Canals of Amsterdam

Amsterdam’s Canals: A Practical Guide to Actually Enjoying Them

The canal ring (Grachtengordel) was dug mostly between 1613 and 1663, when Amsterdam was the wealthiest trading city in the world. Four main canals run in concentric semicircles from the IJ waterfront: Herengracht (Gentlemen’s Canal), Keizersgracht (Emperor’s Canal), Prinsengracht (Prince’s Canal), and Brouwersgracht (Brewers’ Canal). UNESCO added the whole thing to its World Heritage List in 2010.

The canal houses lining them lean at angles because their wooden foundations have settled over centuries. If you look closely at the hooks protruding from the gable peaks, they’re for hoisting furniture up the exterior (internal staircases are too narrow). This is still how large items get moved in and out.

Getting on the Water

A canal boat tour is genuinely worth doing once. The standard 75-minute tours depart from Centraal Station and several points along Damrak and Rokin, cost around €15-18, and give you a different perspective on the city that walking doesn’t.

Renting a small electric boat (no licence needed) and navigating the canals yourself costs around €45-65 per hour for a boat holding 4-6 people, and is significantly more entertaining. Boaty on Keizersgracht and Rent a Boat Amsterdam near Centraal both rent these.

The Neighbourhoods Worth Walking

Jordaan is the area most people are looking for when they picture canal-house Amsterdam. The grid of streets west of Prinsengracht between Brouwersgracht and Leidsegracht has independent shops, good cafes, and the Westerkerk tower for orientation. The Negen Straatjes (Nine Streets) running east-west across the main canals are the most concentrated shopping area for non-chain retail.

De Pijp is south of the canal ring and less tourist-saturated. The Albert Cuyp Market runs Monday-Saturday on Albert Cuypstraat: street food, cheap clothing, produce, and stroopwafels made fresh at the stall. Get a stroopwafel warm.

Oud-West (Old West, between Leidseplein and the Vondelpark) is where Amsterdam residents actually live and eat. The De Hallen food hall in a former tram depot on Hannie Dankbaarpassage has around 20 food stalls and is much less tourist-oriented than central Amsterdam alternatives.

Eating

Moeders on Rozengracht in the Jordaan is a genuinely local institution. Dutch home cooking, walls covered in framed photos of mothers sent by diners over decades. Erwtensoep (pea soup) and stamppot (mashed potato with vegetables and smoked sausage) are the things to order.

Restaurant De Kas in the Frankendael park is an expensive greenhoue-to-table restaurant (€60+ per head) that’s worth it for the setting and the quality.

For cheaper meals, the Vietnamese and Indonesian restaurants on Jodenbreestraat and around the Waterlooplein market are the best value in the city. Amsterdam’s Indonesian food scene is excellent, a legacy of colonial trade connections.

Staying

The Dylan Amsterdam on Keizersgracht occupies a 17th-century canal house. Rates from around €300/night, Michelin-starred restaurant in the same building.

Hotel Pulitzer on Prinsengracht uses 25 canal houses strung together. The rooms vary dramatically depending on which house you’re in; request one facing the canal.

For budget options, the Jordaan and Oud-West have apartment-style rentals that make more sense for more than two nights than hotel rooms do.

Practical Notes

Amsterdam is best navigated by bicycle. Rent from MacBike or Star Bikes Rental (around €10/day). The cycling infrastructure is genuinely excellent and getting somewhere by bike takes a third of the time walking does.

The I amsterdam City Card at €65-85 for 24 hours (increasing for longer periods) covers Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, Stedelijk, and unlimited public transport. Do the maths against what you’re actually visiting; it’s not always better value than paying individually.

Book the Anne Frank House (Prinsengracht 267) weeks in advance. It sells out. The queue without a pre-booked ticket can exceed 2 hours.