7 things to know before visiting Amsterdam in January

Amsterdam is one of the most popular destinations in Europe at any time of the year, but if you visit Amsterdam in January, you can avoid the season of advanced tourists and take advantage of the best prices to enjoy the narrow streets of the city, historic buildings, Dutch cuisine and popular attractions.

Although January could be one of the coldest months of the year, with average summits in the 1940s (degrees Fahrenheit) and low temperatures in the 1930s, there may be advantages to visit Amsterdam during the winter months. Global warming already makes a difference, but when it is quite cold, the Amsterdam canals freeze, allowing residents to skate along the frozen canals.

And even if you cannot yet see the tulips in the fields, the third Saturday in January is National Tulip Day. As part of this kick -off in the tulip season, visitors can choose tulips for free in specially designed tulip gardens.

Visitors and residents can take advantage of special events and festivities that are part of Amsterdam winter festivalwhich takes place from November to February. You can enjoy cruises in the night channels during the Amsterdam Light Festival and ice skating with museum skating rinks or Rembrandtplein. (Sorry, January is too late for the Christmas markets or the Amsterdam winter paradise.)

Things to know about Amsterdam’s visit in January

Despite the cold, there is a lot to appreciate in the beautiful city at this time of the year, but there are a few things that you should keep in mind before leaving. Some of them are advantages and some are disadvantages, to what extent it bows to you! However, if you can endure the cold, I found in January an ideal moment to visit fewer tourists to navigate.

See my 3 days detailed in the Amsterdam route if you are wondering what to do if you visit Amsterdam in January! (or consult this post on Amsterdam’s visit with adolescents.)

You will have a limited daylight

If you visit Amsterdam in January, your days will be short and your nights will be long, which means fewer hours of clarity to explore. The sunrise will take place between 8:30 am and 9:00 am and the sunset will be between 4.30pm and 5.30pm, the days are gradually lengthening over the month.

This may not work so well if you are a time up, because there are very few premises in morning hours before dawn. However, if you like to sleep a little and do not feel like wasting your day, Amsterdam is your place. In addition, the city remains animated at night, with sparkling edison lights draped in the charming narrow streets. Amsterdam at night is really pretty pretty.

Expect less tourists

The biggest advantage of Amsterdam’s visit in January is that you will not find the same masses of tourists who descend into the city at other times of the year. He will not feel empty by any section, and you must always reserve your post-time tickets for popular attractions like Anne Frank House or the Van Gogh Museum, because they will always sell, but it will not be too crowded.

As a person who hates the crowd and finds that they can really harm a place like Amsterdam or Venice, it was a huge advantage for me.

Hotels will be cheaper

As the laws of supply and demand dictate, fewer tourists and less adaptation requests are reduced in prices in hotels. While I was able to reserve our hotel at Andaz Amsterdam Prinsengracht Using my World of Hyatt Points, you will usually find hotel rooms at the price of around $ 100-200 less per night than you see in high season.

Another secondary advantage for hotels is also not as full, you can be lucky and be able to enter your room right away if you have an early arrival. Our flight from the United States night landed at 8:00 a.m. and we arrived at our hotel at 9:00 a.m. I never imagined that they would have a ready room for us, but they did it! It was such a joy to be able to change and settle before leaving to have breakfast and explore.

Some restaurants and shops can close

Since there are fewer tourists in Amsterdam in January, some stores and restaurants use this time to close for renovations, holidays or reduced hours. We learned this very early during our first morning in Amsterdam when the place I planned to go for breakfast was closed for renovation and the place recommended by our hotel was just inexplicably closed.

We have encountered this from time to time throughout our stay in Amsterdam, even noticing a popular cheese closed from day to day. But don’t worry, there are still many things that are open, especially all the main attractions. If you make reservations for meals in advance or get help from your concierge, you will find. It is not as if the city stopped.

Not all visits work

Another difference that we noticed during Amsterdam’s visit in January compared to spring to fall is that operators offer a more limited selection of tours. With fewer visitors and a desire to fulfill their travel groups, it is not logical to offer visits that you will end up canceling if you do not get enough reservations.

We noticed this with a single gastronomic tour that we hoped to try – but it also makes sense because no one wants to stay outside in the rain or snow! But we still appreciated a visit to the Van Gogh museum and our channel boat visit ended up being a private visit since no one else has booked. This could have an impact on solo travelers, because most companies will want at least two people on each tour.

Be ready for rain (or snow!)

October and November are the rainy months in Amsterdam, but you can also expect rainy days in January as well. Or, if it is quite cold, you can see the snow. Fortunately, the winter season can always give you a few sunny days.

We had a bit of both during our three days in Amsterdam. The important part is to be prepared by wearing waterproof shoes with a good strip of bearing and a warm and water -resistant coat. And don’t forget to bring a travel umbrella! (Although some hotels will also have to borrow.)

Go early to enjoy the light festival

THE Light Amsterdam Festival is an annual event that takes place in mid-January. So, if you are there in early January, you can take advantage of these special facilities via a boat visit to the evening canal or a self -guided walking visit.

Each year, the festival has a different theme and artists are responsible for creating installations along the channels that connect to this theme. For 2024, the theme was “artificial intelligence”. The most comfortable way to discover the screens is by a channel boat visit. There is a paid mobile application that you can download to locate and find out more about each room where you can be lucky and come across a few by yourself.

What to bring to Amsterdam in January

If you visit the Dutch capital for the coldest months, you must prepare! Here is what you need to wear in Amsterdam in January to be comfortable:

• Shoes or hot and waterproof boots with a good sliding sole that will be good in the rain or snow and keep your toes warm when you walk in the cold
• Leggings or pants bordered by wool or wool that will cut the wind and keep you warm. I find that jeans can be cold!
• Long sleeve shirt or base layer but nothing too heavy – I found that some museums and restaurants could be quite hot, while others (like the Van Gogh) were quite cold inside.
• A sweater, a cardigan or a light fleece that can be deleted when you are inside if you are hot.
• A hot parka or a water -resistant winter coat and has a hood. I think that an average puffy jacket will not be hot enough unless you really overlap. I prefer something that covers my buttocks and arrives at least at my mid-thigh or the length of the knee to keep me warm.
• Hat in hot knitting
• Hot gloves
• Woolen socks
• And don’t forget a travel umbrella!

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