features lots of monuments, a planetarium and more. And both Ripley’s Believe It or Not! and Madame Tussauds in Amsterdam have a distinct Dutch twist to their international counterparts.
Find your way around with an Amsterdam city map
On the City Sightseeing buses and boats and at the shops, you can pick up a free Amsterdam city map to help you make your way through the city. The map will show you the routes of the buses and boats as well as the locations of the not to miss sights and attractions in the city.
A combi ticket is a great option for when you are only in the city for one day. If you are in Amsterdam for 2 or more days, we recommend buying a single Hop-on Hop-off ticket and separate attraction tickets so that you don’t have to do everything in one day.
Frequently asked questions about Amsterdam attractions
- Can I bring my pet to the attraction?
Most of the time the answer will be no, though guide and service dogs are almost always welcome - What are the most famous canals in Amsterdam?
The main canals that are listed by UNESCO are the Singel, Herengracht, Keizersgracht, and Prinsengracht. The smaller canals that connect these major canals are also part of the protected heritage sight. - Where is the city centre in Amsterdam?
The city centre of Amsterdam is the part of the city that is surrounded by the Singelgracht and the river IJ.
