Amsterdam Canal Cruise: Worth It? I First Took One in 1974
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Although I’ve visited Amsterdam numerous times, I had not taken a canal cruise since 1974. I was a fresh-faced eighteen-year-old on my very first solo trip to Europe, a two-week jaunt from England where I’d moved to attend university.
I had my orange backpack, my red anorak (très chic—not) and a thin wad of traveler’s checks.
After flying from London Heathrow to Amsterdam, I took the bus into the city (no splashing out on taxis in those austere days), stashed my backpack at a dorm room at the Hans Brinker Hostel (which is still going), and then went in search of a canal tour. As a first-time solo traveler, it seemed like a savvy thing to do.
I couldn’t get lost sitting on a canal boat.
That first canal tour was, frankly, not terribly memorable. Amsterdam in 1974 was lively, but it was also grubby and rather seedy. The house façades looked neglected, the harbor still showed the effects of World War II, and the Dutch people appeared a bit on the grim side.
The energetic, multicultural, joyous atmosphere of today’s Amsterdam was nowhere to be found.
Fast forward to today, and Amsterdam’s canals are still doing what they’ve always done: circling the Centrum in that elegant four-hundred-year-old half-circle that gives the city its shape. Cross any bridge and you’ll spot a glass-topped boat gliding by, packed with camera-happy tourists.
So should you take an Amsterdam canal cruise? I’m going to go out on a limb and say yes. Frankly, it’s restful. All you need to do is sit, watch elegant façades drift past, half-listen to commentary, and, depending on the cruise, knock back a beer or two.
Table of Contents
Finding a Canal Cruise
Fast-forward forty-plus years (yikes!) and I’m again on board a canal boat for a 75-minute cruise. Gregg and I have only just arrived in Amsterdam after a nine-hour flight from Vancouver. Taking a relaxing cruise in the late afternoon turns out to be the perfect way to recover.
Book Ahead
If Amsterdam is the first stop on your European vacation, book your cruise before you leave home. Choose a timeslot that is a few hours after your arrival in Amsterdam so you can get settled and find your way to the dock closest to your hotel.
A canal cruise is a great way to get the lay of the land and see Amsterdam’s city center up close.
Here’s an option for a standard 75-minute tour:
I purchased tickets through GetYourGuide before we left home and so just needed to present the QR code on my phone to the attendant. I chose the Blue Boat company, but there are several more in Amsterdam.
Cruise Company
Your choice of cruise company will likely be dictated by location. We stayed at the Clayton Hotel Amsterdam American on the Singelgracht. The Blue Boat (and at least two more companies that I could see) have departure docks in this area.
The Blue Boat is about a five-minute walk along the Singelgracht toward the Rijksmuseum.
Go to the website of any cruise company and check where they have departure points, then choose the one closest to your accommodation. Most canal cruises go from Singelgracht or from the Damrak close to Central Station.
Cruise Types
In addition to the classic canal cruise in a glass-topped boat (the kind I took), you can also discover Amsterdam by canal in plenty of other ways.
Choose from open-boat cruises, dinner cruises, pizza cruises, and evening cruises, or for a more intimate experience, book a private boat tour just for you and your party that includes food and drinks.
Here are some boat cruises on GetYourGuide that show you Amsterdam from the water.
Boarding the Cruise
The April afternoon is brilliantly sunny (a not-typical occurrence in my experience visiting Amsterdam almost annually since 2008).
The boat is only half full, so Gregg and I have a table for six to ourselves. The top of the table is printed with a map of the canals, but it isn’t very useful because it doesn’t show the route we’ll be taking.
This is my only complaint. I would have appreciated a visual representation of our route indicating exactly where the canal tour went. The only other option was to follow the route on Google Maps on my phone.
And speaking of phones, make sure you purchase an eSim card from a company such as Airalo (my first choice) so you can keep on roaming without paying exorbitant fees.
Tour Commentary
The Blue Boat tour we’ve chosen doesn’t include live commentary, probably because it’s one of the least expensive options. We’re each given a cheap pair of headphones and directed to plug into the wall next to the table and choose our language.
The commentary is informative but not constant. During the 75-minute tour, it comes in and out, and is, to be kind, a bit dull.
