Showing posts with label amsterdam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label amsterdam. Show all posts
For our last night in Amsterdam (and the last night of our trip, in fact), a visit to a swanky rooftop bar for a drink seemed like the only appropriate thing to do. A quick Google Maps search led me to find 'W Lounge', which happened to be just down the road from where we were and we certainly weren't let down. Visiting A Rooftop Bar In Amsterdam - W Lounge Review
The W Lounge is part of the W Hotel owned by Marriott, and oh my, is it nice. Also, handy tip, the hotel is actually spread across two buildings. The bar is in the one with the glittery 'W' outside of it. (We learned this the hard way after we tried to take the lift up to the bar in the wrong building and had a quick tour of the pretty luxurious hotel lobby and lift). We didn't reserve a table but were still able to sit inside without any sort of wait. The outside area was full (unsurprisingly on a sunny evening) but the indoor area was just as nice and the views were still great. There was a DJ playing music inside and I can only imagine how great the atmosphere gets as the night goes on. As for prices, Elliot and I both had a beer, I had a Heineken and he had an IPA and we paid a grand total of €16.50 for the two. Now, I know that sounds a lot out of context, but for a prime view of Amsterdam and in one of the swankiest bars, I don't think that's too bad at all. The cocktails were about €22 each, so certainly a little pricier than the majority of the other bars in the area.The only thing to note is that tracking someone down to pay the bill was a bit of a faff. If I'd spent €100 on cocktails that evening, I'd definitely have been expecting better. But, as we were only in there for a quick beer, it really wasn't the end of the world.So, if you're looking for a rooftop bar in Amsterdam then I highly recommend checking out W Lounge. You don't need to be staying at the hotel to visit and it's right behind Dam, so couldn't be any more central. I think you can also pay to use their small rooftop pool as a guest too. (Granted, it's very small and more somewhere to sit in the water rather than hit your weekly lengths target).
Cheers to holidays, sunny evenings and rooftop bars, hey!
For our last night in Amsterdam (and the last night of our trip, in fact), a visit to a swanky rooftop bar for a drink seemed like the only appropriate thing to do. A quick Google Maps search led me to find 'W Lounge', which happened to be just down the road from where we were and we certainly weren't let down. Visiting A Rooftop Bar In Amsterdam - W Lounge Review
The W Lounge is part of the W Hotel owned by Marriott, and oh my, is it nice. Also, handy tip, the hotel is actually spread across two buildings. The bar is in the one with the glittery 'W' outside of it. (We learned this the hard way after we tried to take the lift up to the bar in the wrong building and had a quick tour of the pretty luxurious hotel lobby and lift). We didn't reserve a table but were still able to sit inside without any sort of wait. The outside area was full (unsurprisingly on a sunny evening) but the indoor area was just as nice and the views were still great. There was a DJ playing music inside and I can only imagine how great the atmosphere gets as the night goes on. As for prices, Elliot and I both had a beer, I had a Heineken and he had an IPA and we paid a grand total of €16.50 for the two. Now, I know that sounds a lot out of context, but for a prime view of Amsterdam and in one of the swankiest bars, I don't think that's too bad at all. The cocktails were about €22 each, so certainly a little pricier than the majority of the other bars in the area.The only thing to note is that tracking someone down to pay the bill was a bit of a faff. If I'd spent €100 on cocktails that evening, I'd definitely have been expecting better. But, as we were only in there for a quick beer, it really wasn't the end of the world.So, if you're looking for a rooftop bar in Amsterdam then I highly recommend checking out W Lounge. You don't need to be staying at the hotel to visit and it's right behind Dam, so couldn't be any more central. I think you can also pay to use their small rooftop pool as a guest too. (Granted, it's very small and more somewhere to sit in the water rather than hit your weekly lengths target).
Cheers to holidays, sunny evenings and rooftop bars, hey!
Our third day in Amsterdam was a cold and rainy one, so it's fair to say we weren't too keen to spend too much of the day outside, battling the elements. So, what would we do instead? Go and eat allllll the food, right?
