Amsterdam is a gem of a city. Small and densely packed with fine buildings, many dating from the 17th century or earlier, it is easily explored on foot or by bike. The city has a bit of a split personality: It's a gracious, formal cultural center, and it's the most offbeat metropolis in the world. There is an incomparable romance about its canals at night and a depth of cultural heritage in its great art museums; but there are also prostitutes displaying their wares opposite the city's oldest church. Amsterdam's museums are filled with some of the best art in the western world. There are the home-grown Old Masters and Van Gogh, as well as a wealth of contemporary art. Long an inspiration for generations of artists, the attractive canals and gabled houses are a popular subject for today's Sunday painters. 

In addition to being the focal point of Netherlands culture, Amsterdam is also the nexus of a 60-kilometer (37½-mile) circle of cities, known as the Randstad (agglomeration of cities), that includes The Hague (the Dutch seat of government and the world center of international justice), Rotterdam (the industrial center of the Netherlands and the world's largest port), and the historic cites of Haarlem, Leiden, Delft, and Utrecht. 

You can skim the surface of the museums and get a glimpse of the canals in two or three days, but to really savor Amsterdam's charm, you need a week or more. The city is best in the spring when the parks and window boxes are filled with flowers and you can get a clear view of the gables between the branches of trees not yet in full leaf. 

DMC Companies

(the links below will open a new window and bring you to another website)

• Beuk Incoming
• Delta Travel Amsterdam
• Destination management Holland
• Iceo
• Ince & Tive S.A.
• Mindstream International
• New Spirit Incentive & Events
• test

Summary|Amsterdam|Brussels