Amsterdam with kids
Amsterdam charges the steepest accommodation tax in Europe, which lands hardest on families. Works from about four, with the canal rule and what to skip.
Photo · Sebastien Devocelle · Pexels
Amsterdam is one of the easiest European cities to take children to: flat, compact, full of water, and with museums that were built with families in mind rather than tolerating them.
This works from about four. Under that it is still easy going, because the city is pram-friendly and the trams take pushchairs, and the museums are wasted.
Two things to plan around: the bikes and the tax.
Euro. Convert any figure on this page into your own currency at today's published rate.
Open the currency converter →The tax, because it lands hardest on families
Amsterdam charges 12.5 per cent of the room rate before VAT, which is the steepest accommodation tax in Europe. It is scheduled to rise again, to 16 per cent in 2027 and then by a percentage point a year.
One piece of good news for families: it is charged on the room, not per person, so a family room takes one hit rather than four. That is the opposite of how Barcelona does it, which our Barcelona guide covers.
The practical response: compare Amsterdam rates inclusive of tax rather than headline, and consider an apartment, where the same rule applies to a larger space.
The bike rule, which is a genuine safety point
Cyclists have priority and they do not slow down. Amsterdam's bike lanes are roads, they are usually red, and stepping into one while looking at a canal is the single most common way visitors get hurt here.
With children this needs saying out loud on day one. Treat the red surface as a road, look both ways, and hold hands crossing it. Bikes come from both directions and silently.
And the canals have no railings in most of the centre. With toddlers this is a real consideration and it is why the boat is better than the towpath.
What actually works, by age
From about four
A canal boat, and pick a hop-on-hop-off one rather than a single loop, so you can use it as transport. The city reads completely differently from the water and it gives everyone a rest.
NEMO Science Museum, which is the best thing in Amsterdam for children: five floors of hands-on exhibits in a green building shaped like a ship's hull, with a free roof terrace that has one of the best views of the city.
Vondelpark, with a large playground, open-air theatre in summer, and space to let a four-year-old run.
Artis Zoo, which is one of the oldest in Europe and sits in the middle of the city with a planetarium and an aquarium in the grounds.
From about six
The Rijksmuseum, and it is far better with children than it sounds. It runs a family trail, the Night Watch is genuinely impressive at any age, and the building has a bike path running through the middle of it.
Micropia, next to Artis, a museum of microbes, which is a strange and brilliant idea and children love it.
Renting bikes, if your children are confident riders. The city is flat and the infrastructure is the best in the world, and the bakfiets cargo bikes take two or three small children.
From about ten
The Anne Frank House. The museum publishes its own guidance suggesting it suits children from about ten, and that is worth respecting: the route is narrow, steep and confined, and there is no way to shortcut it once you are in.
Tickets are timed and released online on a fixed schedule, and they sell out within hours. Set a reminder.
Day trips: Zaanse Schans for windmills, 20 minutes by train, and the Keukenhof tulip gardens if you are here between late March and mid-May.
Where to stay with children
Not in the centre of the canal ring if you can avoid it. It is beautiful, expensive, loud at night in parts, and the buildings have famously steep narrow staircases with no lifts, which is a genuine problem with a pram.
Oud-West, De Pijp and Oost are all a short tram ride out, have more family apartments, and are quieter. Our Amsterdam areas guide has the trade-offs.
Look for a lift specifically. Dutch stairs are close to ladders in older buildings and this catches families out more than anything else here.
Checked 21 Aug 2026.
Everything we check for Netherlands →What to skip
Skip the Red Light District with children, which sounds obvious and is worth saying because it sits in the middle of the old centre and is easy to walk into by accident on the way to somewhere else.
Skip the Heineken Experience. It is a brand tour with a beer at the end.
Skip Madame Tussauds and the Amsterdam Dungeon on Dam Square, which are expensive and are the same product as in every other city.
Skip cycling with young children in the centre on your first day. The infrastructure is superb and the traffic volume around Centraal is a lot to learn on. Ride in Vondelpark or Amsterdamse Bos first.
When to go
April, May, June and September. April and May for the tulips and the long light, September for warm days and thin crowds.
July and August are busy and the canal ring is crowded, though the weather is good and the parks are the answer.
November to February is cold, dark and cheap, and the museums become the whole trip, which is a reasonable version of Amsterdam with older children.
Short tourist stays only. Checked 21 Aug 2026; rules change without notice and the government page is the source of truth.
Check your own passport →Before you book
Where to stay in Amsterdam has the areas and the staircase warning, and three days in Amsterdam is the adult version of the route.
Barcelona with kids is the other European city guide in this set, and its tax works the opposite way. How to plan a family trip has the general method.
The with kids hub collects the rest and the Netherlands country page has the practical layer.
Tax rates and their schedule checked September 2026 against reporting on the Amsterdam rate and the city's own visitor information. The Anne Frank House sets its own age guidance and ticket release schedule, so read its site rather than a third party. Here is how we research and re-check guides.
