Amsterdam

Famous for its canals and coffee shops, Amsterdam is the capital of the Netherlands and attracts well over 3.5 million visitors each year. The city, situated on the north coast of mainland Europe, has been an important trade center since the construction of the famous Canal Ring in the 17th century. Once the richest city in the world, Amsterdam remains synonymous with diamonds, flowers, finance and art, though much of its splendor darkened through the German occupancy during World War II.

This is where Rembrandt spent much of his life (he is buried in the Westerkerk in the Jordaan), and any art lover coming to Amsterdam will be spoilt for choice for art galleries, theaters and architecture, and the Dutch are pretty good at designing the modern stuff, too, such as the NEMO science center and the new city library.

Tolerance is a watchword in Amsterdam, mainly because the city has undergone many upheavals in its time, and its citizens are better adapted to change than most. That tolerance is perhaps best demonstrated through the country's famous drugs and prostitution laws, although visitors should be warned that the Dutch just like to keep things in plain sight, for regulation purposes, and legality doesn't necessarily mean advocation.

The locals would prefer it if you came here to see the real (and much more interesting) Amsterdam; a vibrant, progressive city, which happily trades (figuratively and literally) on its miles of canals. Plenty of the world's cities are built around water, but there is only one that will charm you like Amsterdam.

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  Canal cruises

  A hundred sights to see in one sedate, picture-postcard journey

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  Bicycle hire

  Independent hire or guided tours, the ultimate way to explore Amsterdam like a l...

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  Goodies

  Vibrant, friendly restaurant offering organic, Mediterranean cuisine

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  Café de Koe

  Relaxed and informal haunt popular with local musicans and artists

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