Amsterdam Travel Guide

Amsterdam Nightlife

Famed for its wild nightlife, Amsterdam offers visitors something quite unique when the sun goes down. A mixture of all sorts of entertainment, Amsterdam is sure to have something for everyone, from the coffee bars and clubs to the pubs, drugs and women - the priority of which is up to the individual.

Amsterdam''s nightlife wouldn''t be what it is today if it weren''t for the infamous Red Light District, which serves up its own unique brand of entertainment along the bustling canal-lined streets. Many tourists opt to simply wander through and gawk at the women posing in shop windows and insistent touts without stopping to sample their wares. Those who do should stick to main streets and beware of pickpockets and other petty criminals. Women should not walk through the Red Light District alone, though pairs and groups will be fine.

Amsterdam is also famous for the legal use of marijuana, which is available in coffee shops. The shops, instantly recognizable by their drug-related names, will sell up to 0.2 ounces (5g) of weed or hash, which may be smoked in the coffee shops or at many nightclubs, though officially not in public places. The coffee shops do not serve alcohol.

Amsterdam has literally thousands of cafes, bars and nightclubs, which means there is something for every taste. A popular way to start the night is in a brown café, where you can unwind from the day with beers, snooker, and live music. Some of the best, centred around the Prinsengracht, have been there since the days of Rembrandt.

The mainstream nightlife centres round Leidseplein, where you can find all the most popular bars, restaurants and clubs which, although not as big and flashy as their rivals in London and New York, are still the perfect place to showcase your dance moves. And since Leidseplein never really closes, revellers can literally dance the night away. The weekend starts on Thursday night so make sure you get enough sleep in preparation for a big weekend. The trendier clubs usually impose a strict dress code and open at 10pm and close by law at 4am during the week, while on weekends, clubs close at 5am.

Amsterdam has a thriving gay and lesbian scene, with many clubs clustered along Halvemaansteeg, Reguliersdwarsstraat, and Kerkstraat.

Live music is very popular in Amsterdam and jazz is a favourite with the locals, as many of the world''s great jazz legends have settled here. The city offers some fun jazz clubs such as Bourbon Street Jazz and Blues Club on Leidsekruisstraat. You can also catch rock and pop acts in many venues, while bigger concerts take place at the Koninklijk Theater Carré, Heineken Music Hall, and the huge Amsterdam Arena.

For a more cultured option, there are a number of highly-regarded orchestras that perform in a number of venues. You can also catch performances by the National Ballet and Netherlands Opera. There are many theatres that perform shows in both English and Dutch, including De Balie, Felix Meritis, Theater Frascati, and the Vondelpark Open-Air Theater.