There are an increasing number of people based in the UK choosing to spend the festive period abroad, and naturally Amsterdam is one of the most popular destinations. The city generates a superb atmosphere over the Christmas period - it's unique architecture, great shops, ice rink and Christmas market all combine to make it an obvious choice for a festive short break.
Here are some great shots of an atmosheric Amsterdam at Christmas time:
Pretty impressive we think you'll agree!
Ferry company DFDS Seaways offer a number of specially tailored festive breaks to Amsterdam, amongst other cheap European ferry bookings.
Just a quick note to point you in the direction of a great article over at The Independent on the Van Gogh Museum. As we have mentioned before it is a must visit for any trip to Amsterdam - this article will hopefully give you another spurt of inspiration to visit ASAP.
The footballing gods have once again paired the two mighty nations of Holland and Scotland together in a vital football match. No doubt the thousands of Dutch heading over to Scotland will ensure a superb atmosphere - and we would make a plea to the Dutch masters to be a little lenient towards us Scots (not that we're desperate or anything) - they've won the group at a canter and have nothing to play for so why not just let us go through to the Play-Offs?
**UPDATE**
By a massive stroke of good luck i managed to get to the game on Wednesday night - it was a fantastic night despite the result. The atmosphere was amazing and im sure the Dutch supporters enjoyed themselves, hopefully Scotland will get some better luck in the next campaign.
One of the best ways to travel to the Netherlands is by ferry from England to Holland. Holland has so much to offer and we are not just talking about Amsterdam, in this we are going to shift our attention to a different Amsterdam – a miniature one.
The world famous city of Madurodam is an hour’s drive away is from Amsterdam, the 1:25 scaled city is a work of art and a must visit if you are in Holland. It has all the Dutch landmarks in the finest detail and a great way to familiarize yourself with popular landmarks and buildings of interest, from Schiphol Airport to the famous cheese market, The Hague to Dam Square, turning windmills to planes landing at the airport, This is a great day out for all the family and one that will be remembered for life.
AFC Ajax where founded in 1900, after joining the Dutch League in 1901 they struggled in the second division for ten years before winning promotion to the Dutch first division in 1911 season, the fairytale story of Ajax did not start here as they were demoted back to the second division three years later, this was the first and last time they would ever leave the Dutch top flight in their 109 year history. Hard to believe that they came from the second division in the first place!
Since they won the first ever Dutch National Championship way back in 1918 – Ajax have dominated the top end of the Dutch league whilst producing some fine world class players along the way. It was their legendary trainer Jack Reynolds that set the foundations of the now world renowned Ajax youth training camp.
The Amsterdam outfit has now won a staggering 29 league titles. In 1961 they had their first taste of European experience by playing in the Cup Winners’ Cup, ten years later they had their hands on the trophy and failed to give it back for an astonishing three seasons as the romped to glory in Holland, Europe and the World as most of the players in the team tasted world cup success in 1972 along with the legendary Johan Cruijff.
AFC Ajax has produced some of the best players in the world dating back to the 1930’s. With every passing decade there is another list of legendary players that have taken the football world by storm. Ajax amongst other big clubs from smaller countries now find themselves in a precarious position - knowing they can’t compete financially against the other big clubs from the major European Leagues, Ajax must be the best prepared club outside the major leagues in Europe knowing that they can produce world class players to play on their pitch whilst selling one or two every year if need be to balance the books.
Time Out has always been a valuable source of information for travellers across the world. They have achieved their ubuiqity thanks to their concise and well written guide books to the worlds main tourist attractions.
Thankfully they now have a section dedicated to Amsterdam, and amongst the myriad of information available on the site, they have published an excellent list of "20 great things to do in Amsterdam" - here are the main pints, for more on each you can read the full article here....
1. Delve into Amsterdam's colourful past 2. Step into the postcard city 3. Lose yourself in a maze of canals 4. Picnic with the locals 5. Get on your bike 6. Eat a raw herring 7. Take a sneaky peek in the Red Light district 8. Gaze at the Old Masters of the Rijksmuseum 9. Skate like a dream in Amsterdam 10. Mix with Moderns at the Stedelijk Museum 11. Have a good rummage at flea markets 12. Hit the streets to see cutting-edge art 13. Spice things up with an Indonesian 14. Unlock the city's secret garden 15. Visit the home of the diarist Anne Frank 16. Drink as the Dutch do 17. Jam up the volume 18. Move with the music 19. Discover the art of worship 20. Take a snapshot of the art scene in Jordaan
We couldn't have done much better ourself!
You can get a daily ferry to Amsterdam from Newcastle in the UK. We would highly recommend you visit!
If you are looking to go to Amsterdam and want to join in some local calibrations then you have to go on Queens’s day, the Dutch celebrate the birthday of the Queen mother but in reality they use it as an excuse to party hard, any old excuse.
The best cities to stay at whilst celebrating Queens day is the Hague, Rotterdam and off course Amsterdam, although the hole of the Netherlands celebrate this occasion these cities have a special atmosphere during this spectacular party.
In particular Amsterdam has something special going with an estimated ¾ of million people coming into the city to party, many of whom wisely travel in by train. In the city centre hot spots like Leidseplein, Spui, Rembrandtplein, Damrak, Rokin and Dam you will find a great atmosphere with everybody dressed and partying in orange.
Also on Queens’s day you will find that all the street trade is unregulated so it makes it a good day for some second hand shopping, and in Vondelpark all the kids’ show of their business expertise by offering a wide variety of attractions.
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