The Netherlands is small enough that most day trips out of Amsterdam are back before dinner. Windmills are twenty minutes away, the North Sea forty, and the bulb fields an hour. The one that needs planning is the Keukenhof, which is only open for about eight weeks in spring and sells out.
Where you can get to and back in a day
| Destination | Travel time from Amsterdam | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Zaanse Schans | 20 minutes by train to Zaandijk Zaanse Schans | Working windmills, wooden houses and a cheese farm on the Zaan, the closest windmills to the city |
| Volendam and Marken | 35 minutes by bus from Amsterdam Noord | Two former fishing villages on the IJsselmeer, connected to each other by a small ferry in summer |
| Haarlem | 15 minutes by train | A smaller version of Amsterdam with the same architecture and a fraction of the crowds |
| Zandvoort | 30 minutes by train | The nearest North Sea beach, with a station on the sand |
| The Keukenhof | About 1 hour by coach, spring only | Seven million bulbs in a park near Lisse, open roughly eight weeks a year |
| Utrecht | 30 minutes by train | Canals with wharf cellars at water level, a completely different canal city |
| The Efteling | About 1 hour 30 by train and bus | The largest theme park in the Netherlands, built around fairy tales |
| Rotterdam | 40 minutes by train | Modern architecture and a working port, the opposite of Amsterdam in every way |
The seasonal one
The Keukenhof opens only in spring, for roughly eight weeks from late March to mid-May, and it is the single most oversubscribed day trip in the Netherlands. Coaches leave from several points in Amsterdam, including Amsterdam Noord, and combined coach-and-entry tickets sell out weeks in advance in peak bloom. If you are visiting in April and want to see it, book that before you book anything else on this site.
Before you leave the city
| Neighbourhood | What you find there |
|---|---|
| The Red Light District | The oldest part of the city, built around two canals, five minutes from Centraal Station |
| The Nine Streets | Nine short streets crossing four canals: independent shops, cafes and 140 listed buildings |
| The Jordaan | The former workers’ quarter west of the Prinsengracht, with markets and hidden courtyards |
| Museumplein | The museum square: Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh, Stedelijk, Moco and the Concertgebouw |
| The Kalverstraat | The main shopping street, from Dam Square to the Munttoren |
Getting to the departure points
| Route | What it does |
|---|---|
| Tram line 2 | Centraal Station to the Museumplein across the canal belt in fifteen minutes |
| Metro line 52 | The blue line, under the old city from Noord to Zuid, with a free archaeological display at Rokin |
| Map of the canal district | How the four canals, the neighbourhoods and the tram routes fit together |
Booking a day trip
For destinations reachable by train, a regional travel ticket is usually cheaper than separate fares and covers the buses at the other end.
- Amsterdam & Region Travel Ticket — covers regional buses and trains to Zaanse Schans, Volendam, Marken and Zandvoort.
- Amsterdam Travel Ticket — adds the airport train, useful on an arrival or departure day.
- Go City Amsterdam — bundles city attractions with some of the excursions.
Zaanse Schans for windmills in twenty minutes, Volendam and Marken in thirty-five, Haarlem in fifteen, Zandvoort beach in thirty, Utrecht and Rotterdam in half an hour and forty minutes, and the Keukenhof in about an hour by coach in spring.
Only in spring, for roughly eight weeks from late March to mid-May. It is closed the rest of the year. Combined coach and entry tickets from Amsterdam sell out weeks ahead during peak bloom in April.
Take the train from Centraal Station to Zaandijk Zaanse Schans, about twenty minutes, then walk ten minutes. It is the cheapest and fastest way and needs no tour.
Rarely. Almost everything on this page is reachable by scheduled train or bus, and a regional travel ticket covers both. Tours are worth it for the Keukenhof, where the coach solves the parking, and for combining Volendam and Marken in one day.
Zaanse Schans if you want the postcard, Haarlem if you want a town rather than an attraction. Zaanse Schans is twenty minutes away and busy by eleven; go early and you will have the windmills to yourself for an hour.
More to do
- Everything to do — back inside the city.
- Metro line 52 — the line to Amsterdam Noord, where several coaches leave from.
- Canal cruises — for the days you stay put.
More on our own pages: the Go City all-inclusive pass · the Amsterdam & Region Travel Ticket
