In this “Travel SMART” series of articles we discuss real-world travel plans for exploring popular locations in a cost-effective manner. SMART evaluates the Staying options, Mobility, Attractions, ROI (Return-On-Investment) and Transport options for planning the trip. This article focuses on travel plan based from Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Transport options – Amsterdam is the largest city of The Netherlands and a major European hub for transportation and international commerce. Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (IATA Code: AMS) is the main international airport of the Netherlands and a major international airport hub for both European and transatlantic flights. The airport is built as one large terminal and split into three departure halls. Access to most gates and essential facilities such as lounges, luggage terminal, public transportation and rental car lots are well documented with directions.
Amsterdam Centraal is the main train station hub in the city. Eurostar from London St. Pancras is a comfortable four-hour ride as well as hourly connections to Paris, Cologne, Brussels, Luxembourg City, Munich and other international destinations. Amsterdam is on the major highways connecting rest of Western Europe from the south via Rotterdam, from the east via Utrecht and UK via the ferry connection from Dover to Calais and other ferry ports.
The Amsterdam Cruise Port is just few hundred yards from Amsterdam Centraal and hosts many popular cruise lines from UK, France and other destinations from the south in Western Europe.
Staying options – Amsterdam has great public transportation options. So we prefer the Hampton by Hilton Amsterdam Airport which is near public transportation to the city center and offers breakfast (and rewards for the free Hilton Honors members program). If you are flying into Amsterdam and driving out to other destinations in the BENELUX region, Germany or elsewhere, we recommend the Hilton Garden Inn Leiden, The hotel is just 20 mins from the airport and avoids the busy traffic of central Amsterdam and has all the perks of the other Hilton Hotels mentioned above. Of course, their is also the option to splurge while experiencing the famous canal views of central Amsterdam and for that you can opt for Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam. During off-season (early Spring or late Fall) this location is not as expensive as hotels of this status.
Mobility – Amsterdam Centraal is the main transportation hub located not too far from the original headquarter of historic Dutch East India Company. You can drive into the city center and find one of the underground parking but we recommend hassle-free train ride from the airport or, if you are driving into Amsterdam park at one of the nearby stations and take the connection to city center. Once here, you have a variety of options to visit the options, on foot, by connecting tram lines and the famous canal boats.
Attractions – Amsterdam’s main attractions include its historic canals; the Rijksmuseum, the state museum with Dutch Golden Age art; the Van Gogh Museum; the Dam Square, where the Royal Palace of Amsterdam and former city hall are located; the Anne Frank House; the Maritime Museum where the famous Dutch ships are moored; Hortus Botanicus, NEMO, the red-light district and cannabis coffee shops.
If you have just a few hours for a city visit on a layover or passing through Amsterdam, we suggest a walking tour close to the central station including Maritime Museum, the Amsterdam Cruise Port, NEMO, Hortus Botanicus and Dam square. Also couple it with a short boat tour of the canals (90 mins or less).
ROI (Return On Investment) – Some important factors when evaluating Amsterdam are its convenient location to many attractions and proximity to many other major tourist destinations. We found the following steps made our travel plan for Amsterdam a high ROI!
- Use a credit card online that avoids international fees for reservations to the popular attractions and pre-purchasing transport options and guided tours using apps like OMIO or Expedia.
- Save on meals by option for a hotel with free breakfast options.
- Save on Overall transport cost by using a combination of public transport for traveling within Amsterdam and a rental car for driving outside of the city when having 2 or more people to save on long distance train costs.
- Drive from Amsterdam to popular tourist destinations in Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and even Cologne, Germany for more flexibility to visit multi-destinations. For farther out destinations like Copenhagen, Paris, London or Munich we recommend train. Overnight trains are available from Amsterdam Centraal for Munich, Vienna and Southern Europe destinations.
Enjoy the video clip below for a quick glimpse of a walking around central Amsterdam!
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