Between the craziness of buying our first house, fixing said house, and life in general, our European vacation came out of nowhere. I wrote about revisiting Amsterdam a few months ago, and in stereotypical fashion, this trip has turned into Amsterdam and MORE! Specifically, Amsterdam, Croatia, and Montenegro.

The older I become, the less desire I have to cram as many countries as I can visit into one trip. However, there’s still the voice in the back of my head that goes:

“But you’re in Europe! See everything you can. You don’t know when you’ll be back.”

This voice wins every. single. time. The fear of missing out is real, and drives me to throw the “don’t pack too much many places into one trip” mantra out the window. Someday I’ll accomplish the outlandish idea of flying into a country…and staying there.

Even though it seemed like plans were finalized last minute, I’m excited about this adventure. We forfeited planned activities, and instead are hoping to relax and enjoy the city vibes. Without further ado, here’s the first half of our 13 Day Itinerary – Amsterdam!

The Run Down:

Time Spent in Amsterdam: 3-ish Days – we arrive in the evening on June 5 and leave the morning of June 8

Day 1 – Arriving in Amsterdam

Our flight lands in Amsterdam around 5:30 p.m., so the first official day will be dedicated to settling in. Last time I was in Amsterdam I stayed about 30 minutes outside of the city and regretted that decision. This time, we are staying in a much more central location at the Hermitage Hotel Amsterdam. It’s located in an old canal building, so it’s not only within walking distance of the city center, but charming as well!

Day 2-4 – More Amsterdam

Hitting The Market
One of my favorite things to do when traveling is visiting markets. They’re a great way to eat local food (hello, stroopwafel!) and find interesting things to bring home. The Albert Cuyp Market has been around since 1905 and offers items ranging from snacks to souvenirs. This is my kind of way to spend a morning!

Van Gogh Museum
Another one of my mishaps on my first Amsterdam trip was accidentally visiting the Rijksmuseum. Not that the Rijksmuseum isn’t worth checking out, but I was 100% confident that I was at the Van Gogh Museum until I purchased my ticket. Oops. Now we’re living in the modern age where tickets to the Van Gogh Museum can ONLY be purchased online in advance…really, I don’t think I can mess it up this time.

Did Someone Say Beer?
Sorry Heineken, we’re not talking about you. Coming from a city where craft beer flows freely, I always have to check out the local brewery scene when traveling. Brewery ‘t IJ is highly recommended everywhere on the internet. Bonus points: it’s next to a windmill.

Canal Tour
It’s touristy, you may think it’s a little cheesy, but hey, it’s vacation. Embrace being on a boat with a bunch of other tourists.

There you go! Like I said, we don’t have a ton of structured plans. With only a few full days in the city, we don’t want to rush from place to place to get the the next attraction. Walking around and having a drink or two doesn’t sound too shabby to me.