Amsterdam for Vacation

Amsterdam is not only the official capital of the Netherlands, but also its largest and most densely populated city as well. According to the statistics, the urban area of Amsterdam has a population of about 1.5 million inhabitants, while around 743,000 people live in the city itself. This is one of the most attractive and lively vacation destinations tourists can travel to in Europe, when they are looking for an exciting and unique vacation.

The city of Amsterdam is known to be one of the largest and most interesting historic centers in all of Europe. This city has an amazing amount of unique museums, cultural buildings, and historical constructs, as well as offering a very exciting nightlife provided by a large number of pubs and nightclubs. Due to its cold winters, the best time of the year for having a vacation in this city is between May and September. In Amsterdam, that's from the last weeks of spring to the first weeks of autumn.

The history of Amsterdam can be traced back to the 12th century, when a small fishing village was established in this area of the Netherlands. The village was built at the banks of the Amstel River on the IJ Bay. As time passed by, that fishing village would evolve into a large cosmopolitan city, which nowadays is considered one of the most exciting and attractive vacation destinations in not only Europe, but the entire world as well.

One of the most important and crucial moments in the life of Amsterdam was the construction of its channels in the 17th century. It was during that époque that this city started taking the shape and appearance it has today. From overhead, the city reveals an intricate, geometrically appealing design of semi circular and concentric canals, with 'arms' reaching out from the center. These canals are known locally as "grachtens." The grachtens surround the old city centre.

During the 17th century, Amsterdam went through what is considered to be its "golden years." During that century, Amsterdam was one of the wealthiest and most successful cities in the world, in such a way that it would export products to almost every continent, having a trading network that included Africa, North America, Indonesia, and Brazil, among others.

Towards the last decades of the 19th century, Amsterdam went through what is known as its second golden age. At this time the Industrial Revolution reached and began to impact Amsterdam. During those decades, a wide number of important museums and cultural building were constructed in the town, and the Amsterdam Rhine Canal was created in order to allow an easier connection to the North Sea. All of these, along with other factors, caused Amsterdam to increase its commerce and communication in general with the rest of the world, which was reflected in an important increase of the city’s wealth and relevance.

There are so many interesting places to visit in Amsterdam that creating a list with all of them might be too ambitious a task. Despite this, there are some main attractions that should be included on any traveler's "must-see" list, and simply should not be missed during a vacation in this remarkable city. These would include, the Van Gogh Museum, the Rembrandt House Museum, the Rijksmuseum, the Stedelijk Museum, the *Anne Frank House, and the Concertgebouw.

*The Anne Frank House was built on the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, in 1635 by Dirk van Delft. The house is now a museum dedicated to the famous Jewish diarist who hid from Nazi soldiers in concealed rooms at the rear of the building. Frank and her family, and the four other people who were in hiding in the house, became famous when Anne Frank's diary was published after World War II.