Hi there, my name is Sandra and Amsterdam is the city where I was born. In my opinion, this city is amazing! We have so many good restaurants from all around the world, beautiful museums, romantic canals, city parks, a world famous concert hall etc. And the great thing about Amsterdam is that it is a really small city. It actually is a big village compared to other cities in the world.
I have been a host to many people staying at my apartment and they always told me that they loved their stay in Amsterdam so much thanks to all my recommendations. After receiving so much positive feedback I decided I want to share all these cool places with the rest of the world.
When I travel myself (I have been to many places all around the globe) I love to end up at those special places that are not stuffed with tourists, but where I will always remember that wonderful dish that was prepared with so much love, or where the staff just made me feel so welcome that I spent all day or night at that specific place. I hope that my recommendations will contribute to your unique experiences in this beautiful city.
Until January 1st 2017, you can find a pop-up bar at Westerpark, Mooie Boules Bar, where you can play jeu de boules with your friends. The perfect entertainment on a rainy day or night. If you don’t feel like actually playing, you can enjoy the (live) music while having some French food or cocktails and just watch all the hipsters. On Friday and Saturday night there are open until 3am. No entrance fee. http://www.mooieboules.nl
From November 3rd to November 5th, you can taste an endless amount of wines at De Hallen Studio’s. More than 150 wines are served by the winegrowers themselves who will tell you everything about the wines they produce. The bar will open on Thursday at 5pm. The entrance fee is E7,50, including a glass of wine. More information and tickets: https://www.grapedistrict.nl/degrootstewijnbar
On an old marine wharf in the city center of Amsterdam a new brewery has opened: Homeland Brewery. The greatest thing about this brewery is that it hasn’t been discovered by tourists yet! Its interior is not fancy: with its vinyl floor and old furniture it rather looks like a canteen in a retirement home, but that’s exactly what makes this brewery so charming. The beers they produce are pale ale and spelt beer. In summer you can sit outside on the terrace and you will have a lovely view over the historic centre and port of Amsterdam. http://www.homeland-brewery.nl
Foto: Sandra Nicolai
Again we have a specialty beer festival in Amsterdam, the 2nd edition of BierWest at Rembrandtpark. On Saturday you can visit the Festival edition (18 years and older), on Sunday the Family edition (kids welcome as well). There will be artists, food (burgers, steaks, pizzas, oysters), games and of course many, many specialty beers from national and international breweries. Only in Amsterdam, we already have about 35 breweries! Specialty beers are a real trend in our city; people are willing to pay more for a beer, as long as it is a beer with a story. This is a good chance to taste a couple of beers that are brewed locally. More information and tickets: http://www.bierfestival.amsterdam/eng
This weekend you can visit the Unseen photo fair at Westergasfabriek. It is an annual fair and festival founded by Foam Fotografiemusem. More than 50 galleries from all over the world will exhibit and they focus on new photography and the latest developments. There wil be a book market and book presentations as well. More information and tickets: https://www.unseenamsterdam.com
From October 8th 2016 until February 26th 2017 you can see different kind of bags carried by royals at Hendrikje Museum of Bags. Royals used to wear different outfits for every occasion, always including a matching bag. Some of these bags became very popular, like Grace Kelly’s Kelly-bag (from the fashion house Hermès). The exhibition includes bags of Queen Elizabeth, Empress Sisi, Princess Grace and the Dutch royal family. Even our Queen Máxima contributed to the exhibition by selecting three bags of our former Queen Juliana. More information: http://tassenmuseum.nl/en/archief-tentoonstellingen/exhibition-royal-bags/
On Saturday October 15th and Sunday October 16th, a huge international sushi festival will take place in The Kromhouthal in Amsterdam. Of course you can eat tons of sushi, but there will be workshops and shiatsu massages as well. The tickets for the first day (Saturday) are already sold out, so if you want to join the festival be quick and order them online: http://sushi-festival.com
From August 26th to 28th, the history of the neighbourhood De Jordaan is celebrated. There will be different stages where you can listen to typical Dutch folk music. No need to buy tickets as the event is free of charge. http://www.jordaanfestival.nl, for the exact location, click here
We ‘Amsterdammers‘ (people that live in Amsterdam) just love De Parade. It is a theatre festival that travels through The Netherlands. It consists of colourful tents, restaurants (really good food!), bars and terraces. It is an experience for everyone: during the day you will find families with kids, during the evening young people will meet up and enjoy good food, go to a theatre play or dance performance and end the night drinking wine on a terrace. This year, the festival will be in Amsterdam from August 12th to August 28th (at Martin Luther Kingpark). Open daily until 1am and on Fridays and Saturdays until 2am. More information: http://www.deparade.nl/ams/english/
If you’re hung over the day after the Canal Parade, there is good news: go to Dok Amsterdam and some delicious steaks will be waiting for you at the Amsterdam BBQ Festival. There will be several BBQ food stands, and even if you are a veggie it will be worth a visit as they have vegetarian burgers as well. On August 7th, from 3pm to 11pm, free entrance.