Amsterdam City Guide: Everything You Need to Know Before You Visit

Amsterdam is one of the most visited cities in Europe and one of the most manageable. The centre is compact enough to cover on foot or by bike, the public transport is reliable, and most of what makes the city worth visiting sits within a short distance of Amsterdam Centraal. The challenge is not finding things to do — it is knowing where to start and how to make the most of the time you have.

This guide covers the essentials: the neighbourhoods, the museums, what to eat, how to get around, and how to store your bags so none of it is wasted carrying luggage from place to place.

Getting Around

Amsterdam Centraal is the main rail hub, connecting the city to Schiphol Airport in fifteen minutes and to the rest of the Netherlands and wider Europe. If you are arriving before your accommodation is ready, there are 20+ luggage storage locations within easy walking distance of the station. From the station, trams run south through the city centre along the main arteries. Tram lines 2, 11, 12, and 17 cover most of the tourist areas and are the quickest way to move between the major sights.

The city is also built for cycling. Bike hire is available throughout the centre from a range of operators and costs around €10 to €15 per day. If you are comfortable on a bike and confident enough to navigate alongside local cyclists, it is the best way to see the canals and neighbourhoods at your own pace.

For the waterways, the GVB ferry services run free from the back of Centraal Station to Amsterdam Noord, which has become a genuinely interesting area for food, art, and independent shops in recent years.

The Neighbourhoods Worth Knowing

The Jordaan is the most characterful part of central Amsterdam. Built in the seventeenth century as a working-class district, it is now a tightly packed neighbourhood of narrow streets, independent galleries, brown cafés, and some of the best food in the city. It sits immediately west of the main canal ring and is best explored on foot.

De Wallen is Amsterdam’s historic centre, the area most associated with the city internationally. The canal network here is particularly dense, and the area around Nieuwmarkt and the Oude Kerk is worth seeing beyond its reputation. It is busiest in the evenings; earlier in the day it is considerably quieter. If you are spending time here before heading on, luggage storage in De Wallen means you can explore without dragging bags through the narrow streets.

De Pijp is south of the main centre and home to the Albert Cuyp Market, one of the largest street markets in Europe running Monday to Saturday. The neighbourhood is relaxed, diverse, and full of good coffee and food options. Locals go here when they want to avoid the tourist density of the centre.

Amsterdam Noord has changed significantly in the past decade. The Eye Filmmuseum, the NDSM Wharf, and a cluster of independent food and design businesses have made it a worthwhile afternoon or evening destination. The ferry from behind Centraal Station takes five minutes and runs around the clock.

The Museums

The Rijksmuseum on Museumplein holds the national collection of Dutch art and history. Rembrandt’s Night Watch is here, along with a substantial Vermeer collection and an extensive display of applied arts and design. Booking ahead is strongly recommended. If you are visiting Museumplein with bags in tow, luggage storage across Amsterdam means you can drop everything before you go in.

The Van Gogh Museum, directly beside the Rijksmuseum, houses the largest collection of Van Gogh’s work in the world. Queues without a timed ticket can be long, particularly in summer. The museum’s website allows booking up to four months in advance.

The Anne Frank House on Prinsengracht is one of the most visited sites in the Netherlands. Tickets sell out weeks in advance during peak season and are only available online. If you have not booked, the Dutch Resistance Museum in the Plantage district covers similar history with far less waiting.

The Stedelijk Museum covers modern and contemporary art and design from 1870 to the present. It is less crowded than the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum and worth a visit for anyone with an interest in twentieth-century art and design.

Where to Eat and Drink

Amsterdam has strong Indonesian and Surinamese food traditions alongside a growing independent restaurant scene. Blauw on Amstelveenseweg is one of the best Indonesian restaurants in the city. Tokoman in the centre serves Surinamese food from a small counter and is worth the queue.

For Dutch food specifically, Greetje in the centre offers a modern take on traditional Dutch cooking and uses seasonal and regional produce throughout. It is more formal than most and worth booking ahead.

