My experience. How to save money in Amsterdam? Which mobile Internet to choose for roaming? How to save money when staying in Amsterdam for a long time
Amsterdam is a relatively small city, so if you live near the center, you can reach the most important attractions on foot. But what if there is no time for this? In such cases, public transport comes to the rescue of thrifty tourists.
The fastest way to get around in Amsterdam is the metro, especially if you need to go to the other side of the city. But you don’t have to take the metro just to get through a stop or two, because a ticket for one trip on a bus or tram will cost about 2.5-3 euros, which is quite expensive.
GVB cards
To travel on any (except intercity) public transport, you can purchase a special GVB card. It is purchased for a specific time - from a day (24 hours) to a week (168 hours). The price of such a card varies from 8 to 32 euros. When entering/exiting a vehicle, the card must be presented to the validator at the door.
GVB cards are sold in specialized offices, at any metro ticket office (for a maximum of 4 days), at the tram conductor (for a day or two), as well as at hotels (cards are not available in all hotels, so it is better to find out about their availability in advance).
I amsterdam card
You can also buy an “I amsterdam card” to travel around Amsterdam. A 3-day card costs almost 70 euros. It allows you to ride all types of transport for free (except for taxis), and also gives you many discounts and bonuses:
- discount on a trip through the city's canals;
- free tickets to some museums;
- discount on visiting restaurants, bars and cafes;
- inexpensive tickets to shows and concerts.
Bike
And for tourists who do not plan to visit museums or use public transport, a bicycle is perfect for moving around the city. This is a very cheap, fast and popular form of transport in Amsterdam.
How to save money while traveling? Almost every avid traveler asks this question before going on vacation.
In each new article I will tell you about ways to save money in different cities.
First up is Amsterdam!
TRANSPORT
Most tourists traveling on their own, when arriving in the city, buy a travel ticket for one or more days. You can do this in any other city, but not in Amsterdam! The city is literally teeming with places where you can rent a bicycle for a few euros. The city is maximally adapted to move around it in this way.
If you literally count every penny while traveling, feel free to give up cycling in favor of walking. Amsterdam is not as big a city as it seems, so rest assured that you won't get tired!
FOOD.
In almost any tourist city there are hundreds of cafes and restaurants offering tourists food for every taste: from fast food to local delicacies. Amsterdam is no exception. But a trip to any of these establishments will cost you several tens of euros.
The best way to save on food in Amsterdam is to buy it from Aldi supermarkets. Here you can find cheap but high-quality Euroshopper products.
Lifehack for “early birds”: Every morning from 9.00 to 10.00 in Amsterdam you can have breakfast in the HEMA store cafe for only 2 euros!
EXCURSIONS AND ENTERTAINMENT
If you are going to Amsterdam for several days and want to visit the maximum number of museums, but are not ready to pay 15-25 euros for entry to each of them, just buy an “I amsterdam card”. This card allows you to visit museums and attractions with a 50 or even 100% discount. A card for 24 hours will cost you 57 euros, for 48 hours – 67 euros, for 72 – 77 euros, and for 96 hours – 87 euros. The card can be purchased at any branch of the Amsterdam Tourism Convention Board. One of them is located right at the airport. The card can also be purchased online. Just present the printed coupon at any company information office and they will give you your card.
IMPORTANT: The card's validity begins from the moment it is first used.
SHOPPING
REMEMBER: When purchasing over 50 euros, you can issue tax free checks.
BONUS!
You can not only save money, but also earn money on your trip! Register on sopotra, transport a small parcel or run an errand in the city - and now a couple of tens of euros are already in your pocket!
Here are all the life hacks that I and my friends have tried. How did you save money during your trip to Amsterdam?
Only 800 thousand people live in Amsterdam, and if you count the suburbs together, you get 2.3 million people. Moreover, about 4.5 million tourists come to the capital of the Netherlands every year.
Anastasia Myachkova, who hosts instagram-an account about life in Amsterdam, I moved here with my husband two years ago on a work invitation as highly skilled migrants. The Village asked Anastasia to tell us how much Amsterdam residents spend on living.
