Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh in same day?

We took the Holland & Belgium tour last year. I’d say about 2/3 of our group had tickets to Van Gogh and went on the same day as Rijksmuseum. It’s about 100 yards away. We just didn’t have interest as we’d been traveling prior to the tour and knew we’d be museum’d out. Everyone who went was so happy and nobody expressed that it was too much. The tour itinerary is different this year, so I’m not sure when you go. We had the Rijks tour first thing in the morning then were free in the afternoon which is when everyone went to Van Gogh. (With advance tickets)
I’d definitely save a last full day for something different. We went to Haarlem.

Thank you KD. The itinerary is the same, Rijk in the morning then free in the afternoon on Day 10. Your feedback is helpful. We will be in Paris before the trip, so your "museum'd out" is my concern too. What did you think of Haarlem? Do you recommend it for our final day?

If you love Van Gogh’s art and story the well organized, compact (compared to the Rijksmuseum) museum is a good way to spend an afternoon when you are so close and have time. Pause for a light lunch to sit down awhile and then go immerse yourselves in Van Goghs.

reginawalsh8, we loved Haarlem. It was a beautiful, warm, sunny spring day. We had tickets to Corrie ten Boom; then had a wonderful alfresco lunch on a darling street; explored city center; walked to the windmill then headed back to Amsterdam for our final night before departure. We found it to be such a relaxing and perfect way to end our trip! I'd choose it over Delft as a day trip on the last day. We enjoyed Delft as part of our RS tour, but just felt that Haarlem was a nice way to wind down the trip.

Done! Thank you KD and Mona!

Hi Regina. Which tour are you on? We're on the April 5 start. We're staying in Amsterdam one extra day and have tickets for the Van Gogh museum then. We'll also be at the end of our trip (a few days in Paris before the tour) and figured we wouldn't try to pack it in after the Rijks.

I'd vote for both on the same day. I've done that tour as well and I booked the Van Gogh for about 230 to give myself time to get some lunch. I think I wound up going to the Albert Heijn grocery store which is underground near the Van Gogh Museum (entrance above ground) and grabbed a sandwich to eat on the MuseumPlein. In retrospect and next time I'll go ahead and book my Van Gogh tickets earlier and then just pop in to the cafe at the Van Gogh museum to grab something to eat. I stopped in there last time to get a coffee and the food looked pretty good.

https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/visit/food-and-drinks

There are also a cafe and a restaurant at the Rijksmuseum but it is so noisy and busy in there.

I do suggest you call the RS office to see what time they expect your tour of the Rijksmuseum to be finished. Then give yourself 45 minutes to an hour in between just in case your local guide runs long. It's only about a 5 minute walk from front door to front door.

The Van Gogh Museum does sell out and even if not sold on your particular day they do not sell tickets at the venue. It's all online.

Oh, good to know the Van Gogh Museum food looks promising. Thanks Pam.

I will also be on the April 5 tour, and have purchased a 2pm ticket for the same day as the Rijksmuseum, so now I know where to have lunch.

We are on the April 23rd trip. I booked Van Gogh for 2:00, then read Pam's suggestion of the VG cafe. I wrote the museum and asked them to change my entry time to 1:00 so we can eat first. You can't enter the cafe without entering the museum first.

Looks like you went with both on the same day with lunch at Van Gogh in between. Sounds like a great plan. Can you book a tour to Keukenhof for your "next day"?

Keukenhof is included on the tour.

We like museums and have visited many all over the world, but we won't do 2 museums in a day. It's just too much for us.
What we did in Amsterdam, was after the Rijksmusuem, we walked over to the Albert Cuyp Street Market and sampled food from the outdoor stalls and bought our souvenirs. We visited the Van Gogh museum the next day. but if you're short on time, you do what you have to do.
If you have free time for dinner, I'd suggest a Riffstaffel Dinner.

I will also be on the April 5 tour, and have purchased a 2pm ticket for the same day as the Rijksmuseum, so now I know where to have lunch.

Hi LIZinPA! See you there. Did you get the itinerary update?

Hi Stoutfella!
Yes, got the update.

I’m a huge museum fan and I’ve visited both the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh museum multiple times. With that said, I would never visit both museums on the same day. Both museums are grand and great and easily take several hours to explore.
The best thing to do would be to book tickets for the first time slots of the day for the Van Gogh museum. That way, you can appreciate the museum without the crowds.