Things to do in Amsterdam in 3 days

If you only have 72 hours to visit Amsterdam, don’t worry, the city’s main attractions are close by and easily accessible by public transport or on foot.

We have devised an itinerary for you to make the most of your 3-day holiday in Amsterdam and visit the most famous museums, without neglecting moments of relaxation, shopping and of course a canal cruise.

First Day

The first of the three days in Amsterdam should be dedicated to an orientation tour of the city to get familiar with it from the start.

This mini-cruise on Amsterdam’s canals allows you to admire the city in all its beauty from a new and unusual perspective, exploring its most beautiful sights and monuments, the most important streets and the uniqueness of some of the houses, enjoying a breathtaking panoramic view and feeling relaxed. There are several embarkation points in various parts of the city, and audio guides in several languages are usually available.

At this point, you can take a walk through the botanical garden, a garden located in the heart of the city, an immersion in the green where true nature is the queen. You will have the opportunity to admire different species of tropical plants, century-old trees, ponds, greenhouses and an area dedicated exclusively to colourful tropical butterflies. There is also a shop inside where you can buy carnivorous plants and very rare plants.

Now it is time for lunch: it is time to enjoy Dutch specialities, you will find a wide choice for all tastes. The star is the herring, served strictly raw, accompanied by pickles, onions or cucumbers, served on a plate or in a tasty sandwich. You can continue your tasting of Dutch specialities with pancakes, which can be savoury or sweet and topped in a variety of ways, and the legendary Chips, which are very crispy and definitely worth trying, as they are considered unique.

To continue your visit during the afternoon, you can choose to visit one of Amsterdam’s many museums such as the Rijksmuseum, the Stedelijk Museum, the Anne Frank House or the Van Gogh Museum; keep one aside for the third day, and if you are with your children, you could choose the Artis Zoo or the Nemo Science Museum.

Before dinner, you may decide to take a walk in one of the city’s neighbourhoods such as:

• the De Pijp, a very colourful and trendy district, shopping in the Albert Cuypmarkt;
• the Plantage, near the zoo, with wide avenues in the green;
• the Jordaan, a former working-class neighbourhood where many small shops have sprung up today;
• the Ring of Canals, to admire enchanting residences along the way.

You have reached the end of the first day: enjoy an evening in one of Amsterdam’s many restaurants while savouring a good local beer.

Day Two

After a good, sweet breakfast of Dutch pancakes or typical stroopwaffel (unless you want to indulge in a savoury breakfast, as is typical in these parts of Europe), you have just under 48 hours left to explore the city, and the second of three days in Amsterdam can begin.

You can start with a walk to discover the beauty of Dutch architecture: you can visit the Amsterdam School, built in bricks, or the ultra-modern buildings in the neighbourhoods south and west of the centre, without neglecting the city’s many bridges, architectural structures for crossing canals.

Then devote the second day to shopping. If you want to return home with original gifts, avoid the touristy Kalverstraat or Nieuwendijk: there are areas or shops less known among tourists that you cannot miss:

• de Bijenkorf, a luxurious department store in Amsterdam;
• Haarlemmerstraat/Haarlemmerdijk: the best shopping street in the Netherlands, located northwest of Central Station: you can find everything there, even special shops where you can buy gourmet goodies, always great to take home to friends or relatives;
• Negen Straatjes: this is an area of the city centre that translates as ‘the nine little streets’. Here you will find all kinds of shops, a huge choice in which to get lost among designers and small alternative shops.

At dinner time, choose a non-tourist restaurant to enjoy real local cuisine. If it’s winter, try stamppot, a Dutch dish with sausage meat and potatoes, or the soups, which are the highlight of Amsterdam. You can end the evening discovering the red light district, if only to admire a very different reality from what we are used to.

Third day

Your three-day tour of Amsterdam is coming to an end, with only one day left to go, but there is so much you can do in just a few hours. If it is open, you can devote the entire last day to Keukenhof, one of the most beautiful parks in Europe, where more than 7 million tulips bloom every spring.

Alternatively, you can quench your thirst for tulips in the city by visiting the Bloemenmarkt, the flower market, a veritable swarm of colours and scents. For a day of culture, there’s nothing better than visiting one of the museums you left aside on the first day, perhaps taking a picture of the now famous I Amsterdam sign in front of the Rijkmuseum.

Also interesting is a visit to the cheese market, which by now you will have tasted over and over again during your stay in the city: you will find all kinds, from the most seasoned to the freshest, from Edam to Alkamaar.

Before dinner, or before returning to the airport, relax in the Vondelpark, the city’s green lung, to end your three days in Amsterdam in the best possible way.