Hello all, does anyone have up to date guidance on what museums and sites to bother reserving ahead of time in Amsterdam? Have you used a particular museum pass that was worthwhile? Is the Amsterdam City Pass the main one? also be curious to know if there is a need to book anything in advance for cities like Haarlem, Deflt, Rotterdam, or the museums at Arnhem/Otterlo? Thank you!
Posted by
St. Petersburg, FL
146 posts
When are you traveling? I just returned from Netherlands and only booked Van Gogh museum well in advance. I believe the Ann Frank House needs to be booked - they release tickets in advance and you want to book when those are released. We did not go on this trip as we had been before. I also booked the Rijksmuseum in advance but only a couple of days - I wanted to look at the weather forecast first. We did the Kroller Museum in Otterlo (it was really very very nice - highly recommend). We bought tickets at the museum as we again were looking at weather forecast and ended up going a day earlier than my plan. We did not buy any tickets in advance in Delft nor Haarlem.
Posted by
Twin Cities of MN
6287 posts
If you want to see the Corrie Ten Boom house in Haarlem, it books out 4-5 months in advance. Book Anne Frank in advance and possibly the Van Gogh museum.
Posted by
759 posts
Definitely Van Gogh. We were just in Amsterdam last month, and some in our group didn't reserve in advance. It was a no go.
Also, the Rijksmuseum would be a very good idea. Absolutely Anne Frank. Check the website to have a very clear understanding of how/when the Anne Frank tickets go on sale for your date. Set your alarm, because you need to get up in the middle of the night if you are in the US. They sell out within hours. Also, as mentioned if you have interest in the Corrie Ten Boom Huis tour and know when you'll be in Haarlem, buy your tickets today. They sell out quickly and you can buy them very far out, and are very limited. And if you plan on being in Amsterdam between March 20-May 11, 2025 - advance tickets (once they go on sale) for Keukenhof Gardens.
Posted by
75 posts
Not sure when you are planning to visit Haarlem, but other than Corrie ten Boomhuis as mentioned, I would say, no prebooking required for the other museums.
There will be a Maarten van Heemskerck retrospective (https://www.franshalsmuseum.nl/en/event/maarten-van-heemskerck/), but I don't expect many people know him and I don't anticipate long queues, if any. To ease your mind, you could check when you arrive in NL and check the slots offered online on the Frans Halsmuseum are available. I never booked a ticket online when I went there and just walked in and got a ticket at the counter.
The current temporary exhibition in Tyler's runs till September but that is not resulting in queues at the moment. Their Maarten van Heemskerck exhibition and the one on an 19th century Dutch draughtsman/painter in Egypt (from October) I don't believe will require you to prebook.
But, of course, if you feel more comfortable having the tickets before your journey to Haarlem, just buy them online. If you are not purchasing them online, most museums in Haarlem are closed on Monday so good to check their opening hours to not arrive in front of a closed door.
Posted by
Washington, DC USA
437 posts
As someone noted, when you are traveling makes a difference. The Anne Frank House tickets go quickly year round so it is best to get them asap which is 6 weeks ahead. For last October, I was able to reserve Van Gogh Museum tickets just 10 days in advance, Rijksmuseum just one day in advance, and I didn't need advance tickets at all for the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam or the Mauritshuis Museum in the Hague. However, at busier times of year, or when there are popular special exhibits, you would need to reserve these further in advance. In October, I did not need advance tickets in October for anything in Leiden or Deflt but I don't know about peak season.
The Netherlands Museum pass is designed for residents and probably won't be worth it for most short term visitors. You would need to read the details online to see if it would work for you. It does cover Anne Frank and Van Gogh but, my understanding is that without a Netherlands bank account and address, you could not buy it in advance and you could only get a temporary pass good for 5 museums. The Amsterdam City card does not cover Anne Frank or Van Gogh. For myself, I calculated that in order to save enough to make the card worth it, I would have had to compress into 72 hours all the sights that I preferred to visit leisurely and flexibly over 5 days.
Posted by
OP
Vancouver, BC
46 posts
Hello all, I'll be in Haarlem about the third week of July, Amsterdam by the last. Thank you all for the advice! It sounds like it's a good idea to pre-book a few of the top sights in Amsterdam and play the rest by ear. As for the passes, the City Pass seems like it comes with transport coverage and a canal ride, but not the main sites...good to know! I'm looking forward to the visit!