Car Rental Amsterdam

A quick guide to Amsterdam

Captivating sights hide around every corner in Amsterdam, the perfect place for a city-break. As the capital of the Netherlands, it’s well versed in welcoming visitors from across the globe, and offers a friendly welcome. The cobbled streets give way to bustling squares, the canals criss-cross the centre and the great Dutch artists have left their mark here too.

Whatever floats your boat

The heart of Amsterdam is its medieval Old Centre,enclosed by the Singel Canal. This part of the city is known as the Grachtengordel (Canal Ring) and is an endlessly fascinating filigree of waterways regularly punctuated by quaint humpback bridges and overlooked by streets of handsome seventeenth-century houses. For many tourists, this is the city’s main attraction. Wander along, taking in the cafes, restaurants and boutiques that line the streets. You can appreciate the beauty of this area even more by hopping onto one of the glass-topped cruise boats that ply the city’s waterways.

Act of remembrance

The Anne Frank Huis is where Anne Frank and her family were in hiding for two years until they were found during a Gestapo raid. The rooms the Franks lived in have been left much the same as they were during the war and, despite the number of visitors, provides a deeply moving and intimate tribute to their courage.

A treasure trove of art

Just beyond the Grachtengordel stands the Rijksmuseum,the country’s foremost art museum, with a fabulous collection of Dutch paintings. Pride of place goes to the collection of Rembrandtsbut the many other highlights include the paintings of Johannes Vermeer as well as some wonderful canvases by Frans Hals.

Vincent van Gogh is arguably the best known of all modern artists and a visit to the neighbouring Van Gogh Museum is a rich and evocative experience. It boasts the most complete collection of van Gogh’s work anywhere in the world, including the landmark Sunflowers from 1889, and a remarkable self-portrait.

Southern comforts

A short drive south from Amsterdam is Leiden, a beautiful university town with an ancient centre patterned by canals and full of fine old buildings. Perfect for a day spent exploring, Leiden is home to some quirky attractions which make for great stopping off points. Check out the Hortus Botanicus, the oldest ‘living museum’ in the Netherlands or see where science meets art at the Wall Formulae.

Less than half an hour further south is Den Haag (The Hague), an attractive city with a number of good museums and appealing restaurants. Leiden and Den Haag are only a short drive from the wide sandy beaches of the North Sea coast as well as the stunningly bright colours of Amsterdam’s legendary tulip fields, best experienced in all their rainbow glory in spring at the nearby Keukenhof gardens.

Northern exposure

North from Amsterdam stretches the province of Noord-Holland, a polder landscape of baize-green fields, flat as a billiard table, punctuated by the occasional farmhouse or windmill. The main highlight, the town of Haarlem, is only a short drive west of the capital. It’s a laid-back town with more than its fair share of Golden Age buildings and a fantastic art gallery. Get there, and everywhere else in the Netherlands, with car hire in Amsterdam.

Driving in and around Amsterdam

With quaint Dutch houses, pretty bridges arcing over the canals and a wealth of artistic sights, Amsterdam is an inviting city which appeals to visitors both old and new. Driving in Amsterdam is enjoyable, but it’s advisable to learn the rules of the road before you set off. Trams have right of way at intersections and, as in many European countries, traffic coming from the right at a junction has right of way unless otherwise indicated. Cycling is within Amsterdam’s DNA, so it’s best to look out for cyclists on the roads too.

Amsterdam is perfectly placed if you want to get out and see more of the Netherlands, will all roads seemingly leading to the capital. The roads and highways around the city are clearly sign-posted, so you’ll be able to navigate your way round relatively easy, with speed limits varying by area. Parking is often at a premium due to the compact size of the city, and some of the metered areas don’t allow coins – you’ll need to use a credit card to get a ticket. Our local teams can answer any questions you might have about parking in Amsterdam.

The A4 is the main access route for the south-west of the country, bringing the towns of Lieden, The Hague and Delft within reach. Haarlem is 35 minutes west along the A5, and from there the A9 takes you to Alkmaar and other places of interest in Noord-Holland. The A1 runs east from the city all the way to the German border and the A2 heads south east to Belgium, ideal if you’re planning a wider road trip in this part of Europe.