5 Days in Amsterdam: A Slower Itinerary with Tulips and Windmills

Three days in Amsterdam covers the big sights. Five days lets them breathe. There is time to see the Rijksmuseum without rushing the Vermeers, to give Keukenhof the full day it deserves, and to finish the trip on the water instead of in a queue.

This plan keeps each day in one part of the city, with one day out to the bulb fields and one to the windmills. Day 1 is the old centre. Days 2 and 3 belong to the Museum Quarter. Day 4 is Keukenhof, and Day 5 starts in De Pijp and ends with a canal cruise.

Amsterdam in 5 Days — The Plan
📅 Day 1 · Old centre · Greenwoods, Dam Square and the Royal Palace, a drink at ‘t Nieuwe Kafé, a Red Light District walking tour, dinner at FuLu Mandarijn.
📅 Day 2 · Rijksmuseum, slowly · The Gallery of Honour early, the gardens, then Vondelpark’s floating tulips.
📅 Day 3 · Museumplein · Moco, the Heineken Experience, the Van Gogh Museum after 3pm, dinner at The Duchess.
📅 Day 4 · Keukenhof · The whole day in the tulip garden (the reason for a five-day plan).
📅 Day 5 · De Pijp, Zaanse Schans & a cruise · Breakfast in De Pijp, windmills in the afternoon, a farewell canal cruise.
💡 Out of season? Swap Day 4 for a train day trip — Haarlem, Delft or The Hague.

Day 1: The Old Centre

Start with breakfast at Greenwoods on the Singel. It is popular, and by midday the queue runs along the pavement, so go early.

From the Singel, walk to Dam Square for the Royal Palace, built as Amsterdam’s town hall and turned into a royal palace by Louis Bonaparte in 1808. Across the square stands the National Monument, unveiled in 1956.

Then stop for a drink on the terrace at ‘t Nieuwe Kafé, which is part of the Nieuwe Kerk and faces the palace. I walked past it more times than I can count before I finally got a table, because people hog the tables on a sunny day. The upside is that nobody rushes anyone either.

In the late afternoon, take a walking tour of the Red Light District, past the Oude Kerk. Since 2020, guided groups are not allowed to pass the windows, so tours keep to the outskirts, and the good ones are very informative. Ours covered the history, the rules and the neighbourhood, and our guide’s matter-of-fact stories had the whole group laughing.

Finish with dinner at FuLu Mandarijn on the Rokin. The Sichuan dishes there beat what I have had in Montreal, in New York, and even at Chinacy in Vienna. My favourite was the honey mustard chicken.

Day 2: The Rijksmuseum, Slowly

Book the earliest Rijksmuseum slot available and go straight to the Gallery of Honour, before the tour groups arrive. When I was there, the queues were everywhere, partly because several groups kept converging on the same paintings. It was the first time I had seen a Vermeer up close, and I wished I had more time to stare.

With five days, there is time to linger: the Vermeers, Asselijn’s Threatened Swan, Rembrandt’s Syndics and his late self-portrait as the Apostle Paul, and the maritime gallery afterwards. Then step out into the Rijksmuseum gardens, which are free to enter. They were peaceful and serene, full of people unwinding, chatting and reading their books.

In the afternoon, walk to Vondelpark. In April, the Tulp Festival puts floating planters of tulips on one of its ponds.

Day 3: Moco, Heineken and Van Gogh

Start Day 3 at Moco, on the edge of Museumplein, in a villa designed by Eduard Cuypers, the nephew of the Rijksmuseum’s architect. I went for Banksy, and the collection runs from Warhol and Haring to Basquiat.

At midday, walk to the Heineken Experience on Stadhouderskade, at the edge of De Pijp. We took the VIP tour, and the F1 room, the games room and Freddy’s Bar are all worth looking out for.

Back on Museumplein, grab lunch from the food trucks and picnic tables, or sit on the lawn. Then save the Van Gogh Museum, with its curved Kurokawa wing, for after 3pm, when the morning rush has thinned. Tickets are sold online only, with timed slots. Almond Blossom is my favourite painting there, and I brought home the magnet and the coaster.

For dinner, book The Duchess, in the old banking hall of the W Amsterdam‘s Bank building. I did not expect to love the pasta as much as I did. The hand-crafted pasta with braised short rib was our favourite, and the cacio e pepe took us straight back to Rome. Skip the drinks and order wine. For cocktails, the W Lounge on the roof across the street is more fun.

Day 4: Keukenhof, the Whole Day

Day 4 is the reason for a five-day plan. Keukenhof, near Lisse, went above and beyond my expectations. I am Canadian and had been to Ottawa’s tulip festival, so I arrived sceptical, and left calling it a tulip Disneyworld. The little ones were running off to explore, and the adults were simply in awe.

My one regret is that a tour gave it only half a day. Give it the whole day. Keukenhof only opens in spring, roughly from mid-March to early May. Outside the season, swap Day 4 for a day trip by train: Haarlem is 15 to 20 minutes away, and Delft and The Hague are close enough to combine.

Day 5: De Pijp, Zaanse Schans and a Farewell Cruise

Start the last day with breakfast on Eerste Jacob van Campenstraat in De Pijp, which has Locals, Flow and Bakers & Roasters on the same street. On the morning after King’s Day, the wait at Flow ran past an hour.

Then head out to Zaanse Schans for the afternoon. The windmills, De Kat among them, were lovely, the cheese and clog-making demonstrations were excellent, and the pancakes were amazing. It was a memorable, relaxing afternoon, which makes it a good fit for a final day.

Finish the trip back in Amsterdam with a canal cruise. Flagship Amsterdam runs small, fully electric boats, and seeing the canal houses and houseboats from the water is a lovely way to say goodbye.

Where to Stay

We stayed at the W Amsterdam on Spuistraat, just behind the Royal Palace, which puts Day 1 on the doorstep. The hotel was changing operator when we stayed, and I worried the service would suffer. It did not. The service was attentive and excellent. The Exchange building is not much to look at from the outside, but the rooms are modern and groovy, and the W Lounge on the roof, with its outdoor terrace, is stunning.

Getting Around

Walking covers most of this plan. Tram 2 runs from Dam Square to the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum and Vondelpark, and paying is simple: tap a contactless bank card or phone when boarding and again when getting off, using the same card both times. Keukenhof and Zaanse Schans can both be reached on a tour or by public transport from Amsterdam. Watch for bikes everywhere.

Bubbly Tips

• Book timed tickets early. The Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum both need a booked slot, and the Van Gogh Museum sells online only.
• Do the Gallery of Honour first. Tour groups converge on the same paintings from late morning.
• Give Keukenhof its own day. Many tours bundle it with Zaanse Schans, and Keukenhof is the one that loses out.
• Check Keukenhof’s dates. The 2027 season runs from 18 March to 9 May.
• Never photograph the windows in the Red Light District. It is considered offensive, and it is one reason the city banned tours past them.
• Visit Vondelpark in April for floating tulips. They are part of the Tulp Festival, which runs only from 1 to 30 April.
• Choose wine at The Duchess. Save the cocktails for the W Lounge.
• Tap in and tap out on trams. Use the same card or phone for both taps.
• Plan around King’s Day. On 27 April, the canals are packed and trams through the centre stop running, while the Museum Quarter stays much quieter.

Final Thoughts

Five days in Amsterdam is enough to stop rushing. The Vermeers get the time they deserve, Keukenhof gets the whole day, and the trip ends on the water rather than in a queue.

If I planned it again, the one thing I would change is the one this itinerary fixes: a full day at Keukenhof.

Until next time!

xoxo,
Bubbly 🎈