How To Plan Your Trip: Amsterdam 4 Days Itinerary

Are you an itinerary person or go-with-the-flow person? I am a mixed of both. I like to roughly plan out the must-do and must-eat in a city then work around the schedule. You know, thing happens, sometimes it's hard to go as planned. In this blog, let me share with you my 4 days itinerary in Amsterdam so you can take reference for your next trip :)

Day 1:

Check-in ➪ Rest ➪ Walking around the hostel area

Usually we took the first day to rest or just chilling when we arrived at a new place. We landed at 13:45. It took around an hour to finish the customs and get the luggage. Then we took a bus to our hostel. Checked in and went out for lunch. At the same time, we explored a little bit around the hostel area so we could get more familiar with the place. Finally, we had dinner and had a good sleep that night.

Day 2:

Southern Canal Ring - Albert Cuyp Market ➪ Old Town ➪ Hostel Break ➪ Vondelpark ➪ Van Gogh Museum

We went there in Sep, it was pretty rainy when we visited there. We went to Albert Cuyp Market for breakfast but it was a bit early. We had some food then we headed to old town. Therefore, don't go there too early. You may want to go there for lunch instead. We then walked to old town to see all the centre of Amsterdam and all the canals across the city.

After that, we got back to the market for more food. You can check out my food review of Albert Cuyp Market blog here and food tour video here. Food coma hit hard then so we went back to hostel and took a break. The hostel we stayed at was Stayokay Amsterdam Vondelpark. It is close to Rijksmuseum and Vondelpark. We visited Vondelpark afterwards. It is a huge park. Really relaxing. It would be great if you bike there.

And then, we walked to the museum area where Van Gogh Museum is located. We were late so we didn't go in. Make sure you go there earlier so you won't miss out! For dinner, we just randomly went in a Kebab restaurant, got a quick dinner and back to the hostel.

Day 3:

Anne Frank House ➪ The Pancake Bakery ➪ West and North Canal Ring ➪ Mannekenpis Holland Fries ➪ Red Light Secret Museum of Prostitution ➪ Red Light District

Another sightseeing day. We booked tickets to Anne Frank House way before we arrived as we heard that you must buy tickets online and buy it earlier. No walk-in accepted. You can visit the exact building where Anne Frank and her family stayed during World War II. It is hard to believe how bad the situation was and what was going to happen to her. Highly recommend visiting there.

Then, we walked to the famous Pancake Bakery near Anne Frank House, about 5-10 mins walk from there. We realized that they have English translated on the menu, guess it's mainly for tourists? Not sure, but the pancakes were delicious! They have both savoury and sweet pancakes. Definitely try it.

Since we were already in the west side of Amsterdam, we planned to explore around the west and north canal ring. It is not really the center so there are more residential houses and mom and pop shops. It is less crowded and a nice walk too.

Then, we got a bit hungry. We went to Mannekenpis Holland Fries for the famous fries. There are many sauces. We got three sauces: the curry ketchup, ketchup and mayonnaise (I guess). It was yummy. The small one was already pretty big, it's very enough for two people. Great snack.

Now, here comes the long waited part of the day - visiting the red light district.

We first went to the Red Light Secret Museum of Prostitution. 12.5€ per person. Definitely worth-visiting as you will get to know more about the industry in the Netherlands. The ladies are well-protected by the government and it is impressive of how open-minded the locals are.

After visiting the museum, it started getting dark, we had dinner at a random restaurant near there. Later at night, the red lights in the Red Light District were lighten up at most houses. Ladies started preparing for the night and tourists wandering around. You can never get any experience like this elsewhere. It's eye opening.

P.S. it's not allowed to take photos of the ladies.

Day 4:

Half Day trip to Haarlem ➪ Trying Space Cake ➪ The Salsa Shop

Our last day in Amsterdam was pretty simple. We decided to spend half day in Haarlem, where only around 20 mins away from Amsterdam. We bought a return train ticket (10€). Hop on the train early in the morning and started exploring. Haarlem is a relatively small city. It is cozy, tranquil and beautiful. I can imagine living here after retirement. Most places are walking distance. Even though there's not a lot to see, still good times staying there and clear your mind. We had lunch at a random restaurant. Tried the Kroketten (Dutch Croquettes), it was a bit salty but went well with bread. After that, it's time to get back to Amsterdam.

Who can visit the Netherlands without trying weed/space cake?

It's so common there. Coffee shops and weed smells every corner of the streets. We searched online and decided to go to one called "Paradox". We went in, people were smoking weeds, weed smell's everywhere. It smells like grass, mucho grass. We bought a tiny piece of space cake which costed 7€. We tried and filmed our reactions, check it out here. Anyways, personally I don't think it tasted so bad, definitely worth-trying. The effect was mind-blowing. I have never felt anything like that in my life LOL. We got so sleepy after 2 hours so we ended up going back to the hostel and slept for like a few hours!

We woke up and went to The Salsa Shop for dinner. The burrito we had that night was a highlight too, it was AMAZING. The food choices there in Amsterdam are way more international than I expected. If you go there, you should try it too!

This is it.

This is our 4 days itinerary in Amsterdam (including half day in Haarlem). Amsterdam is a beautiful city. People are disciplined, well-dressed and educated. Highly recommend visiting there. Hope you find this itinerary useful!