Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the Green liGhtS oF amSterdam
There's always more to a city than meets the eye, and nowhere is this more so than
Amsterdam. Explore a little beyond the main tourist attractions and you'll most likely find
it an outdoorsy city with plenty of parks, canals and cycle lanes; a place where you can
visit farmers' markets, see fringe theatre and art galleries, walk along litter-free streets
dotted with street performers or just sit in one of its many green spaces and watch the
world go by. Here are a few suggestions for how to spend a green day in this beguiling
capital.
086 pedal your way around
Amsterdam has an excellent network of trams,
metro and buses, but cycling is usually the
quickest, easiest and cheapest way to travel
around the city. Nearly all the cycling lanes
are separate from the road (with traffic lights
especially for bikes), so it's a safe place to cycle,
though you're advised to always lock your bike
wherever you leave it.
The main bike
rental hubs are at
Central Station,
Leidseplein and
Dam Square. Mike's
Bike Tours (
W
www.
mikesbike
toursamsterdam.
com;
T
+31 (0) 206
227 970) are on the
Kerkstraat, around
the corner from
Leidseplein. Macbike
is one of the largest
bike rental agencies
- it has three
outlets (Leidseplein,
Central Station and
Visserplein) and
provides details for
ten bike tours around
the city, including
a 2-3hr “Ring of
Canals” route and
a 10km “Filmtrip
Amsterdam” itinerary, which visits locations in
Amsterdam used for movies including
Ocean's
Twelve
and
Diamonds are Forever
. It also
arranges three guided tours (for groups of 10-
15) all starting from Central Station East.
Need to know
For hire prices and a map of
Amsterdam showing all Macbike's outlets and
cycling itineraries see
W
www.macbike.nl;
T
+31
(0) 206 200 985.
Cycling past the International
Budget Hostel
087 Food, glorious food
After all that walking and cycling, stop for
lunch at The Noordermarkt (Amsterdam's main
farmers' market) in the Jordaan district. You're
bound to find something tempting among the
local cheeses, eggs, fresh fish, bread, honey,
herbs, spices, nuts, mushrooms and home-made
cakes. For a slap-up organic feast go to the east
side of town, home of De Kas, Amsterdam's
renowned organic restaurant. Located in
Frankendael Park, between the Rembrandt
Tower and the nineteenth-century facades of
Watergraafsmeer, De Kas is in an old greenhouse
that belonged to Amsterdam's municipal nursery,
which the maverick chef owner saved from
demolition and converted into an 8m-high glass
building. The menu changes each day depending
on what local produce is available.
Need to know
For information on Noordermarkt
see
W
www.amsterdam.info/markets/noordermarkt.
For opening times and reservations at De Kas
visit
W
www.restaurantdekas.nl;
T
+31 (0) 204
624 562. For a list of organic restaurants, caf
é
s,
Search WWH ::
Custom Search