Hello from Amsterdam
Discussion
Hi,
I moved here last week, relocated from Switzerland so fairly used to ex pat moves, originally out of London and three years in CH.
Living now in the canals of Amsterdam. Working in Hoofddorp.
All great advice and recommendations welcome. Girlfriend is Dutch so I am getting plenty of ‘advice’ from that direction !
So, what advice and recommendations do you want ?
It's a terrible place to live for petrolheads. High car prices/low discounts, high gas prices, high road- and CO2 emisson taxes. On top of that high speeding tickets and parking fines, etc.
No fun roads to drive on, dense population, crowded city's and motorways, traffic jams.
Only advice I can give you is go back to those clockmakers ASAP.
It's a terrible place to live for petrolheads. High car prices/low discounts, high gas prices, high road- and CO2 emisson taxes. On top of that high speeding tickets and parking fines, etc.
No fun roads to drive on, dense population, crowded city's and motorways, traffic jams.
Only advice I can give you is go back to those clockmakers ASAP.
DeltonaS said:
So, what advice and recommendations do you want ?
It's a terrible place to live for petrolheads. High car prices/low discounts, high gas prices, high road- and CO2 emisson taxes. On top of that high speeding tickets and parking fines, etc.
No fun roads to drive on, dense population, crowded city's and motorways, traffic jams.
Only advice I can give you is go back to those clockmakers ASAP.
Switzerland also not noted for its tolerance of boy racing... but at least I could get over the border easily and play in the Italian Alps. It's a terrible place to live for petrolheads. High car prices/low discounts, high gas prices, high road- and CO2 emisson taxes. On top of that high speeding tickets and parking fines, etc.
No fun roads to drive on, dense population, crowded city's and motorways, traffic jams.
Only advice I can give you is go back to those clockmakers ASAP.
Don’t even own a car, Amsterdam are banning all ICE from 2030 from inside the A10 ring. Plus driving here is likely end with a cyclist under your wheels. I was offered an EV as a company car, but I’d never use it except as a toy.
Bars are nice though ...
Gargamel said:
Switzerland also not noted for its tolerance of boy racing... but at least I could get over the border easily and play in the Italian Alps.
Don’t even own a car, Amsterdam are banning all ICE from 2030 from inside the A10 ring. Plus driving here is likely end with a cyclist under your wheels. I was offered an EV as a company car, but I’d never use it except as a toy.
Bars are nice though ...
No, I don't think Amsterdam will get away with banning cars within the A10 ring. Although part of the (left wing) city council will probably try anything to get rid of cars in the city centre, they've been building some car parks underneat canals as well recently. And with plans for more. Don’t even own a car, Amsterdam are banning all ICE from 2030 from inside the A10 ring. Plus driving here is likely end with a cyclist under your wheels. I was offered an EV as a company car, but I’d never use it except as a toy.
Bars are nice though ...
But things to do, apart from the usual Amsterdam museums/canal tours/bars/restaurants/red light district etc.
As already mentioned The Louwman Museum near The Haque is a good one. Louwman has a really nice and modern showroom near Utrecht as well by the way, called Louwman Exclusive (dealership for Lamborghini/Bentley/Morgan/Maserati/McLaren/TVR/De Tomasso/Rolls Royce) also worth a visit.
In Rotterdam the Maritime Museum and the harbor boat tour are interesting, if you like that sort of thing. About 45 km's of port with the biggest ships and maritime equipment in the world, including a globally unique collection of offshore construction-, salvage- and dregging companies.
If you like hiking and nature (if we have a thing called nature in the NL); the Veluwe is a nice place (since a couple of years even home to a couple of wolves). Or closer to Amsterdam is De Lage Vuursche, great place for eating pancakes as well.
In the summer go to the Wadden Islands, Vlieland is probably the nicest island, beautiful expansive beaches and sand dunes.
Maastricht is fun for a day out, nice shops/restaurants and good for (mountain)biking. Near Maastricht, in Landgraaf is also Europe's largest indoor ski slope called Snowworld (alhough it's far from the real thing obviously).
If you like theme parks, Efteling in the province of Noord Brabant is worthwhile.
Edited by DeltonaS on Wednesday 13th November 14:04
I use the Car2Go app quite often, and think it’s great, little Smart electric ForTwos scattered around town at about €0.30 per minute, so very cheap for short trips.
