Amsterdam for The Three Generations: a Friday-to-Monday weekend
Brick, black water, and a bell every quarter hour.
A weekend everyone can keep up with. Flat routes and places to sit, a boat or a funicular for the view, one highlight a day that works at eight and at eighty, and dinners with a long table.
Friday: Boats and a family table
- Canal cruise
An hour in a glass-roofed boat with a seat for everyone and no stairs to climb; commentary in several languages and a dry cabin.
- Bloemenmarkt
The floating flower market is flat and short; buy a bunch of tulips and sit on a bench by the canal for ten minutes.
- Moeders
A restaurant hung with photographs of mothers, serving Dutch home cooking on mismatched china at long tables; the stamppot and the apple tart are the order.
Saturday: One great museum
- Rijksmuseum
Lifts and wheelchairs at the door, benches in every gallery; keep to the Night Watch and the Gallery of Honour and call it done.
- Brasserie Keyzer
A white-tableclothed brasserie opposite the Concertgebouw, a long lunch for the whole table with a children's menu and a quiet back room.
- Vondelpark
Flat paths and benches everywhere; take a slow turn to the Blauwe Theehuis and let the children use the playground.
Sunday: Glasshouses and a bench
- Hortus Botanicus
Flat paths, a glasshouse of palms and cycads, a butterfly house and benches throughout; the Orangery café has a good family table.
- De Plantage
An 1870 glasshouse restaurant by the zoo gate, with long tables and a menu for every age; the iron ribs overhead make it feel special.
- Magere Brug
The white bascule bridge is a short, flat walk; stand at the middle and watch the river traffic, then go back for a rest.
Monday: A ship and a roof
- Het Scheepvaartmuseum
A museum with lifts and wide galleries; the replica East Indiaman moored outside is the star, and the ground-floor café has good seating.
- In de Waag
Lunch inside the 1488 weigh house, with tables long enough for four generations and a menu of soup, sandwiches and a decent roast.
- OBA Oosterdok roof terrace
Take the lifts to the top floor of the public library for a harbour view and a seat; a quiet last look before the airport train.