14 Tips for an AWESOME Trip to Amsterdam

Amsterdam. City of canals. City of contradictions. Famous for being the drug and sex capital of Europe, its many waterways offer so much more than that. Wild and energetic, yet peaceful and historical. A tourist hotspot without losing that local feel. As beautiful as Venice, but cooler somehow. I brought my best friend Chris along with me to get weird, party, explore the many sights and figure out why this little city is so damn wonderful. So grab a joint or don't and let me show you one of my favorite cities in the world. Amsterdam here we come. Let's start with an easy one. Tip number one. Getting to the city from the airport is incredibly simple. Just take the train from the airport to Amsterdam Central Station in the northern part of the city center and you're there. The city is so small if you're staying in Amsterdam you can pretty much just walk from the station to your hotel or hostel. Unless you're staying outside the city center or you're schlepping a ton of luggage. Oh yeah I love that those are not working right now. In which case you can take the metro or a tram. And speaking of hostels let me just say right off the bat this city is expensive. So if you're on a budget a hostel might be your only option. However don't fret. Amsterdam has great hostels. My favorite is Coco Mama. Super relaxed friendly helpful staff the great community without that douchey party hostel feel. And they also have nightly group activities. This is easily one of my favorite hostels in Europe. Tip number two. Prepare for inclement weather. Amsterdam is the San Francisco of Europe. No matter what time of year you look at the weather and you think oh it's gonna be great but somehow it will surprise you. It will rain or be windy at least one of the days you were there so just plan on that. Man the weather is not cooperating. The weather is frightful. We joke that Amsterdam's new slogan should be Amsterdam the city where umbrellas go to die. Tip number three. Aside from walking the best way to get around Amsterdam is to ride a bike. Seeing this city from a bike is wonderful. It's also an incredibly bike friendly city. There are designated bike lanes everywhere and even bike specific traffic lights. My favorite bike rental place is called Donkey Republic. They have shops all over Europe and their system is super simple and very convenient. Just download the app find a bike rent it and then you can unlock it and lock it right from your phone. It's incredibly intuitive and the company is great. Cannot recommend them enough. If you're traveling with a friend and want to have some fun make sure to grab a tandem bike. Just make sure you bring your bike back looking like this and not like this. Especially if that friend has no idea what he or she is doing because it is hilarious. Plus everyone just looks plain adorable on a tandem bike. Come on look at how cute we are. Tip number four. Explore the red light district. All right let's just get this one out of the way. Yes the red light district is home to the many prostitutes in Amsterdam and if you're into that kind of thing there is no shortage of sexy time opportunities. That being said the red light district is one of the oldest and most historic little sections of Amsterdam. Wander around and take in all it has to offer. Helpful tip. Do not try and film the prostitutes in their windows. They do not appreciate it. I've heard they actually have cups of pee on hand to throw at tourists who try and take pictures of them. Seriously look it That was my favorite shirt. Tip number five. If you've watched any of my other videos you know that I travel on my stomach. My obsession for food knows no bounds. That being said and I may catch some for my Dutch friends for saying this Amsterdam isn't exactly the culinary apex of Europe. However there are some gems to be found. Not the least of which is one of the single greatest pieces of anything I have ever shoveled into my mouth. The Dutch pancake. If you eat nowhere else in Amsterdam you must I repeat must eat at the pancake bakery in the Jordaan. The pancakes here are a revelation. Thin perfectly textured. My favorite is the apple bacon but they're all great. Try a savory one like mushroom and cheese if you're not into sweets. To top off the pancakes you have a magical concoction that I can only assume is made from molasses and unicorn tears. Stroop. This will change your world. Also Bastion the owner of the place is one of the nicest people I've met in my travels. You've ruined other pancakes for me. From now on I'm only going to be able to come here. Sorry. So thank you for that. I appreciate it. Thanks for everything. Next up on my list are two of my favorite cafes in the city. The Pantry is a charming little restaurant serving up delicious and simple traditional Dutch fare. Make sure to try the Sput. Nailed that pronunciation. It's basically sausage or a meatball served with three different kinds of flavored mashed potatoes. From sauerkraut to kale and bacon to stewed beef with carrots. All of which are unique and stupid delicious. Café de Klo has some ribs that are damn tasty. And finally Amsterdam is home to some of the best Indonesian food I've had outside of Indonesia. The reason for this is because Indonesia was actually colonized by the Dutch. My favorite Indonesian place is Samporna. They offer affordable tasting menus to share with friends. Everything I've had here has been nothing short of sensational. Also raw herring may not sound all that appealing but it's a staple of the region. There are stands everywhere and it is surprisingly delicious. That is some good sh**. Tip number six visit a coffee shop. Amsterdam's euphemism for weed cafe and partake in one of the city's most famous recreational activities. Cannabis. Now I have to admit I don't personally partake in the flower but I'd be remiss not to at least recommend some places. So I asked some local friends and they told me about two terrific little shops. Katsu Coffee Shop and my personal favorite