Budget · 3-hour walk · Amsterdam
The canal ring and the Jordaan in three hours
Dam Square out along the Prinsengracht to the Jordaan, back through the Nine Streets to the flower market.
The canal ring is a UNESCO site you walk through rather than into, which makes three hours close to ideal: long enough to cross it twice, short enough that the bridges have not blurred together. The one stop that needs planning is the Anne Frank House — tickets are released online six weeks ahead, timed to the quarter hour, and there is no door queue at all. Without one, stand in the square, read the plaque and walk on.
The route, stop by stop
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Dam Square
The centre by definition. Get your bearings, then leave west before the crowd thickens.
15 min here Walk here → -
Anne Frank House & Westerkerk
Timed tickets only, released six weeks ahead. The Westerkerk tower next door is the better view and rarely booked.
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Noordermarkt
Saturday is the farmers' market and Monday the flea market; any other day it is a quiet square with good coffee.
25 min here Walk here → -
De Negen Straatjes
Nine short streets crossing three canals — the densest and least touristed shopping in the ring.
30 min here Walk here → -
Begijnhof
A 14th-century courtyard behind an unmarked door, free and silent two minutes from the busiest street in the city.
20 min here Walk here → -
Bloemenmarkt
The floating flower market. Bulbs are the only thing worth buying and only the certified ones travel.
15 min here Walk here →
More in Amsterdam
Every walking route in Amsterdam, or the full Amsterdam guide for where to stay and what a day costs.