We have about three hours of time from our plane landing in Amsterdam until we board our river cruise ship, and were thinking of visiting the Anne Frank house. We know we have to get timed-entry tickets in advance, but I'm wondering from anyone who has visited there recently, do you still have to wait in a long line to get in, even with a timed-entry ticket? I saw this in a youtube video and wondered about a long wait in line. I have knee issues and cannot stand very long (I'm aware of all the stairs in the actual House), plus we are on a limited amount of time. Has anyone had to stand in line for a length of time to get into the house/museum? Thank-you.
Posted by
Snohomish, WA
3229 posts
We went in February 2024 and there was no wait at all for ticket holders. I had just had a knee replacement in October and was having the other one right when we got back, and FWIW, I was fine with the stairs etc.
Posted by
Chicago
944 posts
I haven't been there recently, but I seem to recall that parts of the museum (it is a house,
after all) are narrow and kind of single-file? Someone else may be able to confirm. That
would seem to imply the chances of a queue are non-trivial.
I would also guess that the chances of the queue getting longer increase as the day goes
on.
But more importantly, if you really only have 3 hours from the time the plane touches down
till you need to get on the ship, you'll be scrambling just to get to the boat, especially if you
are flying in from the US. If you have to claim bags, clear immigration, and get from Schiphol
to the terminal downtown, that will probably take 2 hours. If you actually have 5 hours, well,
maybe there's a chance.
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
6276 posts
I would have the same time concerns as Shoeflyer. Even assuming you arrive on time, you don't have 3 free hours in Amsterdam. You would be lucky to have 2. And still need to get to the museum, tour the house, and then get to the river boat. And what would you do with your luggage? The Anne Frank House doesn't have luggage storage.
Posted by
The Netherlands
1878 posts
The whole point about the timed tickets is that there is no long line to wait in. You can enter the house at the time on your ticket without much wait. There will of course be a short line, because you won’t be the only one with tickets for that particular time slot and you won’t be able to go thru the ticket and security check all at the same time. But the people you’re in line with all have tickets for the same time slot.
CJean raises a good point though. What will you do with your luggage? The Anne Frank house only allows you to enter with a small backpack or purse and they have no left luggage facilities. You therefore won’t be allowed to bring your cruise luggage into the house and you won’t be able to store it there.
Posted by
Paris
10834 posts
There is sadly no way you have time to do this.
Are you arriving at the airport in Amsterdam from the United States or Canada, or from elsewhere in the Schengen zone ?
If the former, it will take you a while to get out of the airport (due to the need to clear immigration). While Schiphol is more convenient than many airports in this regard, it still takes at least a little time. Then the time to get to the Anne Frank House.
Again, Schiphol is closer in and the train and tram system means you could get there more easily than you could get to a similar site in other cities, but it still takes some time.
Then the time to tour the house itself, then the time it takes to get to your cruise ship dock so you don't miss your boat.
And this is all assuming your plane arrives on time - which is certainly not guaranteed !
This is just way too little time. If you want to visit the Anne Frank house, you need to build in an extra day in Amsterdam.
Posted by
OP
Oregon, USA
3 posts
Thank you all for your replies/thoughts. We actually are arriving from Paris, not the US, as we will have already been in France for several days. So, it's my understanding that we don't have to go thru customs again in Amsterdam; is that correct? I've also checked with the cruise line and they said we can stow our luggage there, a few hours early, prior to embarkation. I've checked the distance from the airport to the cruise terminal, and then the cruise terminal to the AF house, and it seems like it can work out. BUT I see what all of you are saying, that in spite of my best efforts to make this work, it probably is just going to be too tight and too much of a risk time-wise to make it work. I appreciate all of your input! (can anyone tell me if we have to go thru customs again in EU countries, once we've already gone thru it in our initial arrival in Paris?)