We originally headed to Bakers and Roasters for breakfast, but it was only after we'd made it there did Holly, my sister, realise that she wasn't particularly fond of anything on the menu... So, plan aborted, we went for another wander, in the hope we'd stumble across a nice looking cafe for breakfast...
In the end, we stumbled across a food market by total chance, and had the tastiest mini pancakes for brunch. I had mine with white chocolate and strawberries whilst my sister opted for just sugar. They were so incredibly tasty, and I'm so glad we found them... They were just being made in a van at the market and were the best €3.50 I spent the whole trip.
Also whilst at the market, I tried a Stroopwafel. I'd spotted them in packets literally everywhere whilst on our trip, but when I saw a man at the market making them there and then, I knew I had to try one. It was really good, and definitely something to try, especially if you can get one that's been made fresh!
I hate to admit it, but the next thing we did with our day was head straight for more food... Are you sensing a theme here? The Hard Rock Cafe was our destination, and oh my, we weren't disappointed. I've been to quite a few Hard Rock's in my time, and the food at the Amsterdam one was just as good as all the others! In case you were wondering, I had the Hickory BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger and it was incred.
Because of the really poor weather, we decided to head back to the hotel for an hour or so to get some shelter from the rain, but didn't do so before stopping to buy a spacecake. (If you've never heard of them before, it's essentially just a cake baked with weed in it). Having heard from a few friends that these things are pretty lethal, it's fair to say I was intrigued to give it a go. The label on it read that it'd take at least an hour to kick in and headaches, nausea and passing out were common side effects... Sounds pretty intense, right? Yeah, I thought the same. That was, until, it was 3 hours later and I still hadn't felt a thing... I'm not sure if I just had one from a bad bunch, or they're just not as crazy as people make out. But, either way, the thing did absolutely nothing to me and wasn't even tasty. 0/10.
We spent our last afternoon and evening wandering the shops. We found a road that had Bershka, Topshop, Pull and Bear and Monki on... Success!! My sister and I both bought quite a few new bits for summer, we're just waiting on some nicer weather now to whip them out. We shopped until the shops started shutting, and then headed for our last dinner. No prizes for guessing we went to yet another Italian, and had the best pizzas yet. Once we'd eaten we headed to the hotel to get into bed as we had a 5.30 alarm the next morning in order to make our 8.30am flight home!
I honestly had the best few days in Amsterdam, it was really nice to spend a few days jsut eating, wandering and shopping to my hearts content. happy belated bday to me! If you haven't already, you can read about what we got up to on day 1 here and day 2 here
Our third day in Amsterdam was a cold and rainy one, so it's fair to say we weren't too keen to spend too much of the day outside, battling the elements. So, what would we do instead? Go and eat allllll the food, right?
We originally headed to Bakers and Roasters for breakfast, but it was only after we'd made it there did Holly, my sister, realise that she wasn't particularly fond of anything on the menu... So, plan aborted, we went for another wander, in the hope we'd stumble across a nice looking cafe for breakfast...
In the end, we stumbled across a food market by total chance, and had the tastiest mini pancakes for brunch. I had mine with white chocolate and strawberries whilst my sister opted for just sugar. They were so incredibly tasty, and I'm so glad we found them... They were just being made in a van at the market and were the best €3.50 I spent the whole trip.
Also whilst at the market, I tried a Stroopwafel. I'd spotted them in packets literally everywhere whilst on our trip, but when I saw a man at the market making them there and then, I knew I had to try one. It was really good, and definitely something to try, especially if you can get one that's been made fresh!
I hate to admit it, but the next thing we did with our day was head straight for more food... Are you sensing a theme here? The Hard Rock Cafe was our destination, and oh my, we weren't disappointed. I've been to quite a few Hard Rock's in my time, and the food at the Amsterdam one was just as good as all the others! In case you were wondering, I had the Hickory BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger and it was incred.
