With the kids

You can find great things to do with the kids everywhere in Holland, but is there a better city than Amsterdam where there are so many fun, crazy, exciting and fascinating attractions?

A great city for kids

Where else could you see thousands of animals from the most exotic of countries, ride a pedalo through the canals and meet Johnny Depp face to face? Where else could you admire a palace built on 13,659 piles, take a ride on an old-fashioned trolley car, feed pigeons on the Dam and work with the latest computer? Where else could you climb three churches in one day and take the train to Holland’s biggest airport through a tunnel? No child will feel bored in a wonderful city like Amsterdam. If you’d like to spend a (extra) day in Holland’s capital with the kids, it won’t be hard to compile an exciting itinerary. The following list of suggestions might help you along a bit.

All the animals of the world

Before you’ve even passed Artis’s entry gates you’ll see them. Two dinosaurs so big their backs are taller than the surrounding trees. Not all of Artis’s animals are that old. Fortunately not all of them are made of stone like these giant creatures. The silly penguins, monkeys swinging to and fro, the roaring lions and over 1400 different species of animals welcome their visitors in Holland’s oldest zoo. There is a petting farm where kids can pet animals that are all typically Dutch pets and farm animals. There are long-tailed sheep, goats from the Veluwe with very long furs and tufted ducks.

In the aquarium hall all the aquaria combined contain over a million and a half liters of water. You’ll be surprised when you find a car wreck and a rusty old bike submerged with tropical fish in all the colors of the rainbow. Breams and rock basses swim around freely and in one of the larger four aquaria you’ll get a glimpse of the fish that call Amsterdam’s canals home. Artis also has a planetarium where you’ll feel part of the stars.

Madam Tussaud’s Amsterdam

Face to face with famous artists like Robbie Williams, Madonna and Arnold Schwarzenegger; did you see him move just now? Take a guided tour through the history of the Golden Century, experience the first moon landing and meet celebrities in the television studio. If you’re not afraid of heights you shouldn’t miss the great view of the Dam, the heart of Amsterdam. You can see it all through a large, round window. This is all part of the Madam Tussaud’s Scenerama experience.

Fun with science and technology

Where the tunnel runs beneath the river IJ and thousands of waters disappear beneath the water, you’ll find a large, new museum dedicated to science and technology: NEMO (formerly New Metropolis). Its motto is: it is prohibited to NOT touch anything. Here, you can investigate the world around you and find out more about exotic natural phenomena. You could try, for example, to blow a soap bubble big enough to fit you! And why is tap water clear when the ocean is blue? Why is there sugar in tooth paste? The laboratory holds the answer to all of these questions and more. You could also make your own licorice, the favorite candy among Dutch children.

Have the computer decide whether you’re a natural drumming talent. Will the jury judge positively or fill the screen with tomatoes? Discover what you can do with electricity. Connect the cables in the right order to boil water for the potatoes or turn on the breeding chamber. Or perhaps you’d like to build a house out of Styrofoam and bamboo? There is a helmet waiting with your name on it. Wander through a maze filled with the sounds of the jungle, where monkeys scream, lions roar and a deafening thunderstorm could hit at any moment.

Once you’ve seen everything you can mount the roof and find yourself some 30 meters above the water of the river IJ where you’ll have a great view of the heart of Amsterdam. Even if you don’t visit NEMO you could climb the wide, slanted steps of the Prince Hendrik quay and enjoy a gorgeous view.