Where To Stay

Choose between a room in a countryside castle or in a cozy Amsterdam hotel. Typically, Dutch hotels are old country houses, village hotels or quaint inns. Contact the tourist office for listings of hotels in all price ranges.

Reservations for hotels can be made through the Netherlands Reservation Center (P.O. Box 404, 2260 AK Leidschendam, The Netherlands, tel. 070-419-5544, fax 070-419-5519, e-mail info@hotelres.nl; or through city tourist offices; look for their "VVV" sign.

Transportation

Arriving & Departing: Schiphol Airport, one of Europe's most efficient, is a major trans-Atlantic gateway. There is convenient train service to Amsterdam Central Station; fares are about $3 (second class). Taxis into the city run $30-$35.

North Sea ferries run between Harwich (north of London) and the Hoek van Holland. High-speed Thalys trains run between Paris and Amsterdam via Brussels.

Getting Around: For information on Holland Rail passes and the Benelux Tourrail Pass, see by rail.

Railrunner is an inexpensive children's (age 4-11) ticket valid for all classes of travel everywhere in the country. An adult may bring up to three children (cost, about $5 per child; children under 4 go free).

The newest addition to Amsterdam's excellent transit network is the Circle-tram 20, which stops at all major hotels and tourist attractions. A day-ticket allows unlimited access to all public transportation.

Cycling is a way of life; the country is crisscrossed by bicycle paths marked with red-and-white signs. Contact the tourist office in the U.S. for a map showing the most popular routes.

The Amsterdam Culture and Leisure Pass (about $17 at local VVV tourist offices) provides 31 discount coupons (total saving is about $85).

Free Literature
For literature and further information, contact:

Netherlands Board of Tourism
225 N. Michigan Ave., Ste. 1854
Chicago, IL 60601
888 GO-HOLLAND
(888) 464-6552
fax (312) 819-1740
e-mail go2holland@aol.com
www.goholland.com