A tourist, who has arrived to Amsterdam, first will be interested in a question on movement around a city and the country in general. What to choose – public transport or car rental in Amsterdam? Let’s look at all the options in details.
Public transport in Amsterdam is represented by trams, buses and metro.
Each tourist in one way or another uses the city transport and a map of the routes can be obtained at the tourist office or downloaded on the website of the municipal transport company (GVB).
Bicycle is the most popular mode of transport in Amsterdam, it accounts for almost half of all traffic in the city. The entire city is surrounded by a network of bicycle paths and equipped with special bike parks.
Bike Rental Company MacBike is the leader in providing similar services in the city. Its main offices are at Amsterdam Central Station and Leidseplein.
Rent a bicycle (instead of car rental) will cost from € 10 per day, plus mandatory insurance for theft – € 3 per day. When renting a bicycle for more than 24 hours, € 6 are added for each subsequent day, plus insurance. More “heaped” models of bicycles with a large number of speeds or a titanium frame will cost a day much more.
If you do not want to pedal yourself, there is another bicycle mode of transportation – Bike Taxi. These are bicycles, equipped with special drop-shaped cabins with a roof in case of a bad weather. The standard trip for a double taxi will cost € 10 for 15 minutes, € 20 for half an hour, € 50 per hour.
To rent a bicycle, you will need an identity card and € 50 of cash deposit. You will also be given a lock, since bike theft is a quite common a phenomenon in Amsterdam.
A good option for tourists is also the City Center Line minibus, which runs along a ring route encompassing the most popular tourist destinations: Central Station – Waterlooplein – Osterdock. It stops at the request of the passenger or the “voter” at the road. The ticket for one trip costs € 2, for the whole day – 6 euros.
One more variant and the most convenient one to rent a car in Amsterdam. In addition, it is an excellent way to explore the Netherlands in detail, without being tied to a tour group and public transport schedule. The country is small, and you can see a lot of things in it, so you, without much spending on gasoline, will be your own master. The prices for car rental in Amsterdam do not exceed, for example, the German ones: in the capital of the Netherlands, it’s a little cheaper to rent an A-class subcompact, but the representatives of more powerful cars are more expensive here.
Most of the car rental locations in Amsterdam are concentrated in the Van Gogh Museum area, near the Central Station and the airport.
Conditions of car rental in Amsterdam in general are the same as all-European. The driver’s age must be at least 21 years old, driving experience – at least a year. Note that some companies require that the driver must be 25 years old for hiring high-premium class cars (they also must pay for an additional service “young driver”)
Taking into account everything mentioned, one can say that it is more profitable to choose car rental in Amsterdam. On a rented car, you can plan your ideal route and time. Moreover, you will travel comfortably and without unnecessary hassle.
