Amsterdam is one of the best cities in the world for photography. Known as the Venice of the North, Amsterdam is one of the most photogenic cities in Europe with tons of options for street photography, canals, houseboats, flower markets, bicycles, tulips, row houses and parks. The combination of the unique canal houses, beautiful bridges, canals, and even the bicycles all provide so many options to create wonderful travel photo.

Amsterdam, unlike other cities, doesn’t have many classic locations like the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Yet, Amsterdam and the Netherlands have plenty of wonderful spots to take photos. The hundreds of canals called Grachten and the lovely houses (Gable Houses) & houseboats are all part of Amsterdam’s charm. The other great thing about Amsterdam is that it is so easy to walk around and discover since its so flat.

I have been to Amsterdam more than half a dozen times. I have also walked all over the city, trying to find the best photography locations. In this Photography & Travel Guide, I have put together a list of my best photo locations and tips. I hope you enjoy it!

How Long Should you Stay in Amsterdam?

If you're wondering how long to spend in Amsterdam, I think 3-4 days is the perfect amount of time. But if you are going to venture out of Amsterdam to surrounding areas such as Haarlem, Zaanse Schans, or Keukenhof, then you could easily stay for a week. I would definitely recommend going in April or May when you can also drive to Keukenhof & Lisse to see the Tulip Fields. The tulip fields are located about 1 hour out of the city and are just fantastic.

Where should you Stay?

It is very important to stay in an area where it is easy to walk to restaurants and the best photography locations.

The good thing is that Amsterdam is a relatively small city with only 850,000 inhabitants, and it's very walkable. The city is broken up into 8 districts (stadsdelen), which are further divided into neighborhoods. (See the map below)

For a first-time traveler, I would recommend staying in the Centrum or Jordaan. To be more specific, I would try to stay as close as you can to the 9 Streets (De 9 Straatjes). The Nine Street includes the 4 main canals (Herengracht, Keizersgracht, Prinsengracht, Singel) and 3 streets of the Canal Belt.

Centrum is in the city center, and it is an area full of restaurants and shops, but it's also where most of the city attractions (i.e., Dam Square, Nine Streets, Ann Frank House) are located. If you decide to stay in the Centrum, you will be walking distance from most of the main attractions.

A few hotel options in Centrum:

Waldorf Astoria--I absolutely love this hotel. It is one of my favorite hotels in the world. I have stayed here 5-6 times, and it is outstanding. The Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam is made up of six, canal houses from the 17th and 18th centuries that sit along the Herengracht (or “Gentleman’s Canal”). The Herengracht is one of the three main canals in Amsterdam. It is a bit further away from the Nine Streets but well worth the extra walk.
The Dylan -The Dylan is located at 9 Streets. It is a more intimate hotel with only 40 rooms, spread through two historic canal-side buildings. They also have an excellent restaurant.

The other neighborhood to consider is the Jordaan, on the West side of the canal ring (in Centrum); it is just a short walk from the center of town. The narrow streets and canals are filled with cute canal houses (be sure to look above the doors, where there may be a stone tablet with an object carved into it, usually the profession of the person who lived there). Jordaan is full of boutiques, ice cream shops, elegant restaurants, laid-back cafés, and pubs. It is also a great spot for Street Photography.

The Pulitzer: This is a very popular hotel but we did not like it. It is spread out among 25 canal houses. It is a much larger hotel with 225 rooms. It’s located right across the canal from Jordaan.

Food Recommendations

There are tons of great food options in Amsterdam. The dining scene in Amsterdam has changed dramatically in the last decade that I have been visiting. The food is very creative with lots of fish and vegetable-forward cooking. Do not miss trying Indonesian food in Amsterdam.

Like most large cities, you will find wonderful cuisines from all over the world. However, I always think you should try the local options, and here are a few recommendations:

““When I’m in Holland, I eat the pannekoeken.”...”