Because of the really poor weather, we decided to head back to the hotel for an hour or so to get some shelter from the rain, but didn't do so before stopping to buy a spacecake. (If you've never heard of them before, it's essentially just a cake baked with weed in it). Having heard from a few friends that these things are pretty lethal, it's fair to say I was intrigued to give it a go. The label on it read that it'd take at least an hour to kick in and headaches, nausea and passing out were common side effects... Sounds pretty intense, right? Yeah, I thought the same. That was, until, it was 3 hours later and I still hadn't felt a thing... I'm not sure if I just had one from a bad bunch, or they're just not as crazy as people make out. But, either way, the thing did absolutely nothing to me and wasn't even tasty. 0/10.
We spent our last afternoon and evening wandering the shops. We found a road that had Bershka, Topshop, Pull and Bear and Monki on... Success!! My sister and I both bought quite a few new bits for summer, we're just waiting on some nicer weather now to whip them out. We shopped until the shops started shutting, and then headed for our last dinner. No prizes for guessing we went to yet another Italian, and had the best pizzas yet. Once we'd eaten we headed to the hotel to get into bed as we had a 5.30 alarm the next morning in order to make our 8.30am flight home!
I honestly had the best few days in Amsterdam, it was really nice to spend a few days jsut eating, wandering and shopping to my hearts content. happy belated bday to me! If you haven't already, you can read about what we got up to on day 1 here and day 2 here
On our second day in Amsterdam, we got up fairly leisurely, got ready and were out of the hotel by 10am. Our first stop was the Sex Museum, because, well, when in 'Dam hey? It's €5 to get into and is a good way to kill an hour or so. I wasn't quite sure what to expect other than that 6ft penis statue that everyone and their neighbour has a photo stood next to... If you've never been, here's a quick summary; tonnnnnnes of photos of people having sex, a naked Marilyn Monroe animatronic posing for photos and a load of old crockery/decorations/statues with penises on in glass cabinets... I mean, it's a bit of a weird one but it was on my bucket list (which you can read here). I wouldn't go again, but it's one of those things you should do at least once.
We skipped breakfast as we knew we'd be having an early lunch in the form of some diabetes-inducing milkshakes. The place we originally headed to was shut, Bulls and Dogs, so opted for the Corner Bakery instead. I had a Vanilla Freakshake and it was amazing. If I'm honest I did feel fairly sick (unsurprisingly) for the rest of the afternoon afterwards but it was well worth it. The interior of the cafe was an absolute bloggers' dream, with marble tables, lots of plants, and pastel prints on photo ledges... The whole shebang. It was very popular, and we did have to wait for a table, but luckily it was only about a 15-minute wait in the end. If you're in the area and have a sweet tooth, it's definitely worth checking out.
After absolutely stuffing ourselves with sugar, we decided to head for a wander around Museumplein. This, if you're not sure, is the area where all the main museums are in Amsterdam. We didn't actually go into any of them ourselves, but the area is really nice just to walk around in without the fear of being knocked over by a car/tram/bike/wild tourist.
Whilst on the tram to go shopping, I spotted the Bloemenmarkt, and dragged my sister off the tram at the next stop. We had a quick wander round - I mentioned in the aforementioned bucket list that I wanted to go there to take some nice photos... Umm, yeah, was perhaps not worth bothering... Unless you want to buy tulip bulbs or wooden tulips that is. It wasn't quite the botanical wonderland I had imagined... That being said, we did manage to get some souvenirs for our Nannie, so all was not lost.
The weather wasn't ideal, so we headed to a coffeeshop for a while, and then went for another explore. We had pizza for dinner again, and this one was slightly better than the other, but again, nothing to write home about.
After we'd eaten, we headed to De Wallen, otherwise known as the Red Light District. Again, I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but what I saw was far tamer than I'd anticipated. It was also absolutely swarmed with tourists, so if you're not a fan of crowds, this is definitely one to give a miss.
As if we hadn't already eaten enough already, we then tried to track somewhere down to sit in and have pancakes... They were nice! My sister didn't really like hers, however, so I won't mention the place in this post as a recommendation! But finding somewhere to sit in and eat was fairly difficult!
Our first proper full day was an absolute success, and it's fair to say we were absolutely knackered by the time we made it back to the hotel... You can read all about our first day in Amsterdam here.