The Albert Cuyp Market in De Pijp is the most practical place for lunch while exploring the city. Stroopwafels, herring, and freshly fried poffertjes are all available from street stalls and are as good as anywhere in the city.

For drinks, Amsterdam’s brown cafés, the traditional Dutch pubs, are the most authentic option. Café de Druif near Entrepotdok and In ‘t Aepjen in the city centre both date back several centuries and remain functioning local pubs. Neither is a tourist trap.

Luggage Storage in Amsterdam: Your Options Compared

Amsterdam Centraal is the natural drop-off point for most visitors, and the streets around it see heavy demand for luggage storage throughout the day. Whether you are arriving early before check-in, exploring the city between a flight and a train, or spending a bag-free day before heading on, here is what each platform actually offers.

Stasher: 40+ Locations from €3.49/day

Stasher has 40+ partner locations across Amsterdam, with the strongest concentration around Amsterdam Centraal Station, where 20+ locations are within easy walking distance. Coverage extends into De Wallen and Amsterdam Noord, as well as the Cruise Port for anyone arriving or departing by water.

Partners are vetted hotels, shops, and professional businesses, each with their own review history. Every booking includes a €1,100 guarantee per bag. Pricing starts from €3.49/day, with larger bags priced higher and additional fees applying at checkout.

On Trustpilot, Stasher holds a 4.9/5, the highest rating of any luggage storage platform globally.

Bounce: 112 Spots, from €3.50/day Near the Station

Bounce has 112 storage spots across Amsterdam and advertises from €1.95/day. At the locations most visitors actually need, including the area around Centraal Station, the real rate is €3.50/day. The headline price applies to a small number of locations outside the central areas.

Their protection covers €10,000 per booking. On Trustpilot, Bounce scores 4.2/5. As with their other city pages, the “4.9” rating displayed on their own platform is drawn from location-level reviews rather than Trustpilot.

Radical Storage: €5.00/day Plus a Mandatory Guarantee Fee

Radical Storage operates in Amsterdam with a stated rate of €5.00 per bag per day, plus a mandatory €1.75 per-bag guarantee fee at checkout. That makes the real cost €6.75/day for most bags before accounting for bag size. Their guarantee covers up to €3,000 per bag.

Radical does not publish a clear Amsterdam location count on their main city page. On Trustpilot, they rate 4.2/5.

LuggageHero: 20+ Locations, Smallest Network in Amsterdam

LuggageHero has 20+ locations in Amsterdam, the smallest network of the four platforms in the city. Their hourly rate from €1.49 is useful for short stays, but for a full day the rate runs to €4.90/day plus a €1.99 service fee per bag at checkout. Their guarantee covers up to €500 per bag, the lowest of the four.

On Trustpilot, LuggageHero scores 3.9/5, with around 24% one-star reviews.

Practical Tips Before You Go

Tap water in Amsterdam is safe to drink and among the cleanest in Europe. Carrying a reusable bottle saves money and reduces plastic waste.

Most museums accept card payment only. Cash is less widely used in Amsterdam than in many other European cities and some venues will not accept it.

Cycling tourists and local cyclists share the same lanes. Pedestrians walking in cycle lanes are a common cause of frustration for locals. Keep to the pavements and check before stepping off a kerb.

The city is busiest in summer and during major events. If you are visiting in July or August, book museum tickets, restaurants, and accommodation as far ahead as possible.

If you are arriving by cruise ship, luggage storage at Amsterdam’s Cruise Port means you can head straight into the city without making your way back to the terminal first.

Making the Most of Your Visit

Amsterdam rewards time spent off the main tourist circuit. The Jordaan, De Pijp, Amsterdam Noord, and the quieter parts of the canal ring offer a version of the city that is genuinely different from the busy centre.

If you are landing at Schiphol with bags to deal with, or starting a free day before a train or flight, Stasher’s Amsterdam locations give you a reliable, vetted place to leave everything while you get on with the city.