Should I rent a car in Amsterdaam

Let me be the first to give you this advice: No. Parking is expensive and extremely scarce. Trams are plentiful and cheap. Leave the luggage at your hotel. If you feel the need, take a cab when you finally go to Schiphol to fly out of Amsterdam.

Let me be the second: No car! Few city centers in Europe have scarcer or more expensive parking. The trams will get you just about anywhere you want to go.

Let me be the third: NO ...what previous posters said. Amsterdam is a great city for walking( or if needed use the tram) but definitely not a good idea to rent a car

And to add even more. It's probably easier to find parking for a boat in the old city than it is for a car.

Generally in a city, there is plenty of public transportation to get around. Parking, especially safe parking, can be rare and expensive.

In Amsterdam, you would be most likely to park your car until you are ready to leave. We did park one night under the Olympic Stadium in Amsterdam which was safe and accessable by tram. The city itself isn't car friendly.

Sometimes public transport is a hassle when you carry a lot of luggage. Even then, it's probably better to take the occasional cab than to pay rental costs and parking for a car that won't do you any good.

Don't exaggerate with the "trams get you everywhere" mentality... you can be frustrated.

Thanks to all responders. We are now convinced not to rent a car

Bicycle in Amsterdam would be much better than a car.

Definitley do not rent a car. I was there this summer and walked just about everywhere. You can take the train form the airport to city centre. I was then even able to walk to my hotel. ; It's a great city and I'm sure you'll have a great trip.

Pam

no. schipol has a luggage locker storage area in T3 i think it is. look for the icon with a suitcase that has a key over it.
store any suitcases you can for a very reasonable fee. (we stashed a tandem bike and gear bag for 3 days).
walk, train, tram around town. parking and cabs are $$$

we just got back from Amsterdam (loved it!) and ditto car rental - that's a big fat NO. We learned that bikes have the right of way over pedestrians so be careful. This is a bicycle town and the bike parking lots are amazing! The public transit is user friendly and walking is really the way to go to see everything. Heads up on getting back to the airport. TAKE THE TRAIN. Our taxi ride was over 50 euro. p.s. hope you are lucky enough to book at Boogaards B&B - what a fabulous way to have ended our European journey. Check it out on TripAdvisor.

We love Amsterdam but would be terrified to drive there. Actually, walking is scary enough, as cyclists move with the speed of light and as a ped it seems your responsibility to watch out for them. We also stayed at Boogard's and enjoyed it.

We actually saw a lot of Amsterdam (Van Gogh Museum, Anne Frank's house, Rijksmuseum, lunch) on a long layover on our way to Cairo, using only the trams. We got a hotel room in the Schiphold airport hotel, slept a few hours, took the tram from the airport, saw our sights, took the tram back to the airport, and slept a few more hours until time to get on the plane again. . . . and it was all easy and economical. Of course, we used a current RS guide book. Gwen

Gwen, the question of sight-seeing during a layover at Schipol comes up frequently on this website. Could you share with us how long your layover lasted?