The 10 best museums in Amsterdam

Telegraph

15-07-2025

For a small country, the Netherlands has made a huge impact on world art, both back in the 17th century, then again with straight lines and bold primary colours in the 20th – with Van Gogh slipped in along the way. So, the Big Three museums – Old Masters, Van Gogh and modern art respectively – lead the way. But Amsterdam is a treasure box of other attractions, too, from a quirky collection of mechanical pianos, through canal-side mansions dripping with chandeliers and shining with silver, to boundary-bursting photography, and an urban explosion of street art and graffiti.
All our museum recommendations below have been hand selected and tested by our resident destination expert. Find out more below or for further inspiration, see our guides to the city's best hotels, restaurants, shopping, bars & cafés, attractions and free things to do.
Find a museum by type:
Art
History
Culture
Art
Rijksmuseum
One of the world's great art museums adds glittering gold and silver, centuries-old costumes, furniture fit for royalty, and precious dolls' houses to a parade of Old Masters that includes Rembrandt, Vermeer, Jan Steen and Frans Hals.
Insider tip: First check out the exceptional centuries-old treasures in the Asian Pavilion downstairs, and save the Old Masters till after 3.30pm, when the halls are less busy.
Neighbourhood: Museum Quarter
Metro: Trams 2, 3, 5, 12; Vijzelstraat metro
Website: rijksmuseum.nl
Van Gogh Museum
More of Van Gogh's canvases hang here than anywhere else in the world, including Sunflowers and Wheatfield with Crows, alongside sketches, letters and much else, in an imaginative display that brings you up close to the man himself.
Insider tip: Pre-book as far in advance as you can, and aim for early in the week, after 3.30pm to avoid the really busy periods.
Neighbourhood: Museum Quarter
Metro: Trams 2, 3, 5, 12; Vijzelstraat metro
Website: vangoghmuseum.nl
Stedelijk Museum
This museum is home to all that has rocked modern and contemporary art, both Dutch (De Stijl, CoBra, Mondrian) and international (Picasso, Malevich, Warhol), from the 20th century till now. And there's a fine collection of design, too.
Insider tip: It's hidden at the back of the museum downstairs, but don't miss the Appelbar, the Stedelijk's original refreshment kiosk with bright murals by CoBrA artist Karel Appel.
FOAM
Blockbuster shows and retrospectives of big-name photographers (such as Richard Avedon and Cartier-Bresson) share space with radical new talent, and forays into the furthest limits of where photography can take us. Solo shows, themed exhibitions and plenty of discussion forums join the mix.
Insider tip: Buy a 'FOAM Edition' – an original photo by a past exhibitor, in the FOAM Gallery shop at the top of the building.
Return to index
History
Verzetsmuseum (Museum of the Resistance)
A riveting insight into life in the Netherlands under the Nazi occupation, and of the Dutch resistance movement. Interactive displays, along with the personal stories of heroes, Nazi collaborators and ordinary people trapped in between put you right in the moment.
Insider tip: Press a doorbell to hear the various excuses neighbours offered for not taking on an onderduiker (secret lodger, hiding from the Nazis). It makes it all seem very real.
Neighbourhood: Amsterdam East / former Jewish Quarter
Metro: Tram 14; Waterlooplein metro
Website: verzetsmuseum.org
Joods Cultureel Kwartier (Jewish Cultural Quarter)
Amsterdam's former Jewish quarter is home to monuments and museums that explore a community that made an essential contribution to the city: a culturally rich Jewish Historical Museum, the magnificent 17th-century Portuguese Synagogue and a sobering National Holocaust Museum.
Insider tip: A combined ticket valid for the historical museum, the holocaust museum and the Portuguese Synagogue is valid for a week and good value.
Return to index
Culture
Museum Van Loon
Of all the canal houses open to the public, this 17th-century mansion is the one that most has the atmosphere of an (admittedly very grand) family home. Among the portraits and tinkling crystal you are back in another age – but it feels as if the owners might be back any minute and catch you there.
Insider tip: Don't miss the elegant formal garden, hidden from the street view behind the house.
Neighbourhood: Canal Belt
Metro: Tram 2, 4, 12, 17. Vijzelgracht metro
Website: museumvanloon.nl
Huis Marseille
Grand canal house meets fascinating photography, Huis Marseille stages engaging and challenging contemporary photo and video exhibitions, often hung in ways that respond to its historic architecture, drawing on outside artists as well as its strong in-house collection of mainly Dutch, South African and Japanese work.
Insider tip: Look up! The ceiling in the Garden Room is by Jacob de Wit, the leading 18th-century Dutch interiors painter.
Neighbourhood: Canal Belt
Metro: Tram 2, 12, 17; Rokin metro
Website: huismarseille.nl
STЯAAT: Street Art Museum Amsterdam
A wharf-side warehouse in former docklands offers the wall space necessary for gigantic displays of street art and graffiti. Abstract or graphic, startling or soothing, there's work by both local and international artists, and even workshops if you want a go yourself.
Insider tip: A Museum Card is not valid for this museum, but there's plenty of street art outside as the area is a hotspot for local graffiti artists.
Geelvinck Pianola Museum
Discover a fascinating collection of self-playing pianos, from the Charlie Chaplin honky-tonk variety to sophisticated instruments whose scrolls reproduce every nuance of the original pianist's playing – with a collection of original scrolls created by the likes of Prokofiev and Debussy.
Insider tip: See and hear the machines put through their paces, sometimes in combo with live musicians at one of the regular 'recitals'.
Return to index
How we choose
Every attraction and activity in this curated list has been tried and tested by our destination expert, to provide you with their insider perspective. We cover a range of budgets and styles, from world-class museums to family-friendly theme parks – to best suit every type of traveller. We update this list regularly to keep up with the latest openings and provide up to date recommendations.
About our expert
Rodney Bolt lighted upon Amsterdam nearly 30 years ago after flitting through Greece, Germany, and the UK, and nothing could persuade him to leave. He has written on everything he loves about the city for publications worldwide, and co-authors the Peter Posthumus mysteries, all set in Amsterdam. Strolling along the canals still tops his list of life's pleasures.