I’ve always wanted to go to Amsterdam for a number of years but the timing never seemed to be right. Twice going with a friend and the other with an Ex-girlfriend, both fell through. There were times when I was ready to go and had the money but they didn’t and vice versa. The best option I would suggest for anyone wanting to travel with friends is to plan well In advance and to pick a time frame that would suit everyone going. Life lesson is: you learn from your mistakes.
I am currently a college student living in a student house with 8 other people and it’s great fun, I’m very lucky to have got roommates that I like and more so that I have actually become very good friends with. We get on so well in fact that we decided to go on a trip together to none other than the famous Amsterdam for 4 days. Our dates were set for mid-January and most of my roommates were on board with only 3 pulling out due to timing and money constraints, while my best friend surprised me by saying he will also go too, as it was close to his birthday and his parents said they would treat him as a birthday present.
I had a few expectations of what it would be like over there and what I wanted to see & do but it didn’t work out the way I thought. I knew it was going to be cold, it was going to be busy, that it was going to be an adventure and that the buildings were going to be very old and beautiful looking and so, there was no surprise there. I didn’t have many expectations before going over other than what I wanted to do and experience, which was a number of things such as the Van Gogh Museum, Ann- Franks house, the Heineken Experience, a canal ride through the city, the zoo and the history of Amsterdam. The only thing we did was the Heineken Experience and lots of coffee shops, unfortunately. I’m not saying I didn’t enjoy myself because I did immensely, but I wish we had a proper plan set in place for us to do things each day that we were there – which I recommend everyone else doing before visiting either Amsterdam or any other place for that matter!
I regret not getting the Iamsterdam card which gives you access to many attractions and free transportation around the city, I feel if we all had it we definitely would have made use of it and would have got more out of the experience. The main factor for everyone was money and they didn’t feel comfortable paying 70 odd euro for a card that they may or may not use (warning: the city centre is very expensive). Another thing is if you’re in a big group it can be difficult for everyone to agree on the same thing, like even something simple as getting food was a challenge! I highly recommend making a daily budget before going as well. This also ties in well when planning what you’re going to do during your stay.
The Heineken experience was actually pretty good, a bit overpriced but was still very cool and interesting. The only thing that annoyed me was the two free drinks they say you get at the end which wasn’t even bottles or pints, it was two small glasses of Heineken but to be fair it was the nicest Heineken I ever tasted compared to drinking it in Ireland or any other country I’ve had it in and plus you got to drink on the balcony overlooking the city. One of the things Amsterdam is famous for is its coffee shops which I thought were so cool because I never saw the likes of it before. After visiting a good amount of shops, I quickly started to notice that they were all very small and always packed so we almost never got a seat and had to leave after purchasing our legal herbs.
Another thing Amsterdam is notorious for is the Red Light District. We were there every day, but not what you think, our hostel was situated 2 mins from the area and we walked through it day & night. Although it was almost dead during the day. At night, the area becomes awash with drunk, gawking tourists moving slowly down the street as they stare at the girls in the window while going from bar to bar and coffeeshop to coffeeshop. It’s a place to see and experience for a very brief time.
All in all, I enjoyed my time there tremendously but I wish I saw & did more things. I love the culture over there, as everyone is so cool and relaxed but at the same time, it’s a bustling city (watch out for those bikes!). The old style buildings are a treat to look at and the many canals are amazing to walk along (Fun Fact: did you know Amsterdam has more canals than Venice?). Amsterdam has a lot to offer and you can’t expect to do everything in a few days (you probably could do a better job than we did though!), I feel like it won’t be the last I see of Amsterdam for many years to come as it truly is a spectacular city to visit.