1,500 euros
Minimum wage
2,000 euros
Low income
2,500–4,000 euros
Average income
from 4,000 euros
High income
Housing
from 800 to 15,000 euros per month for renting an apartment
There is a very high demand for rental housing in Amsterdam itself. If you look for an option outside the ring or in the suburbs, your chances of finding housing at an affordable price increase. The average cost of a small apartment for two in Amsterdam itself is 1,500 euros. Many apartments in historic buildings are very tiny, with a shower directly above the toilet or behind a partition in the bedroom. The most extravagant option we've seen is the closet toilet. After that, a bathroom on the floor below the apartment itself or a bedroom across the floor from the living room no longer seemed so strange. A bathroom instead of a shower in an apartment in one of the central areas can become truly exotic.
To get a good apartment, you will have to try: look at many options and convince the owners of the ones you like that you are the ideal tenants they are looking for. For example, we were asked to write a short essay about ourselves. Sometimes such an essay needs to be submitted even to get to the primary screening. Although most often the real estate agency schedules an open house day, when everyone wants to inspect the apartment at the same time. Often apartments are rented unfurnished, and sometimes without flooring. Laminate here belongs to the same category as a sofa or table - you buy it once and take it with you when you move. The most popular sites for finding housing are funda.nl and pararius.com.
In order to sign the lease, you will be asked to provide a work contract indicating your income. If the work contract is for a shorter period than the desired rental agreement, then you may be charged a deposit of two months' rent.
Transport
0–250 euros per month
Monthly transportation costs greatly depend on the distance of work from home. Most Amsterdam residents travel by bicycle: the trip from home to office rarely takes more than 20–30 minutes. People most often ride a bicycle to run errands, go to a bar, go to training, or go on a date.
Those who work far from home and travel by metro, tram or bus often use OV-chipkaart. This is a travel card (the plastic card itself costs 7.5 euros), on which money is deposited and then debited for each stop - it’s much cheaper than hourly or day passes, which only make sense for tourists to use. Another option is a personalized card with unlimited trips on a chosen route for a fixed price (the cost depends on the mileage) - this option is convenient if you need to get to work by train. It is possible to receive a 40% discount on travel for 60 euros per year. My husband spends no more than 30 euros on travel, but the trip costs me 250.
Food
400 euros per month
It costs about 400 euros per month to buy groceries for a family of two. At the same time, the menu is quite varied: it includes fresh fruits, berries and vegetables, seafood, a variety of cheeses, and freshly squeezed juices. The most popular supermarket chain is Albert Heijn, they are always nearby. This chain belongs to the middle class, but it is constantly expensive to shop there. Dirk has quite a good selection and prices, but there are much fewer stores than Albert Heijn. Jumbo also belongs to the middle class; they also have significantly fewer outlets. From the low price segment we can mention Lidl and Aldi, from the premium segment - Marqt and Ekoplaza. You can save on groceries by signing up for a store discount card. It allows you to buy certain goods significantly cheaper if you study the promotion schedule in the newsletter in advance and create a menu for several days in advance.
We buy basic products from the supermarket - pasta, cereals, eggs, milk, and for everything else - for example, fruits, vegetables, fresh seafood and cheeses - we go to the market. There is much more choice, the taste and quality are better, and often the prices are lower. A piece of cheese costs 2.5 euros, half a kilo of shrimp - 8 euros, half a kilo of cherries - 3-4 euros, mango or small melon - 1-2 euros. There are quite a lot of markets in Amsterdam, some are open from Monday to Saturday, some only on Saturdays. Bread, croissants and other pastries should only be taken from bakeries, they taste much better there.
Medicine
from 100 euros for insurance per month
Having health insurance in Holland is mandatory. The basic one will cost about 100 euros per month. The extended one will cost 20–50 euros per month more, depending on the services that will be included in it. At the same time, visiting a therapist will always be free, but subsequent tests and examinations will be paid. You need to pay about 400 euros yourself, and the insurance company will cover the rest. Many employers offer a group insurance plan in which they pay about 10-15% of the premium per employee.
Entertainment
40–50 euros - restaurant bill for two
12 euros - cinema ticket
Amsterdam regularly hosts various festivals and other events, from music to gastronomy. One of our favorite events is the monthly Sunday market in Westerpark with street food - there you can try Chilean empanadas, grilled sausages, Spanish paella, and hot coconut cookies - macarons (not to be confused with French macarons). In addition, you can buy hand-painted dishes.
