- When you’re not dodging bicycles or swerving around pedestrians, look out for Amsterdam’s trams, the blue and white, bus-like vehicles dinging their way around the city. They have the right of way over cars at most junctions.
- With so much of Europe on your doorstep, it’s easy to get behind the wheel and zoom across to Germany or Belgium for a day trip, but beware: some car hire companies require you to pay a cross border fee if you wish to go into another country. Check with your car hire supplier before setting off.
- Few hotels in Amsterdam offer car parking; however, the city has an excellent park-and-ride system known as P+R Amsterdam. This scheme allows you to leave your motor in several secure car parks on the city’s edges where you’ll find excellent links into the centre. Note: you can only leave your car at a P+R Amsterdam car park for up to 96 hours.
Search for the best car hire deals in Amsterdam
While driving in central Amsterdam can take years off your life and send your blood pressure soaring, car hire in Amsterdam is still a worthwhile idea.
With the freedom of your own wheels, you can go beyond the city limits and explore the Netherlands at your own pace, heading from medieval towns to tulip fields and back again. If you have a few days at your disposal in 2016, Amsterdam car rental is a real winner.
With the freedom of your own wheels, you can go beyond the city limits and explore the Netherlands at your own pace, heading from medieval towns to tulip fields and back again. If you have a few days at your disposal in 2016, Amsterdam car rental is a real winner.
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Drive away from the airport
If you’re an experienced driver ready for a serious challenge, book car rental at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS) and make your own way to your hotel.
All of the usual rental car companies offer car hire at Amsterdam Airport, including Hertz, Avis, Budget, Enterprise and Europcar.
You don’t have to wait until you’re in the country to rent a car in Amsterdam – in fact, it’s better to book in advance online. This will give you a chance to scour the small print with a fine-tooth comb and bag a great deal. You’ll also be able to skip half the paperwork at Schiphol, getting you behind the wheel in half the time.
Pick up in the city
Don’t feel ready to fling yourself straight into the Dutch road system? If you need a little time to shake off the journey and settle into city, you can rent a car in Amsterdam itself.
The big Amsterdam car hire companies offer a handful of pick-up points across the city, from prestigious hotels to Overtoom 333 and Wenckebachweg-Amstel Business Park on the edges of town.
These pick-ups are perfect if you’re looking to head out of Amsterdam in your hire car, saving you the stress of navigating the city centre.
Driving in central Amsterdam
Navigating the city centre will probably leave you in need of a stiff drink.
Dozens of cyclists appear from nowhere at all kinds of angles, the one-way systems will give you grey hairs, and the narrow, traffic-clogged lanes will send you loopy. Even the locals dodge inner city driving, plumping for trams or the handy park-and-ride system instead.
Two wheels are better than four when it comes to sightseeing in the city itself, so ditch your Amsterdam hire car and rent a bike instead.
Outside of the city
Beyond the city centre, taking advantage of car hire in Amsterdam in 2016 and 2017 will really pay off. Pocket-sized and pancake-flat, the Netherlands is terrific road-trip territory, with all kinds of wonderful sights within driving distance.
In springtime, Keukenhof Gardens is somewhere that you just can’t miss. Located between Amsterdam and The Hague, this is the world’s largest flower garden, with seven million bulbs blooming over 32 hectares and rows of rainbow-coloured tulips stretching as far as the eye can see. If you only do one thing with your car, do this. It’s sure to leave you speechless. The garden has now closed for the remainder of 2016 and will next open in March 2017.
Top tips for car hire in...
Amsterdam
For other ways to make your way around the city, visit our getting around Amsterdam page.