Visit Amsterdam for 3 Days with (only!) 170 Euros: Here's How

How much does it cost to visit Amsterdam, one of the most expensive cities in Europe? If you follow our advice, you can sleep, eat and have fun with just 170 Euros!

Amsterdam is expensive, Amsterdam is overrated: yet, the city has wildly defeated all competition, returning to the Top 10 of the best destinations of 2018 (and probably the year). Worthy of the "sex, drugs and rock and roll" reputation? Probably, if not almost certainly: yet, beyond the (literal) smoke screen, the Dutch capital is a jewel to be discovered. But at what cost?

Visiting Amsterdam on a tight budget is a challenge even for the most experienced backpacker, thanks to the extortionate restaurants and tourist traps. It’s difficult, but not impossible: but how? Travel smart.

Are you an art lover? Spend 18 euros at the Van Gogh Museum and sacrifice the Heineken Experience (you can always console yourself with a pint of beer). Are you looking for the thrill of adventure? The A'DAM LOOKOUT, with a panoramic view of the city, is definitely more up your street than the Amsterdam Museum on Dutch history and culture.

Credits: @globalcityscapes

On the other hand, with 75 museums, 32 markets, 173 coffeeshops, 40 public parks and 165 canals (with a total of 1,281 bridges) not even a week would be enough to visit every corner of the city. A less demanding route which is more in tune with your traveller tastes will not only save your wallet, but will avoid a sterile, long, unsatisfactory and breathless ride through the city's endless attractions.

So what if you want to visit Amsterdam in 3 days without spending a fortune? We've designed an itinerary for you which is easily adaptable to your preferences and ridiculously cheap considering it lasts over 3 days: with only 170 euros will you be able to sleep, eat and have fun in one of the most expensive cities in Europe! Read to believe! (and pay attention to our inevitable #HCtraveltips!)

Let's start with the basics: public transport in Amsterdam is one of the most efficient in Europe, but you pay for convenience. The only expense we recommend to spend on trams and trains is to get to the city centre from Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport. The railway is located directly under the terminals and the ticket price is around 3.50 euros.

Amsterdam seems to be made for tourists: all the major points of cultural and artistic interest are collected neatly within a radius of a few kilometres, easily reachable by 10 minutes of walking. All you have to do is have your route in mind and do not waste precious minutes wandering in search of the Google Maps signal... and we can help you!

Credits: @karamintheworld

#HCTravelTips #1: The good backpacker knows that nothing in life increases as fast as the cost of a plane ticket near the departure date (if it’s not the mountain of clothes to fit in the suitcase). Booking with a lot of notice is the first rule to follow for intelligent savings. Four months in advance is more than enough to find a flight to Amsterdam at the modest sum of 50/60 euros (which within a few weeks can reach peaks of 200 euros, luggage excluded).

Once the flight has been booked, the second major problem with the destructive potential of its portfolio is: where to sleep in the city without spending your entire budget? Another burning question, which only one answer is allowed: in a hostel in Amsterdam. It is no coincidence that Amsterdam is one of the most populated centres for hostels: clean, youthful, central and above all cheap - they are the perfect solution for every backpacker that wants to spend those 50 precious euros on food and parties, not on a bed!

Stayokay Amsterdam Vondelpark is one of our favourites. The location is nothing short of enviable: not only is it overlooking the Vondelpark, the largest and most beautiful green area in all of Amsterdam, but it will take you only 7 minutes to get inside the "grachtengordel", the concentric belt of canals that encloses the heart of the city. Can we also mention the inner bar-restaurant, the BITE & DRINK, with theme nights, great drinks and a spectacular plasma TV?

Stayokay City Hall Amsterdam Vondelpark: because a hostel is more than a bed, it's new friendships and sharing!

Services and locations from 100 euros per night... that become 27 euros !? €54* is enough to secure a bed for two nights in a 4-person dormitory with private bathroom, personal locker and scented sheets. The magic of hostels!