On our second day in Amsterdam, we got up fairly leisurely, got ready and were out of the hotel by 10am. Our first stop was the Sex Museum, because, well, when in 'Dam hey? It's €5 to get into and is a good way to kill an hour or so. I wasn't quite sure what to expect other than that 6ft penis statue that everyone and their neighbour has a photo stood next to... If you've never been, here's a quick summary; tonnnnnnes of photos of people having sex, a naked Marilyn Monroe animatronic posing for photos and a load of old crockery/decorations/statues with penises on in glass cabinets... I mean, it's a bit of a weird one but it was on my bucket list (which you can read here). I wouldn't go again, but it's one of those things you should do at least once.
We skipped breakfast as we knew we'd be having an early lunch in the form of some diabetes-inducing milkshakes. The place we originally headed to was shut, Bulls and Dogs, so opted for the Corner Bakery instead. I had a Vanilla Freakshake and it was amazing. If I'm honest I did feel fairly sick (unsurprisingly) for the rest of the afternoon afterwards but it was well worth it. The interior of the cafe was an absolute bloggers' dream, with marble tables, lots of plants, and pastel prints on photo ledges... The whole shebang. It was very popular, and we did have to wait for a table, but luckily it was only about a 15-minute wait in the end. If you're in the area and have a sweet tooth, it's definitely worth checking out.
After absolutely stuffing ourselves with sugar, we decided to head for a wander around Museumplein. This, if you're not sure, is the area where all the main museums are in Amsterdam. We didn't actually go into any of them ourselves, but the area is really nice just to walk around in without the fear of being knocked over by a car/tram/bike/wild tourist.
Whilst on the tram to go shopping, I spotted the Bloemenmarkt, and dragged my sister off the tram at the next stop. We had a quick wander round - I mentioned in the aforementioned bucket list that I wanted to go there to take some nice photos... Umm, yeah, was perhaps not worth bothering... Unless you want to buy tulip bulbs or wooden tulips that is. It wasn't quite the botanical wonderland I had imagined... That being said, we did manage to get some souvenirs for our Nannie, so all was not lost.
The weather wasn't ideal, so we headed to a coffeeshop for a while, and then went for another explore. We had pizza for dinner again, and this one was slightly better than the other, but again, nothing to write home about.
After we'd eaten, we headed to De Wallen, otherwise known as the Red Light District. Again, I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but what I saw was far tamer than I'd anticipated. It was also absolutely swarmed with tourists, so if you're not a fan of crowds, this is definitely one to give a miss.
As if we hadn't already eaten enough already, we then tried to track somewhere down to sit in and have pancakes... They were nice! My sister didn't really like hers, however, so I won't mention the place in this post as a recommendation! But finding somewhere to sit in and eat was fairly difficult!
Our first proper full day was an absolute success, and it's fair to say we were absolutely knackered by the time we made it back to the hotel... You can read all about our first day in Amsterdam here.
Our first day in Amsterdam started with a bit of a delay. Our flight was due to leave at 9.05, but due to low visibility Amsterdam's end, we didn't leave until 10.30, cue a lot of airport boredom... But, we were grateful our flight went at all, as two other flights to Amsterdam that were scheduled the same morning as ours were cancelled. We flew with KLM from Southampton, and it was nice, it was £70 return each, so an absolute bargain. The flight was just over an hour, so by the time we'd sat down and put our seatbelts on, it was pretty much time to get back up again...
We flew with hand luggage only, so when we landed at Schipol airport, all that was left to do was pass border control, and then we were free to wander around Amsterdamto our hearts content. Once we were through the other side, we headed to the train station to buy our travel passes. We bought the 3-day train/tram/bus passes from GVB for €26 and they were so incredibly handy. I can't tell you the number of times we used them. They were ideal for us as we didn't have to faff around with tickets and could just hop on and hop off as we pleased.
Once we'd sorted ourselves out, and found the right train, we headed to our hotel to drop off our bags. We couldn't check in until 2pm, but after the delayed flight, the time difference, and the time it took to get to the hotel, we arrived at bang on 2. We stayed at the Ibis Budget Amsterdam City South, and it was good. I mean, it wasn't centrally located in the slightest, it was about 25 minutes on a tram to Centraal Station, but it was clean, modern and cheap - so no complaints here.
After a very brief wander around, we headed straight to the A'DAM Lookout and the swing. (Which, involved a free public ferry across the water, whaaaat?) The weather forecast for the 3 days we were in Holland was pretty rainy, but the day we arrived was really sunny, so we decided to head straight to the swing. We didn't book in advance, we just turned up, and there were plenty of slots free. We had our slot booked (4.20) and headed for a little wander before ascending the tower. The lookout was really nice. You could see for miles, and the skybar was really pretty, but I wouldn't say it was massively worth going to if you weren't doing the swing.
So, the swing was great fun. It's 'Europe's Highest Swing'. It's 100m tall, and you swing over the edge of the lookout building, with the water beneath you and the city all around. You're not allowed to take photos whilst on the swing, but the staff do take photos for you which you can download for free from their site. It was really really good fun. If you're heading to Amsterdam anytime soon, I'd highly recommend doing it!
Because of our excitement to get on the swing in the sun, we missed lunch. Big mistake. My sister and I are pretty big eaters, so, by the time we'd got back to Centraal we were starving. We went for a bit more of an explore and stumbled across an Italian restaurant that looked nice. I can't remember what it was called, but it was one of the 35384 pizzerias in Amsterdam, and the food was good. Nothing to write home about, but good nonetheless.
After getting up at 5.30am to head to the airport, it's fair to say we were pretty tired after all our travelling and wandering, so, after dinner, we just headed back to the hotel to sleep, ready for our second day of adventures...
Our first day in Amsterdam started with a bit of a delay. Our flight was due to leave at 9.05, but due to low visibility Amsterdam's end, we didn't leave until 10.30, cue a lot of airport boredom... But, we were grateful our flight went at all, as two other flights to Amsterdam that were scheduled the same morning as ours were cancelled. We flew with KLM from Southampton, and it was nice, it was £70 return each, so an absolute bargain. The flight was just over an hour, so by the time we'd sat down and put our seatbelts on, it was pretty much time to get back up again...
We flew with hand luggage only, so when we landed at Schipol airport, all that was left to do was pass border control, and then we were free to wander around Amsterdamto our hearts content. Once we were through the other side, we headed to the train station to buy our travel passes. We bought the 3-day train/tram/bus passes from GVB for €26 and they were so incredibly handy. I can't tell you the number of times we used them. They were ideal for us as we didn't have to faff around with tickets and could just hop on and hop off as we pleased.
Once we'd sorted ourselves out, and found the right train, we headed to our hotel to drop off our bags. We couldn't check in until 2pm, but after the delayed flight, the time difference, and the time it took to get to the hotel, we arrived at bang on 2. We stayed at the Ibis Budget Amsterdam City South, and it was good. I mean, it wasn't centrally located in the slightest, it was about 25 minutes on a tram to Centraal Station, but it was clean, modern and cheap - so no complaints here.
After a very brief wander around, we headed straight to the A'DAM Lookout and the swing. (Which, involved a free public ferry across the water, whaaaat?) The weather forecast for the 3 days we were in Holland was pretty rainy, but the day we arrived was really sunny, so we decided to head straight to the swing. We didn't book in advance, we just turned up, and there were plenty of slots free. We had our slot booked (4.20) and headed for a little wander before ascending the tower. The lookout was really nice. You could see for miles, and the skybar was really pretty, but I wouldn't say it was massively worth going to if you weren't doing the swing.
So, the swing was great fun. It's 'Europe's Highest Swing'. It's 100m tall, and you swing over the edge of the lookout building, with the water beneath you and the city all around. You're not allowed to take photos whilst on the swing, but the staff do take photos for you which you can download for free from their site. It was really really good fun. If you're heading to Amsterdam anytime soon, I'd highly recommend doing it!
Because of our excitement to get on the swing in the sun, we missed lunch. Big mistake. My sister and I are pretty big eaters, so, by the time we'd got back to Centraal we were starving. We went for a bit more of an explore and stumbled across an Italian restaurant that looked nice. I can't remember what it was called, but it was one of the 35384 pizzerias in Amsterdam, and the food was good. Nothing to write home about, but good nonetheless.
