Will have two full days in Amsterdam after a Viking cruise. Is the the 1Amsterdam card worth the investment. Is there a better option. Also, first time to Amsterdam so any tips or advice from frequent visitors would be much appreciated.
Posted by
Pacific Northwest
894 posts
Amsterdam is a crazy wonderful place. It will leave an impression on you.
A few thoughts......if you are not careful in scanning your surroundings, a bicyclist will make an impression on you...they are everywhere and they own the road. Look both ways while walking near a bike lane, always.
I bought an "IAmsterdam" card - the 72 hour model, on-line prior to arriving during "tulip time" - mid April. At the time of purchase, the 72 hour card was substantially discounted, but that offer may change without warning. I picked up my card at the airport, but there is a pickup point inside the Central Station. My suggestion is to carefully research which attractions interest you in Amsterdam then compare your list to the attractions covered by the "IAmsterdam" card. In doing so, I found that it was a good value for me, but that is not necessarily true for others. Although the card is timed in full day use periods (24, 48, 72 hours, etc.) keep in mind that most attractions offered with the card open at 10 am and close at 6 pm. There may well be better options than the "IAmsterdam" card for a 48 hour visit.
Please consider writing a review of your Viking cruise upon completion.
Have a wonderful time.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
"if you are not careful in scanning your surroundings, a bicyclist will make an impression on you...they are everywhere and they own the road. Look both ways while walking near a bike lane, always."
I agree, but need to add a catch - in Amsterdam, you are ALWAYS near a bike lane! You will quickly learn to be careful at all times, particularly at dusk when visibility is lower. That's when I got hit by an electric scooter; fortunately, my messenger bag absorbed the impact rather than me!
Posted by
NL
143 posts
Whether or not the iAmsterdam Card is worth it or whether or not there is a better alternative all depends on what you are planning to do: visiting museums, a canal cruise, just walk around
Lets do some calculations ;)
The 48 hour iAmsterdam card costs 74 euros. The iAmsterdam card is in effect two cards. One for attractions and one for public transport (GVB operated public transport only). A regular 48 hour GVB card costs 12.50 euros. A GVB 1 hour ticket costs 3 euros.
First question should be: Do you think you are going to use public transport? It probably all depend on where your hotel is. Amsterdam is a very compact city. A lot of the sights are in walking distance of each other. So chances are, you wont need public transport at all, or maybe once a day.
As the public transport part of the iAmsterdam Card is worth 12.50 euros, it leaves 61.50 euros for the attractions, which are a canal cruise and quite a lot of museums (or it leaves 74 euros if you are not going to use public transport)
The regular prices of some of the more popular attractions are:
- canal cruise (16.00 euros)
- van Gogh Museum (18.00 euros)
- Rijksmuseum (17.50 euros)
- Artis Zoo (21 euros)
Visiting the above (in 48 hours) would cost 72.50 euros without an iAmsterdam Card. Assuming you use trams and buses as well, that would be a profit of 11 euros.
There are also cheaper attractions like
- Hortus Botanicus (9.00 euros)
- Windmill van Sloten (8.50 euros)
- Museum of bags and purses (12.50 euros)
- Oude Kerk (10.00 euros)
The card also gives a 25% discount at several places.
https://www.iamsterdam.com/en/i-am/i-amsterdam-city-card
https://en.gvb.nl/reizen/producten-en-tarieven/ov-tarieven-2018
You really need to do the math your self after you have decide what you really want to see in Amsterdam. If you plan do visit several attractions the iAmsterdam Card can certainly be worth it.