Galleria Coffee Shop Yoyo. A super vibey place to sit down, chill, get some work done, hang out with friends and of course smoke a doobie. I have to admit Amsterdam's cannabis culture is pretty damn cool. Tip number seven explore some of Amsterdam's most charming neighborhoods. First up is the Jordaan. Gorgeous old crooked buildings line quiet beautiful canals full of charming cafes, quiet streets and quaint little alleys. Ride your bike around or just stroll the streets and take it all in. Another of my favorite neighborhoods is slightly outside the touristy center of the city called The Pipe. A nice mix of expats and locals this is where I would want to live if I moved here. Hang out in Sarfetti Park, get some of the best brunch in the city of Little Collins. Oh and don't miss the Albert Kuyp street market. Known for being the largest open-air market in Europe it's flippin huge. Wow. While at the market buy some t-shirts or some craft, sample some delectable Dutch sweets like stroopwafels or just marvel at the creepiest collection of severed mannequin heads ever assembled. Tip number eight explore Vondelpark and if the weather's nice have a picnic, take a nap in the grass, ride your bike, dance around like an idiot, whatever floats your boat. There's even an original Picasso sculpture you can check out just hanging out in the park simply named The Fish. If I'm not mistaken I believe he designed the piece to represent the devil eating a Dutch pancake but it's a Picasso so it's kind of hard to tell. Could just be a fish. Note remember what I said about the inclement weather. Tip number nine visit the Anne Frank House. Now out of respect I didn't film anything inside but suffice it to say this is one of the most fascinating, sobering, and haunting museum experiences anywhere in the world. The only problem is it can get very busy and the lines can be a bit untenable so I recommend booking your spot ahead online for a specific time. It takes a little more planning but that way you get to skip the massive line. Tip number ten since there's no real good transition from Anne Frank I'm just going to go in the complete opposite direction and say eat a space cake and visit the Van Gogh Museum. Now for the Van Gogh Museum the space cake part of this equation isn't necessary but it won't hurt. The most famous place to get a space cake is probably the Bulldog. If they have instructions on them put this in your mouth. For first timers if you've never eaten one start with half. The guy in the shop said whatever you do don't eat the whole thing. Oh yeah he did say eat some of it see how you feel. Whoops. All right let's go see some art. We're currently in the self-portrait section and it's just a wall full of self-portraits by Van Gogh. These were the first selfies but these selfies took like months to make. Back in the day it was it was that was a commitment you committed to that selfie. Van Gogh said a true peasant painting should smell like bacon smoke and potatoes. I know that because there was a plaque next to the painting that said Van Gogh said a true peasant painting should smell like bacon smoke and potatoes. Chris is wasted. He can't even handle it. Tip number 11 if you're looking for nightlife head to Rembrandt Square and hit up some of Amsterdam's most hopping nightclubs. And yes apparently I still use the word hopping because I'm 34 and completely out of touch with what's cool today. For example Chris and I thought it would be cool to walk around in wooden clogs all day. Turns out we were wrong. You just hurt. Gotta be like a different way to walk. There is it's called painfully. People are laughing at us. I think they're laughing with us. No it's at us. In addition to nightclubs make sure to hit up some of Amsterdam's cool pubs and smaller bars. Two great options are Douavel famous for being the first hip-hop bar in Amsterdam and Snappers restaurant by day awesome cocktail bar by night. Tip number 12 hop on a boat and take a ride in the canals. This is one of the best ways to see the city. Amsterdam has 165 canals each one more ridiculously delightful than the next. As far as which boat to take there are many options from hop-on hop-off tours to fancy dinner boats to private boats but my favorite is to take a little open boat. I had a great experience with Stroma. Beautiful tour relaxed vibe and I actually learned some stuff. Bring a beer relax and sit back as you watch the city float by. Tip number 13 if you have more than a couple of days take a day trip outside the city to see some windmills and a castle. There are tour buses that take you to see some of the Netherlands countryside including some beautiful tulips but I'm not really a fan of organized tours so we just rented a car so we could be on our own time. Chris and I went to the beautiful Zaanse Schans and Kasteel de Haar. Medieval times eat your heart out. On this episode of Cribs we're taking a look inside Kasteel de Haar which is famous for its pointy castle thingies. Yes. Lastly feel free to ignore everything I've said here don't make a plan and just wander the city. With all that Amsterdam has to offer my favorite thing to do here will always be to simply walk around or hop on a bike and take in its beauty. Every corner of this town offers some unique vista some piece of history and maybe a prostitute or 50. Do yourself a favor and take a moment to simply get lost within its beautiful canals. I promise you won't regret it. Also take some time to hang out with the locals. The Dutch people are laid-back, open-minded, fun-loving and just plain awesome. And seriously you better eat that pancake. Thank you so much for watching. Here's the part of the video where I ask you to subscribe. Now statistics say that you're twice as likely to subscribe if I personally ask you. I'd also love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below. What are your favorite things to do in Amsterdam? Where would you like my next travel tips video to be? Thanks so much for watching. I'll see you soon from somewhere else in the world.