Category: Canals

One of Amsterdam’s most iconic features is the old city’s historic semi-concentric “belt” of canals.

A canal cruise is the most popular tourist attraction in Amsterdam.

Taking a walk along the picturesque canals is very popular as well.

And during some winters you can even ice skate the canals.

What you should know about the Canals of Amsterdam

Tip: read up on the canals before you go.

Discover what role the canals played in Amsterdam’s early city planning. See how the “canal belt” grew along with the city. And find out why the seventeenth century canal district in on the Unesco World Heritage list.

Trivia buffs will like this: if you want to cross a different bridge in Amsterdam every day, it would take you 3.5 years to do so.

A much sadder statistic: Yes, people do drown in the canals.

And you’ll never guess how many bicycles end up in the canals.

Amsterdam’s most popular tourist attraction: Canal cruise

Each year 5.5 million Amsterdam visitors take a canal cruise, making a boat tour of the canals the city’s most popular tourist attraction.

No visit to Amsterdam — also known as ‘Venice of the North’ — is complete without taking to the water, hands down the best way to see the city.

In fact, many people take more than one cruise: a daytime tour is a good introduction. A romantic candlelight cruise at night creates another lasting impression.

And then there are the many specialty tours: dinner cruises, cheese and wine tastings, combination boat tour and museum entrance… whatever floats your boat.