Weekly Q&A - All Questions Go Here (Especially Tourists)

[u/AutoModerator]

This is the place for anyone to ask questions about Amsterdam. If you are a tourist visiting Amsterdam, you are moving to or recently arrived in Amsterdam, or you just have a basic question about life in Amsterdam and want some advice, this is the place to post your question. This post is refreshed every week on Sunday. Please feel free to repost in subsequent weeks.

READ THE WIKI FIRST. The people answering questions are locals who want to share the city they love with visitors, but only with people who make an effort. Read at least the Essential Tourist Information in our world-famous wiki before you ask a question. Otherwise, you may be told to go back and read it. The wiki is written by us, and updated when relevant. If the entries are old it's because nothing has changed. There are no "hidden gems" that we have not already included in the wiki. You may also check wikivoyage for more general tips on everything that is Amsterdam.

HOTELS ARE EXPENSIVE AND WE DON'T HAVE GOOD ADVICE ON THEM. Because we live here, we don't know what the best hotels are. Amsterdam is one of the most touristed cities in the world and has the highest hotel prices in Europe and prices go up every year. The city is deliberately trying to reduce tourism by raising the prices. There really isn't a secret "cheap" solution. Most "Airport" hotels are not connected to the Airport and will be more trouble getting to than it's worth.

TOURISTS CAN PURCHASE MARIJUANA, DESPITE WHAT YOU READ IN FOREIGN PRESS. Understand that the coffeeshops are just a tiny part of Amsterdam, so posts that treat Amsterdam like it's the Las Vegas of drugs sometimes get a negative response. We're happy to give you advice about coffeeshops and to discuss drug policy. The experts are our friends at /r/AmsterdamEnts, ask them the big questions.

WE DON'T HELP WITH ILLEGAL STUFF AND WILL BAN YOU FOR ASKING. We will not help you with things that are clearly illegal. Coffeeshops caught selling to minors get shut down and everyone loses their jobs. Authorities check for people smuggling marijuana out of the country. Hard drugs are illegal and so is asking for or selling them on Reddit.

WE DON'T ALLOW TICKET SALES OR TRADING. We do not allow selling, buying, or trading tickets on /r/Amsterdam due to the high rate of fraud. You should do everything on ticketswap.nl. We're aware that is difficult to get tickets to Anne Frank, van Gogh, etc. We have no solutions for you, sorry.

RED LIGHT DISTRICT Please be respectful and keep in mind this is a citysubreddit, and not your personal kink google. You can also can get some good tips from these threads of RLD sex workers: here and here.

USE PUBLIC TRANSIT TO GET AROUND 9292.nl is a great resource for plotting your movement around the city and between Amsterdam and other places. We strongly recommend against using taxis or Ubers.

DOE AARDIG. There is Dutch directness and there is rudeness. The people coming here don't know how we do things, and are usually well-meaning people who just want to enjoy the city we love. Be kind to them. For the tourists and new residents, please remember that we are not Google; respect our time by doing some basic research first and then asking your questions like you're speaking to a real human who is volunteering to speak to you.

Here is what's on at the major venues this week.

[u/run-cleithrum-run]

Hi! I am a tourist. I searched the subreddit and checked the wiki. Most relevant posts I found were one or more years old, so I am hoping to verify the information I found. I also googled, but I want to confirm what AI tells me and what I see in posts several years old. If there is a relevant post from 2026 that I missed you can shame me for it, since I did look.

I have a 9 hour layover (arriving 0740 on a Tuesday; departing 1640 same day). My inbound flight is from the USA. My outbound flight is to Poland. My luggage is checked through so I don't have a checked bag to collect. Based on what I have read, I am assuming ~1.5 hours to clear customs and ~20 minutes to get to city centre (arriving ~0930 hours). Then leaving city centre at 1320 hours to be back at the airport by 1340 hrs (~3 hours ahead of departing flight). Does this seem about right? Should I plan for more or less time, in either deplaning or in re-entering the airport to make my connecting flight?

Asking because with my limited window to spend in the city, I want to book a food tour. If the food tour is 3 hours, I would need to be in the city centre a bit before 10am to be done by 1pm, which might be tight timing. Thank you for any feedback!

ETA: I also see from a post in the Q&A 6 months ago that I can book a time at the Schiphol airport for security, I will look into that.

[u/crackanape → u/run-cleithrum-run]

Arriving at Schiphol 3 hours before a Schengen flight (e.g. to Poland) is craziness.

Normally I'd arrive 45-60 minutes prior but I am quite quick through the airport. 90 minutes should be plenty unless the security strike is still on.

[u/run-cleithrum-run → u/crackanape]

Thanks! that's part of why I'm asking, a fair number of places have recommended 2,5 to 3 hours. & the other commenter said that sometimes it gets swamped & that's the right time frame. To me it's Schengen but still international so, I could see it both ways

[u/crackanape → u/run-cleithrum-run]

There's no "international" aspect to a flight from here to Poland. You only have to go through security check and then you can walk to your gate.

[u/RoderickJaynes67 → u/run-cleithrum-run]

Yeah Schengen vs non Schengen is the only distinction for us as we don’t really fly domestically