For more on our Winter Holiday, see our previous post on our Trek to Scotland!

Sometimes seasoned travelers make mistakes!

As part of our Winter Holiday, we decided that we would stop over for a mini-trek to Amsterdam for a few days on our way back to Saudi Arabia.

We did this for a couple of reasons:

1. It would break up our trip home a bit, and we would not have to worry about layovers at Schipol Airport.
2. We would miss the craziness that is Hogmanay (New Year’s Eve) in Edinburgh.  They close most of the streets and there is a big street party. (Not the best atmosphere)

Now full disclosure, I did not put much thought into this leg of our journey.

Our Hotel

The one thing that I did put thought into was our hotel.  It turns out that Airbnbs in Amsterdam are crazy expensive, so we used some of our SPG/Marriott points on a hotel room.  We were SPG members and even have the SPG American Express card.  About mid-2018, SPG rewards merged with Marriott Rewards.  The jury is still out on the success of this merger, but it does open up a number of new hotels for us.

One of those hotels was the Renaissance Amsterdam Hotel.  it wasn’t the best deal, but we were able to use points and some cash for a three-night stay. (a total savings of €550)  We picked this hotel because of the location (right near the train station).  With our SPG Credit Card, we gain automatic Silver Elite Status.  This allowed us in the club lounge for free breakfast, snacks, and drinks.  Not having to spend €20-30 every day on breakfast and drinks adds up!

Disasterous New Year’s Eve

So the plan was to avoid all the crazy revelry in Edinburgh.  With a three-year-old, we planned on going to bed as early as possible!  If I had done any research, I would have realized the Dutch proclivity for fireworks.  Unfortunately, the central location of our hotel also meant that we heard every bit of the 5-hour-long fireworks festivities.  Seriously, from about 11-4 it was non-stop fireworks.

Since we were all up, we were able to watch this random Dutch music concert called Muziekfeest van het Jaar. It was amazing and all of us (including Simon) were mesmerized!  Take a look in all of its glory!

Amsterdam Activities

One of the activities that we did was go to the ARTIS Amsterdam Royal Zoo.  It did have a large variety of animals, and Simon enjoyed the tram ride out there, but not sure it was worth the €70 price tag to get in.  Especially after our sleep deprived night before.

We also took a Canal Cruise to see more of the city.

A majority of the time we spent walking around.  We would take the tram out a few stops and then walk back to Centraal Station.  And then repeat on a different line.  This strategy allowed us to see quite a lot of the city.  It also meant that we were able to have the best hot chocolates and mochas in the world at a place called Urban Cacao!  It did also mean an uncomfortable few minutes taking Simon through the Red Light District! (Picture Lindsey trying to shield his eyes as we walk past the ladies!)

Things Learned

Three days is not nearly enough time to spend in Amsterdam.  We didn’t really hit any of the numerous museums in the city. (We didn’t think it was appropriate for a toddler)

Also, it pays to plan ahead.  We never really recovered from that first night and lack of sleep.  That probably caused us to take it fairly easy and not do a lot.

Finally, New Years 2019/20 will be in someplace quiet.

Any suggestions for a quiet New Years?  Leave a comment below.