— Beastie Boys

Local Food You Should Try:

Bitterballen - is a type of Dutch meatball, generally eaten with beer :). Try De Ballenbar in de Foodhallen
Pannenkoeken (Pancakes) -Dutch pancakes called Pannekoeken are either sweet or savory. Locals eat Pannekoeken at all times of the day, often topping the pancakes with cured meats or smoked salmon. However, some Amsterdammers prefer to add fruit or chocolate to create a sweet dessert pancake. try Upstairs Pannekoekenhuis
Stroopwafels -Stroopwafels are a delicious cookie. They are made by filling two thin wafers with sweet Stroop, the same caramel-like syrup that goes well with Pannekoeken. Usually, you eat these sweets with Coffee or Tea.
Cheese - no trip to Amsterdam is complete without trying or visiting the local cheese shops – Gouda and Edam -try Fromagerie Abraham Kef
French Fries (Patat Friet) -I do not know how they make the French Fries in Holland taste so good, but they are unlike anything you have ever tasted. Most locals eat cones of patat friet topped with mayonnaise and other saucy toppings made with ingredients like ketchup, curry and peanuts. Try Vlaams Friteshuis Vleminckx
Indonesian Food -- There are tons of great Indonesian restaurants in Amsterdam, and one of the best is Restaurant Blauw. Indonesia was a Dutch colony, which is why there are a lot of Indonesian restaurants.
Vegan/Vegetarian-- Amsterdam is very vegetarian friendly--among our favorites are Meatless District, Vegan Junk Food Bar, Mr. & Mrs. Watson

Getting Around Amsterdam

The best way to explore Amsterdam is to walk. It is not a big city, and it's very flat, but there are cobblestones. Just be careful not to walk into the bike lanes because the bikers will run you over. Seriously, they will! I would not recommend using a bike unless you know all the Dutch rules of riding a bike.

Like every major city, there are trams, metro, and taxis as well. The one thing I would not recommend doing is driving. I have driven all over the world, and I found Amsterdam to be one of the most challenging cities to drive in. Between the 1000s of bikes, tourists, narrow streets, canals, and trams, it is a nightmare.

Photography Gear Recommendations

For Amsterdam, I would bring my Standard Photography Travel Kit which I detail below.

My Canon R5 camera. Any good DSLR or Mirrorless Camera will do Nikon Z7, Fuji etc.

A wide-angle lens 15-35mm to be able to photograph the City Streets
A medium telephoto, such as 70-200mm. This will be useful when you zoom in on the subject.
You also could use a 24-105mm or 24-240 or something similar if you want to travel with just 1 lens.
A good, sturdy tripod so you can take photos at sunrise and sunset.
Neutral-density filters (3, 6, and 10). You will be shooting near water a lot so long exposures will be great, so having an ND filter is a good idea.

Photography Tips

Take a tripod for long exposure shots of the waterways- One of the main features of Amsterdam is its canals. Long exposure shots of canals and waterways create some beautiful end results.
Don’t take photos in the red light district at night! It is illegal!
Take photos at night - Amsterdam looks completely different at night. Photos of the canals are fantastic early in the morning before the crowds. But they are even better lights come on.
Be careful of bicycles and pedestrians - Amsterdam is full of bicycles – There is almost no city in the world where there is as much cycling as in Amsterdam.

What to Photograph in Amsterdam

There are plenty of photography options in Amsterdam. I will provide some classic locations that should not be missed, but I will try to concentrate on certain subjects such as Museums, Waterways & Canals, Bicycles, Tulips, Flower Markets, Street Photography, and Parks. Here are a few suggestions:

Museums -

Rijksmuseum - The museum is stunning, and you should take some time to visit and photograph the outside as well as the inside (photography is allowed inside). Make sure to visit the very photogenic library. The outside of the Rijksmuseum is a great place to photograph, especially early in the morning. I recommend taking photos from the front towards the museum entrance and in the back of the museum by the fountain towards the museum.

There is a fantastic library inside that I loved capturing.

The Begijnhof

Dam Square & Begijnhof- The Begijnhof is one of the oldest squares in Amsterdam. It is a group of houses that provided homes for a group of unmarried religious women who lived together under vows of chastity (Beguines). The wooden house (Houten Huys) at Begijnhof 34 is the oldest house in Amsterdam.

Canals / Waterways-

I would strongly recommend simply walking through the city and exploring the canal systems. Just wandering and getting lost is always a wonderful way to discover a city, especially the canals.

The canals were added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2013. The following are some of the more interesting canals: Singel, Herengracht, Prinsengracht and Brouwersgracht.