However, I do learn that Amsterdam has more canals than Venice and more bridges than Paris. The beautiful canals we see today date from the 17th century when, as a result of severe overcrowding in the old center of Amsterdam, the city fathers decided to build more canals and more warehouses.
The main canals of Herengracht, Keisergracht, and Prinsengracht were completed over a span of 40 years.
During the cruise, you can choose to sit outside at the back of the boat, which is the place to be to take unobstructed pictures of the picturesque canals. The downside is that the canned commentary isn’t available outside.
We spend a bit of time out there, but the wind is chilly and so we quickly resume our seats under the glass roof.
Amsterdam from Below
What strikes me first as we get going is that I’m viewing Amsterdam from below looking up. I’m always used to looking down on Amsterdam’s canals from the bridges, not up from the water. The perspective provides a different, more intimate view of this enchanting city.
I love watching the gorgeous façades of the canal houses drift by. Most have been beautifully renovated, a striking contrast to the careworn and grimy scenes I remember from my cruise in 1974. Now, I admire plenty of white plaster leaves and swirls, ornate gables and other rich decorations including statues and columns.
After tootling around several canals in the Centrum, the boat ventures out into the harbor. Quaint gabled narrow houses give way to a plethora of ultra-modern buildings, the vast majority of them built since my 1974 trip.
The commentary informs us that Oosterhoeck Island used to be a wasteland of abandoned buildings until being reclaimed and built up in 2003.
Houseboats
The boat cuts a wide arc across the harbor and then back into the canals on its way to Singelgracht and “home”. We pass people sitting atop their canal boats enjoying wine in the sunshine.
I learn that the houseboats are permanently fixed in place on concrete pads. Unlike in the UK where houseboats are mobile, the Amsterdam ones stay put.
Staying in Amsterdam
Amsterdam has many options, from boutique hotels to grand hotels to apartments to chain hotels. I’ve stayed at all of these types of accommodation, each with its pros and cons. On our most recent trip to Amsterdam in 2025, we stayed at the Clayton Hotel Amsterdam American which I highly recommend. This venerable old hotel is an Amsterdam icon with a fabulous art deco restaurant.
We were upgraded to a canal view room with a view over the Singelgracht. The Clayton Hotel Amsterdam American is about a ten-minute walk to the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum and right on the edge of the Centrum. The area is lively with plenty of restaurants.
Another recommended choice if you’re looking for a slightly more reasonably priced option is the Holiday Inn Express – City Hall, steps from the harbor and within walking distance of old Amsterdam. Ask for a canal view room.
Amsterdam is not a cheap city. Plan on spending at least €300-€400 per night for a decent hotel in a central area of Amsterdam. I recommend you avoid places outside the city center. They may be cheaper, but you’ll spend too much time on trams getting to the interesting parts of the city.
Book a place as close to the Centrum as possible and enjoy many hours of wandering alongside the beautiful canals.
Recommended Novels to Read Before You Go
The Good Thief’s Guide to Amsterdam by Chris Ewan
A globe-trotting crime novelist with a lucrative side hustle in actual burglary takes on one too many jobs in Amsterdam, and ends up chasing a missing figurine through a caper worthy of a Cary Grant film. Droll, funny, and very much a comic whodunit.
The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton
Set in Amsterdam in 1686, a young bride receives a cabinet-sized replica of her new home, then finds an elusive miniaturist filling it with pieces that mirror her real life in unsettling ways. Suspenseful and richly atmospheric.
Keep Exploring Amsterdam with Artsy Traveler
Here are more posts about Amsterdam (one of my favorite European cities):
- Best Two Days in Amsterdam
- Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam: My Favorites After 50 Years of Visiting
- Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam: Best Bets for the Artsy Traveler
- Small Museums in Amsterdam: Rembrandt House and the National Maritime Museum
Carol M. Cram writes novels inspired by the arts; runs Artsy Traveler, an arts-focused travel blog, and Art In Fiction, a curated database of 2,700+ novels inspired by the arts; and hosts The Art In Fiction Podcast. She has also authored 60+ textbooks on computer applications and taught at Capilano University for over two decades. Carol lives with her husband, artist Gregg Simpson, on beautiful Bowen Island near Vancouver, BC.
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