Best Day Trips from Amsterdam
Are you looking for the best day trips from Amsterdam, Netherlands?
Amsterdam is an amazing city with tons of things to do. It’s a city filled with canals and bridges, beautiful architecture, and must-visit tourist attractions like the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, and the Anne Frank House. It’s also worth taking a boat tour of the canals in Amsterdam.
But if you have more than a couple of days in Amsterdam, I also think you should spend one day getting out of the city and exploring a different destination on a day trip. Because the Netherlands is a pretty small country, you can easily get out of the city and see what Dutch life is like in the countryside.
Windmills, wooden clogs, tulip fields, traditional Dutch houses, fresh cheese, and more await you in the charming smaller towns you can visit from Amsterdam. You can even take a day trip to the neighboring country of Belgium if you want to get out of the Netherlands entirely and see something new.
Here are my top picks for the best day trips from Amsterdam.
⭐ Short on time? These are the top tours and activities I recommend. If you book directly through a link on this page, I may earn a small commission at no cost to you. Thank you for supporting Stay to Wander!
Best Day Trips from Amsterdam:
Zaanse Schans
Zaanse Schans is a historic neighborhood in the town of Zandaam located north of Amsterdam. It’s known for its windmills and waterfront wooden houses, and it’s full of traditional Dutch charm.
You can easily visit Zaanse Schans on your own or with a tour. To get there independently, you can take the train from Amsterdam to Zaandijk Zaanse Schans, a journey of just 15 minutes. Then it’s a 20-minute walk to reach the village. However, I recommend a tour so you can visit other destinations too.
For example, this popular tour takes you to four different destinations by bus from Amsterdam. You’ll stop in Zaanse Schans to see windmills and tour a wooden shoe factory, then head to nearby Edam for a cheese tasting, and finally make stops in the picturesque towns of Volendam and Marken.
This is a great way to see multiple destinations in the Dutch countryside.
Edam
If you like cheese, Edam is a great day trip from Amsterdam. This is where Edam cheese comes from, and there are plenty of places where you can sample this delicious cheese while in town.
Edam is just a 30-minute train ride away from Amsterdam. Once you’re in Edam, you can take a 10-minute bus ride or walk about 35 minutes to the adjacent town of Volendam, which is super pretty with colorful wooden houses along the waterfront. Then it’s just 30 minutes back to Amsterdam.
Or you can take this highly-rated tour I mentioned above that includes stops in Zaanse Schans, Edam, Volendam, and Marken so you don’t have to worry about the transportation logistics yourself.
Gouda
Another great day trip from Amsterdam for cheese lovers? Gouda!
Gouda is a small city with a population of just over 70,000 located south of Amsterdam. You can easily visit Gouda on your own by the train from Amsterdam, a journey which takes just over 50 minutes.
Obviously, one of the most popular things to do here is try the famous cheese named after the city. During the spring and summer, there’s a cheese market every Thursday that is definitely worth visiting. The city itself is also fun to explore, with a medieval town square, canals, and beautiful architecture.
Keukenhof
Keukenhof is one of the top day trips from Amsterdam, but it’s one that is only possible for about two months out of the year. If you’re visiting Amsterdam in the springtime, you’re in luck!
Open from late March to mid-May every year during tulip season, Keukenhof is a botanical garden that is the best place in the Netherlands to go if you want to see beautiful, colorful tulips in bloom.
It’s possible to visit Keukenhof on your own, but since there’s no train station nearby, it will involve taking a train and transferring to a bus, for a total journey time of around 1.5 hours. It’s a lot faster to drive there (about 35 minutes) which is why I’d recommend booking a tour to visit Keukenhof.
This is a great tour for visiting Keukenhof. It gives you plenty of time (four hours) to explore the gardens, and also includes a 2.5-hour stop in the charming small town of Zaanse Schans for sightseeing.
Giethoorn
Giethoorn is one of the most magical villages in the Netherlands. This small town looks like it’s straight out of a fairytale with its historic thatched-roof houses, gardens, canals, and walking and cycling paths.
The village is almost completely car-free and the main modes of transportation are boat or bicycle. The easiest way to get to Giethoorn is by driving. It’s less than 1.5 hours from Amsterdam by car, but if you were to take public transportation, it would take you close to 2.5 hours. It also involves taking a train and transferring to a bus, and the schedules are limited so it restricts how much time you can spend there.
This tour is the best way to visit Giethoorn from Amsterdam. It includes transportation from the city by bus, a boat cruise in Giethoorn, and free time in the village to explore and enjoy lunch.
Antwerp
If you want to visit another country on a day trip from Amsterdam, Antwerp is the closest city in Belgium. It’s easy to get to Antwerp on your own from Amsterdam because there’s a direct train.
You can arrive in Antwerp in less than 1.5 hours and spend the day exploring this beautiful city. Part of the Flemish region of Belgium, the main language spoken in Antwerp is Dutch. However, the other main language spoken in Belgium is French (and a small section of the country speaks German too.)
Antwerp is a great city because of its rich history. It’s historically been the heart of the diamond trade and a wealthy merchant city, leading to its ornate architecture and opulent buildings. Antwerp is also known for being where the Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens lived for most of his life.
Bruges
Finally, Bruges is another destination in Belgium that is a popular day trip from Amsterdam. This is the furthest day trip on this list, and it takes a full 3.5 hours of driving to get to Bruges from Amsterdam.
So be prepared for a long travel day if you choose to visit Bruges! But it’s popular because it’s a beautiful city of picturesque canals and grand architecture. Because of its distance from Amsterdam, the easiest way to get to Bruges is by driving and I would recommend taking a tour like this one.
It’s a long day, but you’ll be able to maximize your time in Bruges. This day trip includes a two-hour guided tour of the city, followed by three hours of free time for you to explore Bruges on your own.
Best Day Trips from Amsterdam
These are the best day trips from Amsterdam, Netherlands.
While Amsterdam is a great destination that deserves at least two or three full days of exploring the city, taking a day trip is a good way to see more of the Netherlands if you have some extra time.
Enjoy your trip to Amsterdam!
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