Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Anne Frankhuis
This deeply moving museum tells a tragic story. When in 1942 the Germans
began to round up Jews in Amsterdam, the Frank and Van Pels families went
into hiding. For 25 months, they hid in a secret annexe in Otto Frank's
business premises on Prinsengracht, now the Anne Frankhuis. In August 1944,
they were betrayed and deported. Only Otto survived. The diary of his daughter,
Anne, who died in Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in March 1945 at the
age of 15, has made her one of the most inspiring figures of the 20th century.
Top 10 Features
1 The Warehouse
2 The Offices
3 The Moveable Bookcase
4 The Secret Annexe
5 Anne's Room
6 The Chestnut Tree
7 The Front Attic
8 The Diary Room
9 Educational Resources
0 The Exhibition Room
Façade of No. 263
Prinsengracht
There is a pleasant,
airy café, with a
great view of the
Westerkerk.
Arrive early or late in
the day; there are
usually long queues.
The Warehouse
Otto Frank ran a
business making pectin
for jam, and spice and
herb mixtures. The
annexe in which the
families hid was over his
warehouse, so they had
to keep quiet for fear that
the warehouse workers
would hear them.
Be careful as you
move round the
house: the stairs are
steep and narrow.
The visit is a moving
experience, so plan
something contem-
plative afterwards:
climb the Westerkerk
spire, or walk to the
Western Islands.
The Offices
Visitors continue
upstairs to the offices of
Otto Frank and the staff
who helped to hide him
and his family, along with
Otto's business partner,
Hermann Van Pels, and
his wife and son. In
Anne's diary, the Van Pels
became the Van Daans.
The Secret Annexe
The claustrophobic
rooms in which the eight
lived have been left unfurn-
ished, as they were when
the Germans cleared their
possessions after their
arrest. On one wall, pencil
marks record the growth of
Anne and her sister Margot.
• Prinsengracht 263
(entrance at 267)
• Map L2
•
020 556 7100
• www.annefrank.nl
•
Open Sep-Mar: 9am-
7pm daily; Apr-Aug:
9am-9pm daily. Closed
Yom Kippur
•
Admission adults
€7.50; children 10-17
€3.50; children under
10 free
•
No disabled access
The Moveable
Bookcase
To camouflage the
entrance to the annexe,
one of the helpers made
a swinging bookcase. As
Anne wrote, “no one
could ever suspect that
there could be so many
rooms hidden behind…”
32