Keizersgracht-7 Bridges (Reguliersgracht/Keizersgracht)- This is by far my favorite place to shoot especially since it is so close to the hotel I usually stay in. The ideal location is at the intersection of Reguliersgracht and Keizersgracht. Especially at night, this location is worth photographing.

The intersection of Leidsegracht and Keizersgracht – This is one of the most iconic spots in Amsterdam for photography. The two bridges and the houses in the background provide a wonderful composition. I would recommend doing some long exposure shots. But arrive early because this is a very popular spot. When I took this photo, there were probably 20 photographers with Tripods taking photos.

A very popular spot for sunset/blue hour photography

Amstel River - Magere Brug

If you walk along the Amstel River at sunrise, you will get some nice shots. There are reflections of the boats and houses in the water

AMSTEL RIVER (National Opera)

Just a few steps from the Magee Brug (Bridge), you will find this spot with beautiful reflections.

View of Westerkerk Church

From Leliegracht and Prinsengracht intersection – This is a great spot to capture photographs of the church and the canal.

Central Train Station-

The train station in Amsterdam is a wonderful spot to photograph early in the morning since the sun rises behind the station and there is no one there. By 8 am there will be 100s of people walking around.

Damrak Canal Houses -

“Dancing Houses” is located right in front of the train station. Damrak is probably the most famous Instagram spot in Amsterdam for photos. The best time to photograph these is during the blue hour at sunrise.

Sint Olofssteeg

This location is just around the corner from the Dancing Houses. This is a great spot at Sunrise or Sunset.

Bicycles -

You could literally spend a whole day photographing bikes and bicyclists. I love capturing people on bikes with different shutter speeds. Another great option is to take a pano of people riding their bikes or people riding their bikes over the bridges. There are tons of options and no shortage of bikers.

There are so many shots you can get with people on bikes. Everyone rides them everywhere.

Tulips -

You can see tulips from April through May throughout Amsterdam and Holland. The flower markets are so full of beautiful fresh flowers that smell wonder and are beautiful to photograph. During April, the city even holds its national Tulip Festival.

The Dutch also grow many other plants and flowers in addition to tulips. The flower markets are wonderful places to see the diversity of flowers grown in the Netherlands.

Canal Houses and Architecture -

The architecture in Amsterdam is stunning! The canals are lined with narrow four and five-story houses. Most of these houses are very old and are topped with beautiful gables. Hence, the name Gable Houses. You will also notice that the houses lean forward. The reason for allowing the house to lean forward is to allow heavy items to be raised up to the top floors without hitting the house.

There are really nice canal houses along the 7 Bridges and also in the Jordaan area.

You will find these details above the houses. This house was built in 1689.

Houseboats -

You will see tons of houseboats along the canals where many locals live full-time. But did you know that you can also rent houseboats? They are even found on Airbnb.

There are so many types and colors of houseboats

Parks-

Vondelpark is probably the most famous park in Amsterdam. It is also very easy to visit since it’s next to the city center. On a sunny day, you will see locals flocking to the parks to picnic and relax. Some other parks worth visiting are Westerpark, Amstelpark, Beatrixpark, and Rembrandtpark.

Docks and Port -

Amsterdam also has a huge port. The waterfront is packed with interesting building and ships. – providing some excellent photographic compositions. One of the coolest structures on the waterfront is a restaurant called Wolf Atelier.

Bloenemarkt -

I would not miss photographing the floating flower market. It is located on the Singel Canal between Muntplien and Koningsplein.

Capturing flowers with water droplets is one of my favorite ways to photograph them.

Jordaan district:

Jordaan is one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in the city and a great location for street photography. Packed with beautiful houses, quiet streets, and lots of cafes, we spent hours exploring the area.

The Museum of Graffiti (NDSM)

I love graffiti, and when I discovered that Amsterdam has a (STRAAT) museum dedicated to it, I had to visit it—the museum for street art and graffiti. STRAAT is a street art and graffiti museum that I would not miss.

I hope you have found this Photography Guide on Amsterdam useful. You can find my other Photography & Travel Guides by Clicking on this Link

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My PHOTOGRAPHY & TRAVEL GUIDE TO AMSTERDAM