- Country: The Netherlands
- Cities: Amsterdam (capital), Zaanse Shans, Volendam, and Marken
- Highlights: Canal tour, Anne Frank House, Van Gogh Museum, Dutch Countryside
Amsterdam has the reputation as great place to spend time either on a short getaway or on a long vacation. In the summer of August 2022, I set out on a solo trip for 4 days. I arrived into Amsterdam from the London Pancras train station, which was just about a 4 hour trip. As a solo female traveler, I felt very safe during my entire stay (I did not travel alone at night). I met some female travelers in my hostel dorm room and enjoyed a small group day trip to the Dutch countryside to visit the towns of Zaanse Shans, Volendam, and Marken. I explored many of the main attractions and museums alone by foot or metro.
Amsterdam has so much to offer from amazing food, museums, and history! I highly suggest researching the city and deciding on what you want to see. Many of my suggestions can be substituted out for things on your bucket-list!
Amsterdam City Pass
Amsterdam can be easier and cheaper if you travel with an Amsterdam City Pass. There are several options and with one card you can go to most tourist destinations without other tickets. I didn’t purchase one as I found that I wasn’t visiting enough museums and attractions to make it worth it. However, you can check out all the options here: Amsterdam City Passes
Day 1: Arrival, Damrak, Vondelpark, Stroopwafels!
Depending on where you are arriving from, you can fly into Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, known informally as Schiphol Airport, the main international airport of the Netherlands. You also have easy access to Amsterdam from other European cities by train. I flew into London for my friend’s wedding and a few days later took the train to Amsterdam for my solo trip. Upon exiting the train station, I walked straight to Damrak, the street connecting the Amsterdam Centraal Train Station to Dam Square where you can find the iconic homes on the canal. Whether you come during the day, at night, or both like me, these iconic buildings are quite the sight to see!
After traveling for several hours, I was ready to sit down for a beer. Of course, I had to have an Amstel, as this brewery was founded by two friends in Amsterdam back in 1870!
The next stop was to sample the famous stroopwafel at the BEST shop: Van Wonderen! These delicate Danish cookies are made of two layers of thing waffle-like dough sandwiched toghers with a spiced caramel syrup filling. Most shops have countless varieties on the stroopwafel. I got a chocolate dipped stroopwafel with cookie bits. YUM!!
As the night was closing in, I headed back to my hostel Stayokay, located adjacent to Vondelpark, the largest, public park in the city with a beautiful rose garden, lake, and cafes.
I loved the location of this hostel, next to Vondelpark, and located conveniently to the city’s shopping streets, museums, and nightlife. The hostel was so clean, people were friendly, it had a great outdoor patio space, plenty of lounges, and an amazing bar! I stayed in an all female four person dorm, which I recommend for solo female travelers.
Day 2 – Anne Frank Museum, Canal Boat Tour, Flower Market, and Red Light District
Today I had tickets booked in advance to the Anne Frank House museum. I highly recommend this experience as it is educational, but also highly emotional. You will leave really with insight into Anne’s life and it must have been like to live in hiding in these tiny rooms without the freedom to leave. You can’t take pictures in the museum, but there is a beautiful statue you can see before going into the museum.
After the museum, it was time for breakfast! I stopped at Cafe Winkel 43 for the BEST apple pie and a cappuccino!
Following breakfast, I strolled along the canals through Amsterdam. I love taking in all of the sights and sounds of the boats, bikers, and conversations amongst the locals sitting on benches or at cafes. Don’t forget to take your picture with one of the countless bikes locked to the bridges passing across the canals.
From here, I found my way to my prebooked canal boat tour with wine and cheese! I chose this Viator tour with a live guide and found it to be an awesome, entertaining experience!
I don’t think it’s necessary to book this in advance as there are so many boat tours offered every day, however, I’m a planner and wanted to make sure I got the experience I wanted at the time I wanted.
After the boat tour, I walked to Amsterdam’s flower market.
I highly recommend adding this to your to-do list. The colors alone will draw you in and then you will be hit with all the pleasant scents of tulips and other local flowers. You can pick some flowers or bulbs to take home with you!
From here, I went to explore the Red Light District. Amsterdam has three different Red Light District with everything from erotica shops and prostitution to museums and churches. The most famous district is is located in the city center. This is not a family-friendly part of the trip, so I would do this with adults only! Please keep in mind that it is disrespectful and maybe even unlawful to take pictures of the erotica dancers in the windows!
Day 3: Dutch Countryside – Day trip to Zaanse Shans, Volendam, and Marken
Today’s excursions was a 6.5 hour day trip to Zaanse Shans, Volendam, and Marken! I booked this tour with Viator, which I highly recommend! We had a meet up point a short distance from my hostel near the central train station and then boarded the bus for the day. On this trip, we were able to see windmills, cheese makers, seaside, and clog factories. We learned about the region’s history from professional guides and alos got to taste cheese at a local shop! The day started with Zaanse Schans, where you will be able to take pictures of typical Dutch windmills that are still in use today.
Near Volendam, we stopped at a clog factory where we learned the secrets of the Dutch clog shoe!
If you love what you see, you can even purchase your own clogs to take home and wear or keep as a souvenir!
In Edam, you will walk through historic sites like the square where the famous Cheese Market used to take place. We were lucky to see one of their festivals and enjoyed the dance, music, and watching the transportation of cheese!
During your stop in Marken, you will feel as if you are transported back to the 17th century as you walk by cozy fisherman houses in the fishing harbor.
At the end of the trip, you return to the central station in Amsterdam. From here, you have the option to take a canal boat tour, if you haven’t done so already!
Day 4: Van Gogh Museum & Back to London!
Today’s adventure started with a stop at The Rijksmuseum, the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam.
I wish I left time in my itinerary (or had just one more day!) to spend half a day here, but unfortunately, I didn’t plan in advance. Instead, I bought tickets to the Van Gogh museum, which was AMAZING!
You definitely want to allow at least 2 hours to explore the artwork and dive into his life and career. This is a family-friendly spot if you’re traveling with kids. They have a scavenger hunt at the front of the museum kids can take part in with a “prize” in the gift shop at the end.
Following my visit to the museum, it was time to head back to London! I hope you enjoyed this brief, but adventure packed trip through Amsterdam and the Dutch countryside!
