Amsterdam: Guided City Highlights Open Boat Canal Cruise Day Tours

See Amsterdam from its most famous vantage point on this 75-minute open boat canal cruise. You'll journey through the city's UNESCO-listed waterways while your captain provides live commentary, pointing out architectural details and stories behind the bridges and canal houses that define the Dutch capital.

The route passes the iconic Magere Brug, a drawbridge built in 1934 that's illuminated by 1,200 light bulbs after dark and has appeared in films including the 1971 Bond movie Diamonds Are Forever. You'll cruise beneath its central section, which still opens several times daily for passing boats. The open-air design gives you unobstructed views and photo angles of the gabled facades, houseboats, and tree-lined banks that make Amsterdam's canal ring distinctive.

You'll board an open boat at the departure point and set off into Amsterdam's canal network for a 75-minute guided tour. Your captain narrates throughout, sharing details about the buildings, bridges, and history you're passing. The route winds through the canal belt, giving you views of narrow canal houses with their distinctive gables, working drawbridges, and the tree-lined waterways that curve through the city centre.

As you approach the Magere Brug, your captain will point out its slender wooden frame and the pedestrian and cyclist traffic crossing above. The bridge's central section may open during your cruise to let boats through. Throughout the journey, you'll have clear views for photos thanks to the open boat configuration, with no glass or canopy blocking your angles of the canal-side scenery.