As part of our advocacy, #OneAccessibility, we will share information about differently able and profile one location with accessible trails. Look out every week for this enlightening post.
Amsterdam the beautiful city on canals has many treasures : world-known architecture and art from the 17th century, Van Gogh, Rembrandt, the Anne Frank House, the parks and the canals, but also the cosy cafés, bikes, deep-fried food, music festivals, and the good living.
All the places mentioned in this article are listed in the Google Maps list Amsterdam Guide - Accessibility Edition
- Amsterdam is very flat, unlike many popular tourist destinations in Europe!
- Obstacles for travelling in wheelchair will include cobblestones and steep bridges, although a few bridges will also have stairs or steep gradients.
- Amsterdam is relatively compact : if your hotel is in a central location, you will be able to walk and roll to all tourist attractions.
- The city has strict rules on preserving the historical buildings and unique atmosphere, and this comes with a price for accessibility : many small restaurants or shops will have steps at the entrance, corridors will be narrow. You can expect elevators in modern hotels and majors museums.
- Amsterdam is also a city of cyclists : pay close attention to the traffic on the bike paths. You will also occasionally run into parked bicycles blocking your path on sidewalks.
Day 1 (of 3) - Central Amsterdam
▲▲▲ Central Station - neo-Gothic building with warm red brick and prickly spires rom the late 1800s. At the Amsterdam Tourist Information in front of the Central Station, ask for the Amsterdam Accessibility Guide, full of informations on how to get around with a limited mobility. Access : fully accessible.
▲▲▲ Dam Square and Royal Palace - This is the historic heart of the city. As the symbolic center of the Netherlands, it’s where political demonstrations begin and end. Be prepared, as this is the busiest square of the city, but also the one with the worst cobblestones. Access : moderately accessible.
▲▲ Begijnhof - Entering this tiny, hidden idyllic courtyard in the city center, dating from the time when post-Reformation Dutch Catholics couldn’t worship in public. Be considerate of the people who live around the courtyard. Access: Fully Accessible.
▲▲▲ Mint Tower (Munttoren) : This tower, which marked the limit of the medieval walled city, served as one of the original gates. Access : the tower itself will not be accessible, but it is for sure a building to appreciate from the outside.
▲▲▲ Flower Market (Bloemenmarkt) : This busy block of cut flowers, plants, bulbs, seeds, and garden supplies attests to Holland’s reputation for growing flowers. Access : moderately accessible. Despite how old the flower market is, there are ramps for easy access down to the different levels.
▲▲▲ Anne Frank House - Worth mentioning as Amsterdam must seen, this house offers a fascinating look at the hideaway of young Anne during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. Access : the house is not accessible, with many stairs and tight hallways, but museum is fully accessible.
▲▲▲ Jordaan District : Enjoy walking along the canals and quaint streets. “Jordaan” comes from “Jardin” in french (Garden). Access : Fully Accessible (a bit bumpy with the cobblestones).
Day 2 (of 3) Southwest Amsterdam
▲ Museumplein - Access: Fully accessible and has adapted toilets. Take a picture with the famous IAmsterdam sign!
▲▲▲ Rijksmuseum - several thousand paintings, including an incomparable collection of Dutch masters: Rembrandt, Vermeer, Hals, and Steen. Access : Moderately Accessible. Wheelchair users can cut to the head of the line.
▲▲▲ Van Gogh Museum - Remarkable museum showcasing works by the troubled Dutch artist. Access : Fully Accessible. Wheelchair users can cut to the head of the line. Loaner wheelchairs are available.
▲▲ Vondelpark - Huge and lively city park, popular with the Dutch—families with little kids, romantic couples, strolling seniors, and hippies sharing blankets and beers. It’s a favored venue for free summer concerts. Access: Fully Accessible.
▲ Stedelijk Museum - Modern art museum showcasing famous masterpieces from Picasso, Chagall, Cézanne, Kandinsky, and Mondrian. Access: Fully Accessible
Day 3 (of 3) East Amsterdam
▲▲ Red Light District - Europe’s most touristed ladies of the night district, in 450 display-case windows around Oudezijds Achterburgwal and Oudezijds Voorburgwal, surrounding the Old Church (Oude Kerk, see below). Access: Fully accessible.
▲▲ Rembrandtplein and Tuschinski Theater - One of the city’s premier nightlife spots with the adjoining Thorbeckeplein. The Tuschinski Theater, a movie palace from the 1920s glitters inside and out. Access : Minimally Accessible, four 7” entry steps.
▲ Rembrandt’s House (Rembrandthuis Museum) - A middle-aged Rembrandt lived here after his wife’s death, as his popularity and wealth dwindled down to obscurity and bankruptcy. Access: The house itself is not accessible. The museum is fully accessible.
▲ De Hortus Botanical Garden - Unique oasis of tranquility within the city (no mobile phones are allowed), one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world. 6,000 different kinds of plants and a tropical palm house. Access : Moderately Accessible (some stone paths could be challenging). Loaner wheelchairs are available.
Food
- Traditional food is hearty : bread, cheese, soup, and fish, served between 11:30–14:00 and 18:00–21:00.
