A Gay Couple City Weekend Amsterdam – the Dutch capital means home for us gay travel bloggers. Especially in Spring and Summer the city of canals, canals, bikes, and cheese is a place full of excitement, events, and festival in and around the Dutch capital close connection to nature and water. Besides the main mass tourist attractions and sights, we would like to share some of our favorite places and experiences with you, perfectly fine for a (short) stay in Amsterdam. Of course, there is much more to see in the biggest city in the Netherlands. Especially, for the first gay city trip to Amsterdam, we made a selection of adventures, restaurants, and sights for everyone coming to the Dutch capital for the first time. Enjoy our tips, travel stories, and info about our top picks like Stedelijk Museum, a private boat tour with boat4rent, EYE Film Museum, A’DAM Lookout Tower, dinner at Cantinetta and more! Join us and see our hometown of Amsterdam through a couple of men‘s eyes!
Amsterdam – bikes, canals & tourists
Ask yourself: what do you expect from the Dutch Capital? Canals, tourists, bikes, and beautiful old architecture from the past 400 centuries along the canals. Well, that is what you will find in Amsterdam, especially in Amsterdam center. Take long and slow walks, try the delicious types of cheese, discover the hidden beauty that lays behind narrow alleys. But then leave the crowded city center and be brave: the suburbs outside the canals districts are very much worth the detour.
Our favorite parts of Amsterdam? Amsterdam Noord (North), West (Westerpark, De Baarsjes, Oud-West), and of course, the other small treasures all around the city. If you are in Amsterdam for the first time, don’t miss the Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, and Dam Square. For everyone who is in town for the second time or just wants to see Amsterdam besides these main attractions, enjoy reading our favorites! For the best hotel offers, have a look at the Hotels in Amsterdam. See you in our hometown!
The best view of Amsterdam
Right next to the EYE, the A’DAM Lookout Tower recently opened it’s doors again after a long renovation period. If you wanna have the best view over the city center of Amsterdam, the Music Gebouw, and the IJ river, you have to take the elevator with its spectacular light show all the way up to the LOOKOUT.
EYE Film Museum – Amsterdam Noord
We love clean, clear, and straightforward architecture, like the EYE building. This beautiful icon of modern architecture is located right behind the main station Amsterdam Centraal and with its strange contours and white shell, it attracts all the attention. Next to it just opened the A’DAM Lookout Tower. This building, originally opened in 1971, has been turned into a blooming multifunctional tower that homes a mix of creative companies, cafés, a hotel, an observation deck, and a panorama restaurant. Do you want to explore? But how do you get to the Northside of Amsterdam? Just take the free ferry service “Pontje” that leaves every 5-10 minutes and cross the water like a local!
The EYE Film Instituut Nederland
The eye-catching building was built in 2012 by the Austrian Architect Office Delugan Meissl Associated Architects. Today it is home to the EYE cinema for art-house movies, a well-designed Restaurant, and the Dutch Film Museum. Our tip: Not much time? Part of the museum is for free and gives a brief look into cinematic history. Learn about the different machines build for projecting film through an interactive exhibition and create the memory movie that you can send via email to your loved ones like your mom or that cute guy back home… More information about the EYE >
Modern Art Museum Stedelijk
If you like modern art, you should definitely visit the Stedelijk Museum. With its new “bathtub” wing and entrance opened in 2012, it almost doubled in size, making it a venue that gives space to the older elite but also postmodern talent. We visited the “Living in the Amsterdam School” exhibition, which gives an overview of the highly original Dutch interior design between 1910-1930. You will find more than 500 objects of renowned architects and designers like Michel de Klerk, Jaap Gidding, Piet Kramer, and Marie Kuyken. More information about the Stedelijk Museum >
Dance Revolution at Ton Ton Club
Before having dinner at our most favorite restaurant Cantinetta in Amsterdam West, we like to play a few games and drink an American milkshake at TonTon Club Westergas Fabriek, just 5 minutes walking from the boat rental. Especially, the Dance Dance Revolution Room is made for us and our friends! Get sweaty! More information about Ton Ton Club >
Boat Rental in Amsterdam
A Gay City Trip to Amsterdam without a boat tour around the canals and Grachten of Amsterdam? No way! It is very common in Amsterdam to have your boat (or know someone who does). As soon as the sun comes out, everyone with a boat is on the canals.
