Solo Female Traveler (50YO) - Going to Vermeer Exhibit for a Weekend

Are you arriving at Schiphol or taking the train in from somewhere else?

The trams are easy to use and you can buy a tram ticket for a ride or for a day. If you are like me, I recommend buying the day ticket as I had a few mis-steps last spring and got on a wrong tram and then one going in the other direction than where I wanted to go so had to jump off and on, lol. You enter at the back door where there will be a ticketseller in a booth.

I would probably stay close enough to the MuseumPlein that you can walk. I'm going in April and staying in a not-inexpensive hotel recommended by Kim in Paris. It's the De Ware Jacob Boutique hotel but may be more than you want to spend.

For reference, at the far end of the MuseumPlein from the Rijksmuseum there is a large Albert Heijn grocery store. It's underground so all you see is the building housing the escalators to go down to it, lol.

Download the Rijksmuseum app. The last time I went to a special exhibition there, they had the audioguide on the app (2019) which was excellent and easy to use. Don't forget your earbuds and perhaps a power bank.

Looking forward to the exhibition!

I can recommend the XO Hotel Van Gogh, we’ve stayed there before and will stay there again in April. The hotel is across the street from the Museumplein and steps from a convenient tram stop.

On several trips, we’ve found the XO Hotels to have some of the best room rates in a very expensive city. We’ve stayed at the XO Couture and it was affordable, on a tram line and very nice, but a bit further out of the center than we like.

In addition to the Vermeer exhibit, top of our list for our upcoming trip is a visit (or two) to Winkel 43 for their famous apple pie. Have a wonderful trip.

Another hotel near the Museums that gets good reviews (from a friend of mine) is the Conscious Hotel at Museum Square (there are four Conscious Hotels in Amsterdam so make sure you are looking at the right one).

I agree with suggestions to stay in Museumplein area. We were fortunate to stay in a BnB (2019) two blocks from the Concert Hall and Rijksmuseum. Unfortunately the BnB closed during the Pandemic! That said, I have heard good reviews on the previously mentioned hotels. (Pam, thanks for mentioning the wonderful Albert Heijn grocery.) It was so handy. As far as transportation we took “The Red Bus” from Schiphol to Museumplein. Our stop was by the grocery. It was convenient. Enjoy your visit!
*Edited** to add: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjWoq3-tfr8AhVhIjQIHVvqAFEQFnoECC0QAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amsterdamtips.com%2Fschiphol-airport-to-amsterdam&usg=AOvVaw1HRubc_chdJ3fyi7xYDBUD

I stayed at Hotel Vondel in the museum area. The bus from the airport drops off just 2 blocks away. Easy walk to museums and lots of restaurants around. Tram is also 2 blocks away.

@Janis you are welcome and thanks back for that terrific transport link. I’m considering transport from Schiphol in April. I’ll plan on the express bus but if I feel too discombobulated from the long flight I’ll take a taxi so the info on that page was good to know. Always good to have a heads up about taxi touts. I’d not take a taxi from anywhere but what looked like an official taxi stand anyway.

I like to mention that grocery store because for folks used to US suburban grocery stores you might not expect it to be underground, lol, and with such a small entry footprint.

Karen, just “a heads up” (no pun intended) be aware of cyclists everywhere you go. When we arrived at our stop at Museumplein our kind bus driver alerted us to look both ways as we stepped off the bus. We love Amsterdam. Vondelpark is close by. It was fun walking the park and then sitting on a bench watching the cyclists fly by. :)

Another hotel in the same area is the Alexander, Vondelstraat 44-48. https://www.hotelalexander.nl/

We stayed there some years ago on a Rick Steves tour, and enjoyed it. The rooms are small, but the location is excellent, and the staff is great. It's in easy walking distance of Leidseplein, with many restaurants, a grocery store, and yes, another airport bus stop. It's on the other side of the Vondelpaark from the Museumplein, but still walkable.

We're staying there soon, spending just a couple of nights to see the Vermeer exhibit. We have a double room for 2 nights; the total for both nights, including tourist city tax, is €233.36. That's a flexible rate; we can change or cancel the booking up to 24 hours before our booked arrival.

The price probably doesn't include breakfast (they've quit serving breakfast since we last stayed there, but may be starting it up again,) but there is evidently a breakfast room with beverages and room to eat whatever you found at the grocery store.

Edit to add: I just checked the Trip Advisor reviews, and the most recent one mentions a good breakfast, but the ones from last month say no breakfast, but coffee and tea available all day. We'll see!

Thank you all! This is a great resource!

Yes, I’m flying into Schipol