
Amsterdam
It was Sean’s birthday in May and being the poor student (and bargain hunter) that I am, I decided around Christmas that I wanted to whisk him away which would give me plenty time to save. Around January I found return tickets from Belfast International Airport for around £80 using Easy Jet. We were booked to fly out Friday evening and return Monday evening. As the flight back on Monday was so late I decided to use the Park and Fly facilities which I used when we went to Edinburgh.
All in all it was around £100 which I thought was a bargain given I’d seen a hotel for 3 nights for what I thought was £100. Imagine my panic when I later found out (after booking the plane tickets) that it was actually £100 per night!!!! Luckily, I’d booked well enough in advance to shop around on various sites and had friends going who could also advise me.
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I first checked Airbnb which was decent. It gave me an idea of the areas I could stay in that didn’t necessarily have to be in Amsterdam. When people tell you how expensive the place is they’re really not lying!! I checked Hostel world, Lastminute.com, Secret Escapes, Expedia and Booking.com. Eventually, I found a lovely place on Booking.com called the Htl Serviced Apartments in Amstelveen for just over £200 which was about 20 minutes on the metro into Amsterdam.
We were delayed the first night by about 3 hours meaning we arrived after midnight and missed our first evening of exploring. The hotel were lovely about it though! Every time we were given an update I’d message them using the Booking.com app so I knew we’d still have our booking.
Hotel
The room we got was a studio. We had a bed, a small kitchen, a mini living room with a tv and a bathroom with a bath and shower. The hotel offered complimentary hot and cold drinks 24/7 but my favourite part was the swimming pool, sauna and steam room. It was a 5 minute walk across to the metro station which cost about 7 euros each into town. We’d get off at the museums where the I Am Amsterdam sign is so we could wander into town.
Amsterdam
What can I say about Amsterdam?! It really is the most picturesque place you’ll see. For some reason, I thought there was only one bridge where people take their pictures. There are actually sooo many bridges with lots of people trying to get the perfect picture.
We were so lucky the sun was out all weekend. There was a bit of culture shock when everywhere we turned people were walking around smoking weed like they were cigarettes. The red lightly district was another eye opener. I don’t know why I expected there to be a clear indication of where it begins but one minute we’re walking down what looked like abnormal street and next minute BAM, there’s a half naked woman waving!
In all honesty, we spent more time wondering around Amsterdam and eating (surprise surprise) than doing anything just because of how beautiful the place is but we did visit a museum of prostitution, we went on a canal ride and visited some museums. The Banksy one was my favourite.
The food in Amsterdam is amazing! We ate out in a place near the Heineken museum (it had a carousel on the inside but I can’t remember the name) that had some of the best pancakes I’ve ever had. They infused the eggs and bacon into the pancake itself and it was gorgeous! We even ended up spending hours walking around one day trying to find a bakery we’d seen loads of times before but because of how Amsterdam is laid out, all the roads look so similar that we spend hours walking in a semi circle looking for a place that was a couple of minutes walk away the whole time!
There’s so much to see outside of Amsterdam. I’d love to go again and explore the less touristy places like Amstelveen but for our first trip, I was pleasantly surprised!
** This post is written in collaboration wit Voyager Leather, however, all the opinions given in this blog are mine **
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29 Comments
Stacey
You take amazing photos! I went to Amsterdam last year but was there literally one night! Flew out to speak at a conference. Really want to go back and enjoy more of the city.
Renee
LOVE THIS! We just visited Amsterdam, too, and I fell completely in love. <3
kenyanbookjunkie
Amsterdam does indeed look very beautiful and you guys look like you enjoyed yourselves!! Oh and that steak, I just had my dinner but am hungry all over again hehe.
nannyjenni
It sounds like you have a lovely time! I’m loving all of the pictures! I would love to visit Amsterdam one day to visit the Anne Frank house! I would definately have to go and buy one of those strawberry tarts too
Sus // roughmeasures.com
I loved Amsterdam when I visited 10 (!!) years ago. I want to go back so badly!
Bianca Malata (@ItsAllBee)
I am a lover of all things quick getaways. I haven’t been to Amsterdam in a while. Cool shots and the two of you look super cute!
Chilling with Lucas
It looks like you had an incredible trip, I really want to visit Amsterdam x
Muham
I am thinking about adding Amsterdam to my list of travels 😀 !!! Thank you for sharing
Muhammad Ameen Sheikh
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I am thinking about adding Amsterdam to my list of travels ? !!! Thank you for sharing
Urmi Santra
The food looks delish and you guys look like you had a blast!
hertraveltherapy
It looks so beautiful! You are so lucky that you can go to a foreign country for a weekend! I couldn’t even fathom going overseas for a weekend because everywhere is so far away from Australia! Would love to visit Amsterdam though.
Kirti
I would love to visit Amsterdam.
The hotel looks classy & the food too looks great 🙂
I loved the leather bag too , good for travelling and its tan <3
marinebing
I love Amsterdam so much ! I had the best time there, and how amazing is a city without (almost) any cars ?
great article ! 🙂
Lisa K
Sounds like a fantastic getaway! I have heard tons about Amsterdam and my husband really enjoyed visiting when he was traveling for work. He said the red light district was a real strange sight too!
Tahnee's Blog
Wow looks like you had a fantastic time! I need a weekend away! I am inspired now thank you lol thanks for sharing
Kasia Mikolajczak (@KasiaMikola)
I went to Amsterdam on weekend school trip and was it ever a crazy weekend. The city is beautiful and I love all the water and bridges. There’s lots to see like the Van Gogh museum and lots to do like to go check out the Red Light district. It’s definitely an unusual place to say the least. Happy to see you had a fab time.
Anna
So many people love Amsterdam, but it was never my favourite.
jenruizwriter
So many bridges in Amsterdam! And I used Booking.com for my trip too, Airbnb is not always the best or cheapest option. Great post!
Vipul Mahajan
I planned to visit Udaipur earlier. But at last minute i need to cancel it. if I made that booking from any agent or any accommodation unit, he / she simply gonna charge me cancellation charges. But somehow I find http://www.travelshravel.com and booked my stay as per my budget and that too with null cancellation policy. It has great saving options.
echoesofhervoice
Wonderful pics and post. Sounds like you had a great time. Thanks for sharing!
Lynne Harper
You know me a massive Amsterdam fan 🙂 great shots and I’m loving the bag
Ami
It sounds like you had a lovely time. I’ve always wanted to visit Amsterdam but my fiance is not as keen.
Ami xxx
Jennifer durrans
I love Amsterdam and some of the food here looks amazing!!!!!!! Omg!! I have to go back!
lemonandchilliblog
Amsterdam is one of my favourite places and the good looks amazing!
wendie
The food looks so amazing!! Cute couple you guys xx
Kristal
You had my entire mouth watering all of this looks so good.
abhinav
I would like to get such a surprise 🙂 Nice post and looks like it was all fun 🙂
Zena's Suitcase
Amsterdam is one of my favourite cities, but I agree, it really isn’t cheap. It is worth it though and I’m glad you enjoyed it as it is a lovely place for wondering around
wanderingbalt
wow so nice you are great gf to your boy!