#HCTravelTips n.2: If you’re wanting a relaxing holiday with long hours of sleep, Amsterdam is not for you. Here you fall asleep when your legs no longer hold up and you wake with the sun. To make the most of all that the city has to offer, we recommend not having breakfast later than 9.30!

What should you visit in Amsterdam when you want to have fun but your wallet wants to cry?

Just 9 minutes away from your room are the 3 most visited museums in all of Amsterdam: the Van Gogh Museum, the Stedelijk Museum (exactly opposite) and the Rijksmuseum Museum.

For those who feel they have already heard everything about art from school books, we recommend a single visit to Van Gogh. Slightly more expensive but definitely the most famous, it houses the largest collection of works of art by the most famous Dutch painter in the world, including masterpieces such as The Sunflowers, The Potato Eaters and some of his tormented self-portraits. Attention: tickets can only be purchased online and it is mandatory to book a time slot to visit to avoid overcrowding (however unavoidable).

A reasonable alternative for 17.50 euros is the Stedelijk Museum dedicated to the big shots of contemporary art. The colours of Pollock, Picasso, Chagall, De Chirico, Mondrian, Kandinsky (the "Base", or the permanent collection of the museum) surround the visitor like a glove. Recommended for those who have a heart for abstraction.

#HCTravelTps n.3: Amsterdam offers an excessive number of museums, most of which open their doors at 9.00am and close to the public at 17.30 / 18.00. Decide a time to visit (no more than two hours per museum is sufficient) and delegate the artistic part of your holiday in the morning and/or early afternoon.

It is impossible not to notice the Rijksmuseum, an immense National Museum that shows the real soul of the city through paintings, sculptures and masterpieces that could easily take five hours of your time. If you decide that you can not leave Amsterdam without having seen Rembrandt's Night Watch in the flesh then download the RijksMuseum App, an interactive museum guide that will keep you from adding the audio guide to the 18 euro entry fee.

Credits: @rijksmuseum

It is completely free to visit the gardens and the most famous selfie site of the city - the ‘I Am Amsterdam’ sculpture placed in front of the huge fountain in which the museum’s facade is reflected. (The letter "d" is the most difficult to climb but definitely the most comfortable to sit on).

We finish our focus on museums with two - completely different - Amsterdam must-haves: the Anne Frank House and the Sex Museum. The diary of the young Anne always ends up, sooner or later, on the summer reading list of every high school: visiting the secret hiding place of the family is an almost surreal experience. Guaranteed chills and danger of some tears. As expected, the queue is long at every hour of the day but luckily, the ticket is a modest price of 10 euros.

It’s a different story behind the Sex Museum, which remains one of the city's top attractions despite the huge media campaign supported by Holland to free Amsterdam from the stereotype of being a sex city. And yet, the Red Light District not only remains the busiest area but is an irreplaceable piece of the city's identity: you have not really visited Amsterdam if you have not set foot in De Wallen.

Credits: @amsterdamredlightdistricttour

#HCTravelTps n.4: Are you museum-addicted? Then you need a city pass for sure. The I am Amsterdam card is the most complete in this regard: choose between cards valid for 24, 48, 72 or 96 hours and enjoy free access to as many as 42 of the museums! The card can be purchased online or in person at the airport or at the Central Station. Prices starting from 59 euros.

Bonus museums: just in canse you haven't had enough ... free with the city pass
NEMO Museum, museum of science
Tropenmuseum, museum of ethnography (perfect for those visiting the city with young children)
Het Scheepvaartmuseum, one of the largest sailing museums
The ARTIS Royal Zoo
EYE film museum, a very famous cinema museum with a fascinating design
Pipa Museum
Diamond Museum, museum on diamond masonry
Micropia, the only museum in the world dedicated to microbes
Botanical Garden, founded in 1600 with more than 6,000 plant species

What to eat in Amsterdam whilst spending little: light lunch, local flavours

10 minutes from the Rijksmuseum is one of Amsterdam's most popular clubs, the Hap-Hmm. It owes its fortune to the strictly Dutch menu with simple ingredients of excellent quality: the inevitable soup of the day (it may be peas), stewed vegetables for mains and a coffee never exceed 10/12 euros. The only downside is the small size of the pub: book or be patient.

