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Amsterdam City Breaks

Amsterdam City Break

Amsterdam city breaks offer visitors a chance to escape to one of the most flamboyant and lively cities in Europe. A weekend in Amsterdam, with its unique and vibrant atmosphere, guarantees visitors a break to remember.

Enchanting canals and quaint cobbled streets, with an array of historical treasures encased within its city centre, surround Amsterdam's centre, stretching out from the Dam Square. Colourful houseboats brighten up the canals and the streets are a busy throng of tourists, students and street performers. Amsterdam city breaks are a multifaceted experience, with a welcoming and sophisticated old city of historical treasures, exceptional museums and art galleries. Set beside the hedonistic pleasures of the notorious Red Light District, known for it's liberal restraints on the use of marijuana and flamboyant nightlife.

Ideal for weekend breaks, Amsterdam is an easy city to walk around with its compact old town, which is home to gabled homes, historic bridges, narrow cobbled lanes and quaint boutiques selling traditional Dutch clogs and Delft china. Visitors can watch the city bustle by from one of the many chic bars or pavement cafes, or alternatively view Amsterdam from one of the many waterways on a canal cruise.

The city lights up with a flamboyant atmosphere at night, when Amsterdam's infamous Red Light District becomes the centre for entertainment and attractions. Surrounded by the Oudeziujds Achterburgwal canal and Oudezijds Voorburgwal canal near Dam Square, the Red Light District area of De Wallen draws even the most conservative visitors to it's notorious attractions. Brightly lit shop windows displaying prostitutes and an array of touts inviting passers by to stop for a floor show are a familiar sight on the way to Amsterdam's best theatres, bars and nightclubs on Rembrandtplein and Leidesplein.

 

 


Essential Information on Amsterdam

Money

Single European currency, or Euro (EUR), is the official currency of the Netherlands, and is divided into 100 cents. Major credit cards and travellers cheques are widely accepted. To avoid additional charges take travellers cheques in Euros, Pounds Sterling or US Dollars. Foreign currency or travellers cheques can be changed at banks, post offices or bureaux de change (usually indicated by the letters GWK). Banks are closed on weekends but bureaux de change are open. ATMs are widely distributed and most are open 24 hours a day.

Source: www.wordtravels.com

Passports / Visas

All passports, unless stipulated above, must be valid for at least three months after intended stay, except for British nationals who require a passport valid on arrival. Return or onward tickets, all necessary documents for next destination and sufficient funds are required by most nationalities. The borderless region known as the Schengen area includes the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden. All these countries issue a standard Schengen visa that has a multiple entry option that allows the holder to travel freely within the borders of all.

Source: www.wordtravels.com

Communications

The international access code for the Netherlands is +31. The outgoing code is 00 followed by the relevant country code (e.g. 0044 for the United Kingdom). City/area codes are in use, e.g. (0)20 for Amsterdam. Five local mobile phone operators have the Netherlands extremely well covered with GSM 900 and 1800 networks. Internet cafes are widely available.

Source: www.wordtravels.com