- Try to experience : an eetcafé (simple restaurant serving soups, salads, sandwiches), a café (all-purpose establishments, serving light meals,coffee, drinks, and snacks) and especially bruin cafés (“brown cafés,” named for their nicotine-stained walls, traditional cosy café that look like your grandma’s living room), and a proeflokaal (traditional pub with snacks, wine, spirits, or beer)
- Food to try includes : cheeses (“kaas” : edam, gouda), fries (“frietjes”, french fries with mayonnaise), haring (“herring”, fresh and raw, from an outdoor herring stand), hutspot (meat stew with mashed potatoes), kroketten and bitterballen (rolls of meat and vegetables, breaded and deep-fried), tiny pancakes (“pannenkoeken”), syrup waffles (“stroopwafel”).
Here is from the list of my favorite restaurants, cafés and pubs (https://goo.gl/maps/6eH1YG6M1KQ5Ku7A8) the places where I gave an good Accessibility mark (4⭐ = pretty much accessible; 5⭐ = fully accessible).
▲▲ Pllek - Good restaurant, building structure made of containers. #Extra : just chilling on their private beach with a view on the city. Accessibility : 4⭐
▲ Bakers & Roasters - Good breakfast/brunch #Extra : come very early. Accessibility : 4⭐
▲▲ Café Toussaint - Authentic brown café (traditional dutch pub) with a nice outdoor area. #Extra : Just have a sandwich or a beer! Accessibility : 4⭐
▲▲ Hotel De Goudfazant - Cool high-end restaurant in an old garage. #Extra : there are sill some cars in the back of the restaurant. Accessibility : 4⭐
▲ REM Eiland - Really fine cuisine restaurant. #Extra : View is beautiful from this old rehabilitated oil and gas platform Accessibility : 5⭐
▲ Mossel en Gin - Good mussel, good gin. #Extra : it’s a cute maisonette. Accessibility : 4⭐
▲▲ Zoku - Good restaurant and brunch, you can also work there all day. Take the elevator to the 6th floor. #Extra : go there just to have an amazing view over the city landscape! Accessibility : 5⭐
▲▲▲ Foodhallen - Food hall with various type of food from all over the world. #Extra : there is more space to sit upstairs if you take the stairs right in the middle of the halls. Accessibility : 4⭐
▲▲ Bocca Coffee - Coffee place where you choose your drink with its color : Black (expresso, filter…) or White (latte, cappuccino). #Extra : Relaxing Atmosphere. Accessibility : 5⭐
Helpful links:
Sights
- Many Amsterdam sights are fully accessible to travelers with limited mobility: Van Gogh Museum, Heineken Brewery, Anne Frank House Museum (but not the house interior), Royal Palace, New Church, Begijnhof, Amsterdam History Museum, Stedelijk Museum, the museum at Rembrandt’s House (but not the house itself), Dutch Theater, Red Light District, and the Old Church.
- Other sights are only moderately accessible (you may need some assistance from companion or staff): Rijksmuseum, EYE Museum, Westerkerk (except for the tower), Hermitage Amsterdam Museum, De Hortus Botanical Garden, Jewish History Museum.
- These Amsterdam sights are not accessible to travelers with limited mobility (too many steps, no elevators, narrow corridors): the interior of the Anne Frank House, the loft at the Amsterdam History Museum, Rembrandt’s House.
- Accessible Toilets : Your best bets for wheelchair-accessible toilets are modern restaurants (for example, just about any McDonald’s) or major museums.
- Shopping : for clothes, souvenirs or cheese in the Kalverstraat, Nieuwedijk or Haarlemmerstraat. Additionally, you should enjoy the great atmosphere of the outside markets where fresh vegetables, fruits, antiques, souvenirs, books and clothes are sold in Waterlooplein fleemarket, Albert Cuyp market or the Noordermarkt organic market.
Transport
To and from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol
- Services are available on offer, including airport caddies and wheelchair provision.
- Lift is available to the train platform and assistance can be arranged in advance with the national railway service (NS).
Around the city :
- Trams are accessible with a ramp at the middle wide entrance, and busses entrances are on the same height as the platforms.
- Do not hesitate to rent a bicycle in Amsterdam. Special bikes are available to rent : Star Bikes, Fun2Go bike, the tricycle, the O-Pair bike or the Firefly.
- Unlike many european cities, wheelchair users can easily navigate the city on sidewalks, and even on the smoother bike paths, provided being extra careful : bicyclists move quietly and quickly. If you have the strength or the wheelchair battery life to roll, you may prefer to do that. Pro tip : purchase a bike bell and attach it to your chair!
Visiting city attractions
- Several canal cruise operators make use of wheelchair lifts : Blue Boat Company.
Helpful links :
- Official City Transport Information for disabled travellers
- Official public transport company page for accessibility
Hotel and Accommodation
Useful links listing a lot of options :
Helpful links :
- The amazing Rick Steves’ book “Easy Access Europe”
- Josephine Reed’s blog about Accessibility in Amsterdam
- The amazing Josephine Rees’s map of Wheelchair-friendly restaurants
- Emma’s experience of Amsterdam in wheelchair
- Other tips on Wheelchair Travel
- This private company provides package for travellers with limited mobility
- This same company has this useful pdf of a Accessible City Guide
If you have a question, suggestion or contribution, feel free to comment below. Read last week’s round up here.
