Ah, Amsterdam. The city ever so famous for it’s… fault in our stars references … amongst other “legal” things … 😉
This was the first time I’ve been to the Netherlands, and having heard so much about it, I had very high expectations going. And I’ve got to say, man, it did not disappoint. The artistic heritage that the city captures, with the canals and narrow housing down every alleyway, was just like how the movies pictured it to be. Needless to say, it was truly breath-taking (even if the air smelt like weed 70% of the time).
We chose specifically to go during the month of April because the world famous tulip festival was being held then as it was the season for the tulips to be at full bloom. We had a little bit of a hiccup in the beginning as the weather forecast seemed to predict that it would be cold and gloomy for the entire 3 days we were there, so whilst planning our itinerary, we decided to put off the tulip festival until our last day there and prayed for mother nature to miraculously change her mind.
TOP TIP #1: ALWAYS HAVE A LIST/ITINERARY OF ALL THE PLACES YOU WANT TO VISIT BEFOREHAND. Research all the main tourist attractions or places you want to hit up and list them down. If you don’t already know me, I am a VERY VERY organized freak (slight hint of OCD) so Im the type of person who NEEDS to do a ton of planning beforehand. In order to make the holiday smoother, I like to see whereabouts the attractions I want to hit up are and whether there are any other places/sights nearby. This way, you can plan to see all the ones close by each other on one day, and the ones further away on a separate day in order to save transport cost by going back and forth. AND it also save a whole ton of time!
DAY 1:
Our flight from Prague to Amsterdam arrived pretty late in the afternoon. (If you haven’t already read my Prague blog post, click here). It took a while to find our hostel as it was quite hidden. We made the mistake of booking the cheapest hostel we could find, and although it wasn’t THAT bad, I wished we would’ve gone with an AirBnB instead. It was… quite the experience (to say the least ) to stay in a very tight, confined room with 8 people in 4 bunkbeds. AND to make it more fun, we had to share ONE shower and a bathroom with 40 other strangers on the same floor. For me, I was very uneasy about this because sharing a shower & bathroom with COMPLETE STRANGERS and the thought of seeing dirt or hair particles on the walls or sink.. EUUGGHHH *shudders* lets move on.
TOP TIP #2: DO NOT ALWAYS PICK THE CHEAPEST OPTION WHEN IT COMES TO ACCOMODATION. CHECK THOROUGHLY FIRST. We regretted passing up the opportunity to stay in a boat house AirBnB! It was literally a house, on a boat, ON THE SIDE OF THE CANAL! It would’ve been such a cool experience, and the price was not far off from the hostel we stayed in, but for some reason we ended up going with the hostel instead. *facepalm*
Anyway, we spent the rest of the afternoon wandering through the streets of Amsterdam and exploring (A.K.A. getting lost) in the alleyways of canals.
We also went to see the Red Light District (which I was completely unaware of its existence and refused to believe it until I saw it with my own eyes) and it was… interesting … to say the least hahaha! No photos taken for obvious reasons (:
FUN FACT: Also I found out that “coffee shops” in Amsterdam aren’t actually COFFEE SHOPS where you sit down for a nice cup of coffee. Instead, it’s a place to buy marijuana or sit down for a nice “brownie” (if you know what I mean). Since it is legal to buy marijuana in Amsterdam, these coffeeshops are legit everywhere, around every corner so you really can’t miss them (if not, just follow the smell which trust me, it’s not that pleasant).
DAY 2:
So on this day, we decided to go to Zaanse Schans which is a gorgeous Dutch windmill village on the outskirts of Amsterdam. We took a train down, and then walked a few miles until we reached. It would’ve been easier to cycle but since I am a failure in life and can’t ride a bike, it wasn’t an option for me 😦
Anyways, we underestimated the weather and for some reason didn’t take into account that it would obviously be windy and cold in a WINDmill area, so our dumb selves were freezing our butts off the entire time. But it was so worth it.
After that, we decided to head back to the city centre and roam around the main tourist attractions like Rijksmuseum and the infamous “IAMSTERDAM” sign. We then did a bit of souvenir shopping and went to a carnival for a bit.
I deeply regret not taking more photos of the city centre, but I was actually freezing my butt off and my hands were frozen cold so holding a camera was just a struggle 😦
TOP TIP #3: CHECK THE WEATHER FORECAST BEFOREHAND AND PACK ACCORDINGLY.
DAY 3:
Now this was one of the main reason why we came to Amsterdam: THE TULIP FESTIVAL! We were all so so so pumped for this but the only thing worrying us was the weather! It was forecasted to be rainy and gloomy so we prayed so so hard the night before, and MOTHER NATURE CAME THROUGH! When we woke up, it was such a beautiful (yet cold) sunny day!
TOP TIP #4: BOOK TRANSPORT AND ENTRANCE TICKETS TOGETHER IF YOU ARE GOING TO GO TO KEUKENHOFF (TULIP GARDENS). We made the mistake of only booking the entrance tickets beforehand and thought we could make our own way there but it turned out to be more hassle than it was worth. We had to go all the way to the airport to buy a bus ticket to Keukenhoff, whereas we could’ve gotten the package that included transports with the tickets and it would’ve worked out cheaper and more convenient too.
It was rainbow paradise and I truly felt like I went died and went to heaven!
This was truly the highlight of my trip to Amsterdam. If you ever get a chance, I would HIGHLY recommend going to the tulip festival, its an experience you DO NOT want to miss!
So that’s about it for my trip to Amsterdam! Thanks for reading and please follow for more ❤
-Brenda
I’ve always wanted to go here, it looks so beautiful. These photos are amazing!
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Aww thank you!! ❤ Yess you really should go, I promise you, you won't regret it!! 😀
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Such a beautiful place…this is definitely going in my travel bucket list!
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Yess! Definitely! I’m so excited for you 😀
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Another awesome blog with out-of-the-world photography! Brava, Bren. The tulip festival looks amazing. *-*
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Ahhh! Thank you so much Dizma! ❤ You've made my entire day! :')
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Wow…I wish I could travel to Amsterdam too 🙂
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You definitely should! 🙂
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I’ve only seen Amsterdam in movies. Such beautiful place. Would love to go there someday.
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Yesss! It really lives up to the expectations they portray in the movies! ☺️
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Yes. ☺
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It looks so beautiful and uhh that washroom sharing I was thinking about it while reading whole blog, I my self have experienced that and yes I have to say let’s move on.
The best thing is that you enjoyed and place took my heart ❤
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HAHAHAHA exactly! It’s uh.. quite the experience, I don’t know how to put it in words 😂
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I know. I wish to travel with my washroom every where hahaha
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Amazing beautiful place! I seriously wish I could visit!!☺
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Yess! You really must one day! ❤️
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Beautiful photos. I really love Amsterdam.
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Aww thank you!! It’s truly such a beautiful country! ❤️
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Hi Bren, I’ve nominated you for the Mystery Blogger Award which you can check it out here.
https://yuvisbuzz.wordpress.com/2017/09/11/the-mystery-blogger-and-the-active-blogger-award/
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Oh wow! Such an honour! Thanks so much ❤️
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Very nice, I went last fall and enjoyed my time there as well. I thought it funny that the “Fault in Our Stars” bench was labeled as such on Goggle Maps.
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Ahahaha I know right! Guess it made such a big impact that it made it on Google Maps! :p
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Which I just find facinating.
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The tulip festival looks beautiful. Nice photos! Looks like you guys had a lot of fun.
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Hehehe we did! Thanks hun!
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Makes me want to travel asap
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hehe ikr! looking back at these photos gives me major wanderlust vibes! 😦
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Omg all of these photos are amaaaazing! Amsterdam is a beautiful place, I’ve been once before and I want to go again but visit more places there! Loved this blog hun😘
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Ahh! Thanks so much ❤️ yess Amsterdam is one of those places you can’t get enough of!
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This looks so incredibly beautiful!! I’ve always wanted to visit Amsterdam, sounds like you had an amazing time. So glad I stumbled across your blog x
Abby – http://www.seafoaming.com
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Aw thanks so much hun! I hope you get a chance to visit one day! 💕
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I liked the way you put pics and write content about that place . I think this blog is awesome
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Awww thanks so much!! Truly means a lot !
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beautiful depiction of the a lovely place with these wonderful pictures……
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Thanks so so much! ❤
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Been always dreamed of going to Amsterdam even before TFIOS. Thanks for recommending tulips festival 🙂
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Same! TFIOS just made it seem more unreal, but it certainly lived up to its expectations! 😀 I hope you get a chance to go to the tulip festival one day! ❤
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LOOKS GORGEOUS. Would love to go someday! X
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Def worth the trip there! 🙂
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Great post!
Thanks for sharing 😀
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I love your tips throughout the blog! Beautiful photos. I hope I can make it out to Europe sometime soon!
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Ahh! Thanks so much!! Yesss! Europe is like a dream! Let me know if you end up going 🙂
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I love this blog post! It is so interesting to see Amsterdam through the eyes of a tourist (I’m not really a big fan of Amsterdam haha) Oh and we call the shoes ”Klompen”! 😀
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Haha aww thats so sweet! I totally get you though, I find it so interesting seeing my home country, Malaysia, in the eyes of a tourist too! 😀 OH! KLOMPEN! THANK YOU! I’ve been wondering what they’ve been called for the longest time hahah!
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Amsterdam is for sure my dream city to visit! Your photos of the tulips are amazing so hopefully I’ll get to see them someday!
Great blog!
kenzie // Kenzieblogslife.wordpress.com
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Aww thank you so so much! ❤ I hope you get to see them someday too! It's even more beautiful in real life! 😀
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This makes me want to book a flight tomorrow! Amsterdam just went to the top of my bucket list I think! You’re writing style is lovely 🙂
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This makes me so happy! Ahh that means so much thank you! ❤️
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I’m going to Amsterdam next April HAHA
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Omg be sure to go to the tulip festival!!
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This post is making me wanna go there ☺️
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I’ve been wanting to go to Amsterdam for the longest time and this post just got me even more excited to go one day! Looks like you had an incredible time- the photos turned out amazing. Much love xx Loved this post!
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Awww thank you so much!! I really hope you do go, you’ll sure have a blast! 🙆🏻
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You are literally living my dream! Fault in Our Stars is my favorite book ever! Ansel is so dreamy! And that flower garden is so beautiful!
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Omg ikr! I legit fangirled the whole time I was there,not gonna lie! 😭❤️
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Hi,
Get all these comments! You have built am engaged community. Congratulations! I almost became a travel blogger since I travel often.
I have been to Amsterdam and the red light district.
I met you at Naya’s blog party. I came to meet you.
Maybe you can check out my blog if you need any blogging tips. That’s what I write about. I also have blog parties like Naya.
Janice
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Aww thank you so much ❤️ will definitely check out your blog now 🙂
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I wondered how long it took you to upload all these photos. Your effort shows.
Janice
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Omg this means so much! It did take me a while to screen through and edit the photos then upload them! Thanks so much for recognizing my efforts :’)
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It definitly looks like it would be all what you imagined and expected. That used to be my #1 place to visit until life got busy. The netherlands looks very artistic and unique.
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Aww for sure! I hope you get to go back one day when life calms down a bit 😀
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Stunning photos as usual. I’ve only been to Amsterdam but your blog post has made me wish I could go back again soon! Looks like there’s so much more to see! 😊
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Aww Tiff ❤ You make my heart so fluffy whenever I see your name on my notification ! You are actually my inspiration heheh ❤
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And you are mine! Great (travel) minds think alike then clearly! 😀
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Ooooohhhhh nice bren😍😍 one day i wish I’ll be on your blog with you ☺️
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YOONY ❤️ when we go on our reunion trip!!!
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This is awesome! Love your photos too! I am going to Amsterdam for the first time next month so this post is helpful for me too. It makes me want to go right now 🙂
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I hope you have a fabulous time!! 💞💞
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The place is so colorful
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Nicely captured
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I’ve just observed Amsterdam in motion pictures. Such wonderful place. Would love to go there sometime in the future.
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Omg you def should find time to go!! It’s a once in a lifetime adventure hehehe
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Beautiful article! You really had good weather! When I visited Amstedam, 8 years ago already, we stayed 4 days, and was raining all the time. But I must give it a try again, and also get to Zansee Schans. It’s like a movie set, right?
Would love to share inspiration and have your follow and support as you can count on mine.
Julia
https://egodiary.com/2017/09/21/veliko-tarnovo-the-town-of-the-kings/
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Oh no! Im so sorry the weather was not on your side when you visited! But yes Zansee Schans was definitely like a movie set! I hope you get the chance to go visit again! ❤
Love your blog too, def giving it a follow!
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Your photos are awesome!!!
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Aww thank you!!!
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Great pictures! We also went to Amsterdam last April for the tulips and definitely learnt how important it is to layer as the weather is so capricious.
https://2weekendwanderers.com
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Omg definitely! The wind was absolutely insane haha!
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Great photos
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Thanksss 💕
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you took such amazing photos in Amsterdam, well done 🙂 greetings from Lisbon, PedroL
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