In good weather, the Dutch all go out as one: some sip wine on their balconies, some take a boat ride on the canals, some sit with friends in a summer cafe, and some have a barbecue in the park. By the way, this is one of the most popular summer entertainments - many parks already have barbecues in special areas, tables and benches are placed, so you only need to bring food and coals. But most come with their own compact or disposable barbecues, and even on weekdays after 18:00 you can hardly find a free lawn.
As for going to bars and restaurants, you don’t need a special occasion for this, so regardless of the day of the week, you should book a table in a good establishment in advance. On average, a trip to a restaurant for two (with two hot dishes and two glasses of wine or beer) will cost 40–50 euros. Breakfast or brunch for two will cost about 25–30 euros. The cost of a movie ticket is about 12 euros. You can buy an unlimited pass for a month for 20 euros.
How can an ordinary tourist save money in the progressive and expensive Netherlands? We recently visited this country. A sea of impressions, by the way, we saw the North Sea in The Hague, but that’s not about that now. The journey lasted from September 10 to 17, the stay in Holland was 5 full days. The budget is approximately 100-120 euros per person, but we saved little and did not feel like “rogues”. How did we achieve such savings?
Airfare that almost everyone can afford
We booked our tickets well in advance, about 5-6 months before our trip. We bought them on Wizzair with a 20% discount. The price of a round-trip ticket was 600 UAH per person, departure from Warsaw. We didn’t have any trouble getting to Warsaw from Lvov; to do this we need to calculate everything over time, make small corridors and, of course, know some secrets of how to get there for pennies. One way to Warsaw cost us 100 UAH maximum. Conclusion: in order to buy inexpensive tickets, buy them in advance and keep an eye on promotions, or don’t fool yourself if you are just taking your first steps in traveling and contact us!
Hitch-hiking
From Warsaw we landed in Eindhoven, so you understand, this city is located in the very south of Holland, and our goal is Amsterdam, which is located in the center. It takes an hour and a half to get from Eindhoven to Amsterdam - there are no difficulties, the problem is the price of the bus - 25 euros per person. I think you understand that this price is much more than for a one-way flight. We decided to hitchhike. You can believe it, after just 2-3 minutes, we were in the luxurious car of a simple 3rd year student. He was going to Rotterdam, we decided to go with him. Hitchhiking in Holland is good.
From Eindhoven to Amsterdam
Transport prices in Holland are still exorbitant. After walking around Rotterdam, we decided to go to The Hague, took the train, didn’t pay, although we were very worried about meeting the controller, and within 25 minutes we were there. Locals use their own “life hacks” for transport. For example, for travel on public transport there are personalized cards with money on the balance, which give a discount from 20% to 40% and simplify the process of buying tickets. Our “life hack” is that when we had to get from The Hague to the desired Amsterdam, and the train was again expensive for us (11.5 euros for one), we decided to ride as a “hare” again - three in one toilet, 45 minutes. You should have seen the reaction of people when we went there and three of us came out with huge backpacks. The Dutch are honest with their country, they pay for transport, and the controls in the country are difficult to bypass.
Tricks with Museumkaart
The Museum Card (Museumkaart) is a very useful thing for people who like to visit museums in the Netherlands. What is she like? This is a card that allows you to visit almost 400 museums in the Netherlands throughout the year, including 34 museums located in Amsterdam. The cost of such a card is 54.9 euros. It seems that the price for such a card is high, right? But don’t rush to conclusions, let’s just do the math: entrance to most museums in the Netherlands for an adult costs 10-15 euros. That is, it turns out that the investment is completely justified.
But that’s not all: why buy a yearly card for 55 euros if you will be there for 2-4 days and are not going to devote all the time to museums? It’s easier to find a person who rents such cards. Personally, we took 3 cards per day for only 20 euros! After visiting the first museum, we saved 8 euros per person! And we were in 4 museums - consider the savings yourself.
NOTE: The card is personal, that is, you will walk with a card in someone else's name, in 95% of cases no one will ask for your passport, the only exception is the Van Gogh Museum, where we were not able to enter using the card.