Amsterdam, Netherlands: How To Get There, Where To Stay, What To See, Where To Shop, Where To Eat...

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Female travelers: Are women safe in Amsterdam?

Amsterdam Tourist Information • Posted: August 26, 2007

Amsterdam is a safe city for women of all ages traveling alone or together.

There is very little harassment in the streets or elsewhere. Incidents do occur, though. As everywhere, it is best to observe normal safety precautions: avoid walking alone in poorly lit or unpopulated areas.

Public transport is busy at all times of the day and night. In buses most people prefer to sit in the front of the bus. The same is true for trams. Some trams also have on-board conductors in a booth toward the rear of the tram.

Many women ride their bikes even at night.

Women can and do visit the Red Light District, but most prefer to do so with one or more friends. Women walking by themselves, particularly at night time, may be mistaken as ‘working girls.’ That said, the Red Light District is a residential area that is home to, and visited by, women of all ages.

It is best to avoid eye-contact with obvious boors and bores, as well as with junks.

Hostels

Do not find accommodation via the so-called ‘hotel runners’ at Central Station. You never know where you end up staying, what you end up paying, and who you will be sharing your room or bed with.

Most youth hostels have coed dorms and shared showers — and some hostels, such as the Flying Pig even have double beds (yes, two people to a bed).

Some hostels offer female-only dorms during the summer months. Christian Youth Hostel The Shelter has female-only dorms year round. Others have private rooms available. Observe normal safety precautions.

Clothes and Nudity

In Amsterdam you wear what you like. It’s OK to wear shorts, short skirts, revealing tops, etcetera.

In the parks, at swimming pools, and in semi-public areas such as gardens, balconies and rooftop decks, women do go topless. At places like Vondelpark it is not unusual to see young women sunbathe in just their bra and panties during their lunch break. Harassment is rare.

Recommended Books

• Safety and Security for Women Who Travel

This book equips women with a cache of valuable advice on how to gain awareness and stay centered in all situations to enjoy the pleasures, not the pitfalls, of travel. Revised and updated with new chapters and expanded information, the collection covers how to spot scam artists, choose safe travel companions, dress safely, employ trustworthy guides, and deal with hotel registration. Also included are wise suggestions on what to pack, such as extra rubber doorstops and copies of documents.

• Gutsy Women: More Travel Tips and Wisdom for the Road

The author has written a book packed so full of valuable information and wisdom that every woman who travels anywhere should read it over and over again. Many of the tips are just as valid when applied to domestic travel as to travel in foreign lands.

Some of the topics are safety and security (TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS is her mantra), women traveling together, health and hygiene, keeping in touch, bargaining, tipping, packing.

• Whose Panties are These? More Misadventures from Funny Women on the Road

The best travel stories often hatch when things go completely wrong, and this second title in a series of women’s travel humor capitalizes on that phenomenon with more sidesplitting stories of female misadventure around the world.