I came upon a fabulous post by Nick Zeleznack by following our web traffic data. Nick has a truly fabulous plan for those who want to get a good taste of Amsterdam, and I am quite flattered that he decided that our tour of the red light district is good enough to be part of his excellent tour of Amsterdam.

The tips he includes are excellent, and having lived in Amsterdam for five months myself, I can vouch for his choices of neighborhoods and shops to visit. They are all excellent.

So, grab our tour, read Nick’s plan, and have a blast in Amsterdam.

The benefits are obvious: Less stress, less polution, less money spent on gas, insurance and the like; and of course, a healthy workout along the way.

The Dutch habit does however take some getting used to for first timers. Especially in summer, riding a bike can mean slaloming between tourists – oblivious to the delineations of the “fietspad”, or playing chicken with a mother on her mobile phone as she bikes her three children to school in pedal-powered wheel barrel. Bike theft is also common and the Dutch weather is not exactly conducive to year-round riding.

That said, there is nothing quite like the experience of riding along the Amsterdam canals with the wind in your hair and a song in your heart, or seeing Dutch wonders like a four-story parking garage dedicated only to bikes.

Some would say it even beats walking.

But you didn’t hear that from me.

Amsterdam Accommodations