I do have an Abarth there too, but have also gone native and bought a shopping bike with a basket which I tend to use for the commute.
It’s an incredibly expensive town, I find, but I’ve decided that it’s not worth worrying about, I’ll still try to enjoy my time there as best I can.
I do have an Abarth there too, but have also gone native and bought a shopping bike with a basket which I tend to use for the commute.
It’s an incredibly expensive town, I find, but I’ve decided that it’s not worth worrying about, I’ll still try to enjoy my time there as best I can.
Yes, housing and parking for instance are expensive in Amsterdam.
Car ownership in general in the NL is expensive compared to the for instance the UK and Germany.
I'm astonished about the deals that can be made when purchasing a new car in the UK, both lease and cash purchase. The differences are incredible. And that's even before things like road taxes
Car ownership in general in the NL is expensive compared to the for instance the UK and Germany.
I'm astonished about the deals that can be made when purchasing a new car in the UK, both lease and cash purchase. The differences are incredible. And that's even before things like road taxes
Several people have mentioned museums, are you aware of the Museumkaart? €60ish/year and it gets you in to loads of places. https://www.museumkaart.nl/
If you're using trains, and presumably have a personalised Chipkaart, take a look a the discounts you can get. My Mrs pays €5/month and gets both of us a 40% discount on offpeak travel, but there are more expensive plans that give you free off peak travel.
If you're using trains, and presumably have a personalised Chipkaart, take a look a the discounts you can get. My Mrs pays €5/month and gets both of us a 40% discount on offpeak travel, but there are more expensive plans that give you free off peak travel.
Yes I have both of those, Been to Nemo a few times, its good fun, and the Hermitage
I have a train pass via work anyway, which is good, and you can rent terrible bicycles with it too !
So far so good, I am glad I wasn’t here at New Year the fireworks were apparently pretty bad this year.
I have a train pass via work anyway, which is good, and you can rent terrible bicycles with it too !
So far so good, I am glad I wasn’t here at New Year the fireworks were apparently pretty bad this year.
Gargamel said:
Yes I have both of those, Been to Nemo a few times, its good fun, and the Hermitage
I have a train pass via work anyway, which is good, and you can rent terrible bicycles with it too !
So far so good, I am glad I wasn’t here at New Year the fireworks were apparently pretty bad this year.
Not been to Nemo yet, is that worth it as an adult or wait until our nieces visit?I have a train pass via work anyway, which is good, and you can rent terrible bicycles with it too !
So far so good, I am glad I wasn’t here at New Year the fireworks were apparently pretty bad this year.
I've not been here for a new year yet. Last year there were fire tornados on the beach a couple of hundred yards from my apartment and several people have said it was like a war zone in the town centre (Den Haag) this year. 2 people killed in Arnham apparently when kids set of fireworks that started a fire in an apartment block
I would save visiting Nemo for when you have kids to take round as it's very much designed around children and discovery. It can also be extremely busy during Dutch school holiday periods but it's excellent and well worth visiting 
New Year in Holland is indeed rather like a warzone. I have a friend who used to be a war correspondent and they have come close to PTSD flashbacks ands things during peak firework. It might change though, they are legislating to ban basic bangers, firecrackers and the massive machine-gun rolls of bangers from next year onwards and there is a strong movement to ban all fireworks within a few years.
New Year in Holland is indeed rather like a warzone. I have a friend who used to be a war correspondent and they have come close to PTSD flashbacks ands things during peak firework. It might change though, they are legislating to ban basic bangers, firecrackers and the massive machine-gun rolls of bangers from next year onwards and there is a strong movement to ban all fireworks within a few years.
Gargamel said:
How time flies.
Three and a half years later... looking back a few suggestions here that I still haven't got around too. Have acquired a house a dog and a car in that time.
I know what you mean - I've been here 15 years now and just got my Dutch Nationality.Three and a half years later... looking back a few suggestions here that I still haven't got around too. Have acquired a house a dog and a car in that time.
Who'd have thought it . . . . .
Anyone have experience living out in the sticks in NL? My employer are mulling over my next assignment and Emmen in the North East is looking like a likely candidate. Looks like there are some nice towns/villages around the area and it's right on the border. Originally from the UK but have spent time in Poland, Italy and most recently Romania, for context.
Gassing Station | Netherlands | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff