Product Description

Marvel at the Dutch Masters and take a step back in time in an elegant merchant's house. Join the late-night revellers in the Red Light District or cosy-up canalside in a `brown cafe'. Get the low-down on Queen's Day and see the Royal Orchestra at the Concertgebouw. Elegant, history-steeped port; liberal, laid-back party town. Connect with your Amsterdam using this stylish and streetwise guide.

COMPREHENSIVE LISTINGS - more than 250 reviews of the best restaurants, cafes, coffeeshops and clubs in town

EXPANDED ARCHITECTURE CHAPTER - get gable-gazing with our chapter dedicated to this remarkable city's characterful buildings

BE INFORMED - in-depth analysis of current events gets you under the skin of the city

EXPLORE THE CITY YOUR WAY - tailor-made cycling and walking tours and recommended canal cruises

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #700211 in Books
• Published on: 2006-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 298 pages

Review
"Best for curious and independent-minded travelers" -- Wall Street Journal

Best for curious and independent-minded travelers' --Wall Street Journal

From the Publisher
Who We Are
At Lonely Planet, we see our job as inspiring and enabling travellers to connect with the world for their own benefit and for the benefit of the world at large.

What We Do
* We offer travellers the world's richest travel advice, informed by the collective wisdom of over 350 Lonely Planet authors living in 37 countries and fluent in 70 languages.
* We are relentless in finding the special, the unique and the different for travellers wherever they are.
* When we update our guidebooks, we check every listing, in person, every time.
* We always offer the trusted filter for those who are curious, open minded and independent.
* We challenge our growing community of travellers; leading debate and discussion about travel and the world.
* We tell it like it is without fear or favor in service of the travellers; not clouded by any other motive.

What We Believe
We believe that travel leads to a deeper cultural understanding and compassion and therefore a better world.

Customer Reviews

Good list of cheap eateries
The value in "Lonely Planet Amsterdam" is in the thumbnail sketches of cafes and reasonably-priced restaurants. The descriptions of the establishments that I am familiar with were right on the money. They are grouped by neighborhood and have basic information, such as opening hours. I was disappointed that Indonesian restaurants were short-changed, because they "aren't authentically Asian." True, but an Indonesian rijstafel shared between half a dozen or more people is not too expensive and is an authentically Dutch form of entertainment. The biggest problem with the book is that it doesn't open flat. You need both hands to force it open wide enough to read comfortably and then it's hard to flip through the pages. And you will do a lot of flipping, because there's no good index to help you find things.

There are about half a dozen pages of photographs of the Amsterdam area, unnaturally sunny and uncrowded. Amsterdam is one of Europe's most interesting and picturesque cities, but nobody goes there for the weather, and the crowds of pedestrians and bicycles are part of the charm. The description of Dutch culture was spot on. Amsterdammers in particular are very broad-minded-one of the reasons that Amsterdam is a favorite vacation spot for gays and lesbians--but they're not part of the have-a-nice-day crowd. Expect them to be polite and helpful, rather than effusive.

I have half a dozen guides to Amsterdam and find that no one of them covers all aspects of a visit. "Lonely Planet Amsterdam" is most useful as a way of finding somewhere quick to eat when you're out sight-seeing.

Reliable and Informative Travel Guide
Over the past two years, I've purchased and used five Lonely Planet guides, and this one ranks among the top. Andrew Bender provides humorous yet accurate information on the culture and norms of Amsterdam as well as key surrounding areas (Den Haag, Haarlem, etc.) Day after day during our week-long trip, we turned to his guide for advice and weren't disappointed. Highly recommended.

Great Resource
Recently I have had the lucky opportunity to go to Amsterdam several times. This book has been invaluable. While you need to double check the operating times for some sites ( you do with any book as there is a lag time between publishing and the gathering of info) the descriptions of places are engaging, accurate and most importantly informs me well as to where I should spend my time. Bender is very good at his restaurant descriptions and his take on all things cultural and historic. A real blessing. I have looked - and bought several others but this is the only one I carry around while I am in Amsterdam.