In this guide, I’m going to share with you How to Make the Most out of 24 Hours in Amsterdam!

Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands is such a fun, unique place. Very easy to fall in love with it.

Some friends and I spent roughly 24 hours here as our first stop on a trip through Europe. This city is one of my favorites, we made sure to fit in as much as possible!

The narrow houses, canal system, museums, artsy vibes, and little rules. There is a lot to explore, make the most out of these 24 hours, there’s little time to sleep!

I will tell you everything you should try and do while in the city in one full day to make the most out of your time; the “must sees”, restaurants to check out, where to stay, things to do and more. Lets dive right in!

How to Make the Most out of 24 Hours in Amsterdam

How to get to Amsterdam

Fly into Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, the airport is located pretty close to the city. You should take an Uber downtown and then rent a bike or walk everywhere.

I don’t recommend renting a car if you are only here for 24 hours, it’s best to see the city on foot, bike or boat!

Try to fly into Amsterdam from wherever you are coming from so that you land at night. Doing so, you can go right to your hotel and get a little sleep in and not waste any daylight!

Where to stay in Amsterdam

Stay at the Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. This hotel is convenient and clean. Located right outside the airport you will be nice and close for when you arrive and have to depart. Within walking distance. If you decide to stay at this hotel, you can easily take an Uber downtown then when you are ready to head back you can get another one to bring you back.

Things to do in Amsterdam

Explore the city of Amsterdam! Wear some comfy walking shoes and something you will be comfortable riding a bike in.

The historic, unique style buildings are fun to checkout while you walk around, so picturesque. Amsterdam offers a lot to do and see. There is the Anne Frank House and the Van Gogh Museum. These are truly amazing to visit, try and squeeze at least one of these into your day. You can most likely buy tickets the day of but to be safe go online and get some ahead of time.

Be sure to get to Jordaan! A trendy area with cool boutiques, beautiful narrow houses, healthy food options and great vibes.

Walk down the Red Light District while in Amsterdam, it’s just part of the experience. If you are coming from America this will be so unique for you, we have nothing like it.

Be sure to also check out a few “coffee shops” they are all over the place so it won’t be hard to find some.

The Canals

Get in the canal!! Either buy a ticket for a canal cruise or rent your own boat to cruise around in. This is a “must do”!

Plan this ahead of time and try to set it up to end your day with this, do it before dinner. A great time to go out and be on the water.

Being in the canals, cruising around is so much fun. You feel like you are really getting the true Amsterdam experience. You will get a totally different perspective of the city this way which is pretty cool. You’ll see other friendly people passing you waving, restaurants on the water and little house boats that people live in!

Snacks on the boat in the canals in Amsterdam

Cruising on a boat through the canals in Amsterdam

Food & Drink

Amsterdam offers countless fun bars and restaurants, something for everyone. Walk around town and whenever you get hungry or want to stop for a drink just pop into a place nearby that looks inviting.

Doing this worked out great, we found some fun places with nice staff and great food. There are very healthy options then some other fun places with crazy desserts and snacks. Some popular places to checkout are:

Know Before You Go

Amsterdam is a fun and unique place like nowhere else in the world!

The currency here is the Euro, the official language is Dutch but most people also speak English. The amount of people you will see riding bikes is unreal…nothing like it anywhere else. It can be a little overwhelming, just walk around if you aren’t into riding a bike in busy places.

The canal system is amazing, while you are there get on a boat! Amsterdam is one of the world’s safest cities and as a young woman, I felt that. The people here are friendly. The city can be affordable or expensive, just depends on what you do, where you stay, etc. but you can do it either way.

You will have SO much fun here in Amsterdam, it’s a really enjoyable city to explore. Bring a raincoat but dress light if you are here in the summer. The weather changes pretty fast, days might start off overcast and rainy but the sun will probably come out and it gets beautiful!

24 Hours

To make the most of your 24 hours here try and sleep as much as you can on the plane or the night before you visit. If you travel here in the summer (June especially) your days will be much longer, the sun is out for roughly 16 hours each day so you will have plenty of time to explore with the daylight!

Talk with your travel buddies before you arrive and figure out a plan of things you all definitely want to do/see while visiting. This way you can make it a point to fit those activities in the 24 hours. Book canal rides, museum tours and maybe even lunch reservations ahead of time if possible. Carry and purse or backpack with you and bring everything you need for the day that way you don’t have to go back to your hotel until the end of the day.