Become a captain of your own boat >
Sherlocked – Escape Room “The Architect”
Right in the heart of Amsterdam stands the old Beurs van Berlage. Deep inside the building’s catacombs, Sherlocked found a mysterious room. According to rumors, its architect, HP. Berlage was a high-ranking member of the Crossed Keys secretive Society, which guarded compelling secrets. Since Sherlocked opened ‘The Architect’ in 2014 we knew we could help them find the last remaining trace of the Crosses Keys and discover their secrets. We invited our 6 best friends to join us in this max 60 minute game of intelligent puzzles and secret doors. ‘The Architect’ is a beautiful, well-made experience that mixes a fictive story with the historical background of the Beurs in a smart and believable way. With our power team, we actually set the record time of 28:38 minutes!
We can’t wait to get more involved in the story of the Crossed Keys and its other mysterious members. Next up will be Sherlocked’s second escape room adventure ‘The Vault’ which is now open for anyone who dares to break in… More information about Sherlocked >
Biking to Amsterdam Forest
Cycling the city and the surrounding region of Amsterdam should be a part of every trip to the Dutch capital. Especially, if you are planning to spend some more days in town, you should not miss exploring nature. Biking trips to the coast, Amsterdamse Bos (Forest of Amsterdam), or just along the river IJ, biking is part of Dutch life.
Exploring Amsterdam’s Surroundings
Like the Dutch, we love to bike, rather the weather is good or bad. For the sunny days we recommend that after you have seen all the main sights and tourist attractions, you bike away from the city and explore the surroundings. If we are both homes over the weekend, we jump on our bikes and try a new route for our series “Gays on tour” or just drive through town and discovering new exhibitions, theater performances, and festivals in and around Amsterdam. For example, the annual theater festival Over het IJ Festival, where Daan participated in 2015. If you need any assistance or information about where to go, just comment below or email us. More blog articles about Amsterdam >
Gay Travel Guide Amsterdam
The Dutch capital is considered to be one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world. By legalizing same-sex marriage as the first country in the world already in 2001, the Netherlands and its capital offer a diverse LGBTQ+ friendly cultural program throughout the whole year. One highlight of the Summer is undoubtedly (Gay) Pride Amsterdam.
Amsterdam – our Gay Nights Out/ Party & Bars
Amsterdam used to be the gay capital of the world. It has been pretty quiet around our Dutch capital city for a while, with many gay bars closing and tourists finding their pink pleasures somewhere else. But don’t be sad because it does look like that over the last few years Amsterdam has found some new glitter to throw over our hairy chests. Instead of clubs or bars, there are more and hipper gay minded parties popping up like Flikker, Boyscouts, or Is Burning. Of course, there is also still a big audience for the good-old parties like Rapido, Bear Necessity, FPQ, or Spellbound. If you are here during a less busy weekend or if you are not into big parties, you should definitely try one of these hotspots.
If you like bearded bolt guys in their 30ies, start the evening with your (new) friends at Prik, chosen as the best gay bar of the Netherlands with the Rainbow Award 2015. Are you more into dancing with the latest twinks and your straight friends are joining, you should check out NYX. Still not tired and in the right mood, you want to move over to Church with its famous (Z)onderbroek or other fetish-driven parties. And finally, if you survived Friday and Saturday and your plane is leaving not too early on Monday, try out the Trut with its cheap drinks and alternative vibe but a very mixed audience. You still have no idea what to do? Let us know, and we might take you out for a beer or two 😉
More articles about Amsterdam:
- All our articles about gay traveling Amsterdam >
- Articles of our tips “What to do” in Amsterdam >
- Articles about “Where to eat” in Amsterdam >
- Our best pictures of Amsterdam “Gay Pride Canal Parade 2016”>
- Gay Travel the Netherlands: Our Dutch Gay Couple City Weekends >
Travel Guides The Netherlands
The Netherlands is known for its cheese, bikes, and of course, its tulip and flower fields. Additional to the Dutch capital, the German neighbor offers a variety of exciting cities and islands along the west coast of Europe. Read all about Groningen, Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam, Den Hague, and the Dutch island Vlieland.
Our tips for a Gay City Trip to Amsterdam
And there will come so much more. We like traveling around our home city, every day we are in Amsterdam. Events, good local restaurants, new gay parties, and more. There is still so much to see, to explore and so many nice Dutch people to meet in this great city and the great country of the Netherlands. Do you have any ideas, events, or locations we should not miss? Drop us a line in the comments, and we might visit your home city!
Do you want to know more? Stay tuned… on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. See you in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and around the world!
Karl & Daan.