After getting up at 5.30am to head to the airport, it's fair to say we were pretty tired after all our travelling and wandering, so, after dinner, we just headed back to the hotel to sleep, ready for our second day of adventures...
For my 20th birthday, my sister Holly and I are heading to 'Dam for four days of wandering, eating, shopping and exploring. I haven't been before, my sister has, so she will be my official tour guide for the trip. That being said, there are a few things I'd like to try and do whilst we're over there, so I thought I'd compile them all into a blogpost for future reference...
Vondelpark // A wander around one of Amsterdam's many parks is definitely on my list, it's one of those must-dos don't you think?
Anne Frank House // Unfortunately, there are no more tickets available for the entire time we're in Amsterdam, so this is one thing we won't actually be able to do.
Red Light District // Another of those that features on many 'Things to do in Amsterdam' lists. Again, something I'd like to see for myself. Not somewhere to be hanging around for too long though
Ride a bike // This one is pretty self-explanatory considering there are apparently more bikes than people in the capital.
Jordaan District // Is said to be really nice for eating, shopping and wandering. It's slightly less busy than the city center, so could be a nice place to explore of an afternoon.
Coffee Shops // What would a birthday trip to Amsterdam be if a few coffee shops weren't included...?
Rijksmuseum Gardens // Are home to the I amsterdam sign, so we will definitely have to pay them a visit. I fully intend to get allllll the cliche tourist photos.
The Sex Museum // My sister has visited it before and didn't particularly rate it at all, but I think it's one of those you should do at least once.
The Sex Museum // My sister has visited it before and didn't particularly rate it at all, but I think it's one of those you should do at least once.
Flower Market // What is Holland without its tulips? The flower markets are said to be really pretty and will make for some beautiful photos.
A'Dam Lookout / Over The Edge Swing // Is weather dependent but one that my sister hasn't done before. It's Europe's highest swing. My housemate has been on it and said it was really good fun. But, at €17,50, it will be one for a nice, sunny day. What's the point in going to a lookout if it's dark, foggy and grim?...
So, there we have it, a list of some of the things I'd like to try and do whilst in Amsterdam next week.
For my 20th birthday, my sister Holly and I are heading to 'Dam for four days of wandering, eating, shopping and exploring. I haven't been before, my sister has, so she will be my official tour guide for the trip. That being said, there are a few things I'd like to try and do whilst we're over there, so I thought I'd compile them all into a blogpost for future reference...
Vondelpark // A wander around one of Amsterdam's many parks is definitely on my list, it's one of those must-dos don't you think?
Anne Frank House // Unfortunately, there are no more tickets available for the entire time we're in Amsterdam, so this is one thing we won't actually be able to do.
Red Light District // Another of those that features on many 'Things to do in Amsterdam' lists. Again, something I'd like to see for myself. Not somewhere to be hanging around for too long though
Ride a bike // This one is pretty self-explanatory considering there are apparently more bikes than people in the capital.
Jordaan District // Is said to be really nice for eating, shopping and wandering. It's slightly less busy than the city center, so could be a nice place to explore of an afternoon.
Coffee Shops // What would a birthday trip to Amsterdam be if a few coffee shops weren't included...?
Rijksmuseum Gardens // Are home to the I amsterdam sign, so we will definitely have to pay them a visit. I fully intend to get allllll the cliche tourist photos.
The Sex Museum // My sister has visited it before and didn't particularly rate it at all, but I think it's one of those you should do at least once.
The Sex Museum // My sister has visited it before and didn't particularly rate it at all, but I think it's one of those you should do at least once.
Flower Market // What is Holland without its tulips? The flower markets are said to be really pretty and will make for some beautiful photos.
A'Dam Lookout / Over The Edge Swing // Is weather dependent but one that my sister hasn't done before. It's Europe's highest swing. My housemate has been on it and said it was really good fun. But, at €17,50, it will be one for a nice, sunny day. What's the point in going to a lookout if it's dark, foggy and grim?...
So, there we have it, a list of some of the things I'd like to try and do whilst in Amsterdam next week.
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