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Michael1104Hong Kong, China

Potential creator

Rising Star

Netherlands - First Impressions of Amsterdam

🇳🇱 Netherlands - First Impressions of Amsterdam Since this cruise departs from Rotterdam, and I’ve never been to the Netherlands before, I decided to fly in from South America and spend two extra days exploring. My friend, on the other hand, flew in from Hong Kong and arrived in the Netherlands the day before the cruise departure to meet up with me. I want to give a special shoutout to our amazing friends who helped take care of my friend all the way from Hong Kong to the Netherlands 🥹. Even though I had prepared all the necessary information and even made a bilingual conversation guide, my friend was still worried about getting lost while flying alone. Thankfully, with everyone’s help, my friend was able to meet up with me smoothly. --- ✈️ My One-Day Amsterdam Adventure As soon as I landed, I stored my luggage at AMS Airport (9€/24hr per item). As expected from Europe’s third-largest airport, it offers all the services you could need, and transportation is super convenient. Right outside the airport, I found the cheapest AH supermarket, where you can get delicious microwaveable pasta for just 2 euros—a true lifesaver for backpackers 😁. It was surprisingly tasty, and the variety of food rivals Hong Kong’s 7-11. I absolutely loved it. Initially, I planned to spend the night at the airport to save money, but the public area outside the restricted zone was too noisy, and I was exhausted after the long flight (back in my 20s, I could stay up all night and keep playing 😂). In the end, I booked the cheapest hostel at the last minute and luckily found a bed for 18€. Every Dutch backpacker I’ve met has complained about how bad the weather is in their country, but I was incredibly lucky to experience no rain in Amsterdam. The streets and alleys were filled with flowers, and I fell in love instantly ❤️. With limited time, I decided to casually stroll around the city center and then visit Zaanse Schans to see the windmill village and soak in the Dutch atmosphere. As for the major museums, I’ll save those for my next visit.

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Posted: Aug 19, 2025

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Zaanse Schans

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Zaanse Schans

✅Netherlands 🇳🇱 📍Amsterdam, Giethoorn, Zaanse Schans 1. People in this city love cycling and are incredibly skilled. Streets and alleyways have dedicated lanes, so be mindful of oncoming traffic when crossing the street, especially in the large area in front of Central Station. Pedestrians, bicycles, and trams all have their own dedicated lanes, so be careful to avoid crossing the wrong way. 2. Traffic lights in Amsterdam go red incredibly quickly. I'm not the only one who feels this way. Plus, the rapid, click-click-click sound means that if you're standing in front of the light and trying to cross, you'll definitely not have enough time to cross. Many times, I've seen the light turn green and tried to follow it, but it was too late and I had to wait for the next one. 3. The canal cruises in Amsterdam are truly amazing, but remember to choose the ones without roofs. I made the mistake of choosing a roofed one on my first day, and it was incredibly difficult to take photos. The advantage was that it sheltered me from the rain, but it was difficult to capture photos. The next day, I decided to take another canal cruise, opting for a roofless one. The boats were about the size of small boats that could accommodate up to 20 people. The price seemed to be around 23-25 euros. It's very convenient to pay as you go, and there are many options. This type of cruise is perfect for taking beautiful photos. Because I was afraid of the heat, I chose to go at 7:45 pm, when the sun was shining but not too hot, which made for beautiful photos. The boat rides are all one-hour long, and I highly recommend it—after all, this is a city built around canals. 4. Amsterdam charges a city tax on accommodations. You pay it when you check in, and it's 12% of the price of your stay. The more expensive your stay, the higher the tax. Since I had already paid for my accommodation, I only had to pay the city tax upon check-in. I paid 30.50 euros (for a three-night stay). I thought it was so expensive, considering it was only around 6-7 euros a night in Switzerland. I even confirmed with the staff if it was the city tax, and they said yes! I later checked online and found that city taxes in this country are calculated using a percentage. So, consider the price of your accommodation accordingly. 5. Giethoorn was my most anticipated stop in the Netherlands. I'd heard so much about its beauty. I also joined a local tour that day, which included hotel pickup and drop-off. We visited Giethoorn in the morning and the windmill village in the afternoon. We had lunch at a restaurant at the entrance to Giethoorn. The tour guide said that transportation to this area is difficult unless you drive, so joining a day tour is the most convenient. 6. The weather wasn't great when we arrived in Giethoorn that morning. Our guide, who also served as the boat driver, spoke with the cooperating operator before we boarded the boat. It was a light rain at first, but it was still beautiful. We also had group members take over the boating. We had to seize the opportunity to take photos, especially with a beautiful background. Everyone helped each other take photos, and be careful not to drop your phone. The hydrangeas were in bloom in July, and they were absolutely stunning. This is seasonal, so after that, Giethoorn would be just like any other village. After all, the flowers are truly stunning. 7. Towards the end of the trip, the weather cleared up, and the whole experience was absolutely stunning. We left early to sail, so we didn't have to worry about traffic. If we had sailed closer to noon, the river would have been clogged with boats, but when the weather cleared, it became incredibly beautiful. Afterwards, we had time to hike around Giethoorn, take photos, buy souvenirs, eat ice cream, and keep taking photos. It was a perfect time. 8. We went to the windmill village in the afternoon. It was quite crowded, but the village felt quite rural and spacious, so taking photos wasn't too difficult and would have been a nice souvenir, but we didn't pay to go inside the windmills. You can walk around the area and buy souvenirs from many shops. We even saw wooden shoes being made and tried cheese—quite a diverse selection. 9. And then... I encountered a pickpocket in the windmill village!!!! 😟😟😟 This was my first time encountering a pickpocket in Europe. Since the local tour group that day included young people around my age, we naturally joined in, helping take photos and chatting happily along the way. So, walking across the small bridge in the windmill village, it had just rained, so it was a bit crowded. Initially, my heel got stepped on (because it was so crowded, I figured I'd wipe it off after returning). 10. I was chatting with the young man, and a few seconds later, I heard the zipper of my backpack being unzipped (a very distinct sound, a swish). I immediately turned around and swung my bag forward. I yelled at him, "What are you doing?" The man behind me (from my photo, he was a white man, younger, maybe around 30), started playing dumb and pretending to drop something and looking for it. I asked him why he was pulling on my bag, but he feigned confusion and kept pretending to drop something. So I quickly checked my bag. Nothing was stolen. I noticed it within a split second of being unzipped, and since I had a thin jacket on top, my more important belongings were at the bottom, practically out of reach. So everyone should always be mindful of their belongings. It's true that walking with friends and chatting happily is the easiest way to be targeted, while being alone is less likely to be targeted. It was a close call, and I was definitely more careful on subsequent trips. In short, everyone should always be mindful of their belongings. 11. I stayed near Amsterdam Zuid Station. I highly recommend staying here. It's very conveniently connected to Central Station, and accommodations are relatively affordable. Even if you need to go to the airport, you can transfer directly to the train, which is super convenient. I also bought a 72-hour ticket. You can use the app to buy it by scanning a QR code, but I bought the physical ticket at the station counter. I highly recommend using a contactless (like EasyCard) QR code at the counter, as I saw many people struggling to scan the QR code on the app. #Netherlands #Europe #TravelRecommendations #TravelPlanning

Michael1104

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