But if you want to become the king of budget travel then the market is your restaurant of choice. Noordermarkt and Albert Cuyp are the two largest open air markets in Europe, with products ranging from vintage leather jackets to organic vegetables.

Credits: @albertcuypmarkt

Here the street food is hailed as much as the creation of a starred chef: nothing is tastier than a Dutch herring sandwich for 4 euros. You cannot miss the french fries: just take a look at tourists' Instagrams to understand that food in Amsterdam is the protagonist. Both markets are located in the two coolest neighbourhoods in the city centre: Oude Pijp, the centre of youth nightlife, and Jordan, a former working-class neighbourhood that has now become a must-have postcard.

#HCTravelTps n.5: Nieuwmarkt is a much smaller market, but the fresh fruit smoothies for only 1 euro make it the envy of the entire city.

Credits: @hungryhugh

What to see in Amsterdam in the afternoon?
What would Amsterdam be without its canals? The dense network of radiating water that encloses Amsterdam is undoubtedly the most beautiful museum in the city, open air and completely free. There is no advice more useful for those who want to experience the city at 360 °: walk along the canals, peek inside the still inhabited houseboats, raise your head to the sky to see the end of the long facades of the houses, one in a row after another like soldiers.

Curious gems not to be missed?
Definitely No. 7 of Singel Road, or the narrowest house in Europe: less than a meter wide. What about the bridge "take one, see fifteen"? All you have to do is stop in the middle of the bridge at the corner of Reguliersgracht and Herengracht and enjoy the succession of 15 bridges between one side and the other of the city: you will soon understand why the Amsterdam canals have been elected Humanity by UNESCO!

On the way back to the hostel you can then stop at Zevenlandenhuizen, the buildings of the seven nations, or a summary of the architectural styles of the entire nineteenth century in a few metres: France, Spain, Russia, Italy, Germany ... colours and decorations mixed as could only happen in Amsterdam. It really deserves a souvenir photo!

Speaking of canals it is mandatory to dedicate some time to the famous sloped houses that have made the city so famous. You immediately notice then upon your arrival in the city; it's not an illusion, the facades of the houses that give on to the water are actually wrong. The result of an architecture that is too enthusiastic about the libertine atmosphere of the city? Perhaps, but the real explanation is not this.

Forced to pay a state tax equal to the breadth of their home, the Dutch began to build increasingly "thin" and tall houses: the result? Stairs that are practically impractical. The only way to transport material on the upper floors became to hoist things up with a pulley hanging from the roof of the house: to prevent the cabinets and armchairs from damaging the beautiful façade of the houses, it was compressed and tilted outwards.

Credits: @emilyymei

#HCTravelTps n.6: A visit an ancient canal house is almost mandatory: there are so many of them open to the public, but the most striking is undoubtedly the Museum Het Rembrandthuis, accommodation of the famous Dutch painter.

Finally, we recommend not forgetting the symbol par excellence of Amsterdam (and no, we are not talking about marijuana): the tulips! As wonderful as the Tulip Museum is, the visit to the Bloemenmarkt, the floating flower market, is completely free, and in addition to being more original, you can buy colourful bulbs at bargain prices to plant in your garden: a piece of Amsterdam that’s with you forever!

Credits: @HelloAmalina

Breakdown of Costs:

Hostel: € 54 + breakfast € 13
Airport train-Central station: € 7
Lunch / Dinner: an average of € 14 per meal
Museum of your choice: € 18
Anne Frank House / Sex Museum: 10 €
Total: 172

* The prices shown refer to low season prices and vary depending on the day of check in and check out