Tours/Amsterdam/Amsterdam Museum of the Canals Admission Ticket with Audiotour
Viator · group up to 12 pax

Amsterdam Museum of the Canals Admission Ticket with Audiotour

4.4(43)Amsterdam1 hour
VIATOR4.9(7)TRIPADVISOR4.3(36)

Description

Learn more about the history of Amsterdam’s canals by visiting the Museum of the Canals (Grachtenmuseum) in Amsterdam. A dazzling audiovisual exhibition will take you on a journey through 400 years of Amsterdam history and you'll learn how Amsterdam transformed from a small fishing port into a metropolis and why the canals, which received UNESCO world heritage status in 2010, are important to this day.

Tour Options

Amsterdam Museum of the Canals Admission Ticket with Audiotour

Itinerary

Admission included

Get to know the history of Amsterdam and its canals. The Museum of the Canals is located in a 17th-century canal house in the heart of Amsterdam, with classical period rooms, a permanent multimedia tour, beautiful garden and changing exhibitions. Fun for all ages!

Highlights

Audio guide in 9 languages
Admission to the Museum of the Canals

What's included

Included
Audio guide in 9 languages
Admission to the Museum of the Canals

Traveller Ratings

4.4
43 reviews
5
24
4
14
3
3
2
1
1
1

Important Information

  • Wheelchair accessible
  • Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
  • Service animals allowed
  • Public transportation options are available nearby
  • All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
  • Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Reviews(43)

B
boby_le_chineur
July 8, 2026
A passage more than recommended.

The museum is comprehensive, well explained, with quite unusual and very interesting displays. We are immersed in the history of the canals through the ages, and it personally gave me a new perspective on this unique part of the city while providing answers to questions I had. I highly recommend it if you come to Amsterdam for a weekend. The building blends into the surroundings but is worth the detour.

R
rickandchris
June 14, 2026
Great

Very informative about Amsterdam! The history of the formation is quite educational. Learned a lot of things to appreciate what it is today.

B
BridgeMinder
May 31, 2026
Informative Small Museum

The museum is informative and worth a visit. The museum has an unusual 3D presentation. The presentation is good, but not great. I likely a great deal about the history of the canals.

T
Tammy_A
April 20, 2026
It is very interesting,...

It is very interesting, explaining the history of the development and the canals of Amsterdam. I highly recommend it.

C
cydwood
April 18, 2026
Hidden gem

A spur of the moment visit and was one of the best museums we have ever been to. Modern and well set out. 10/10

2 people found this helpful
C
Cathi_J
April 14, 2026
Good overview of how Amsterdam was built

The museum is interesting and informative of how the city of Amsterdam was made and built. It also gives a good overview of society life in the 18th and 19th century. It is a good tour and is nice that it does not sell out fast like so many museums in Amsterdam.

H
HeenaK24
April 3, 2026
Nice history

Very nicely done, although it’s more of listening to a pre recorded version

E
E6405LIjuliab
March 27, 2026
It's a must!

What a little gem! We only went as we had time to kill and it's both very interesting and very well done - the audio guide and the models set up in each room are imaginative and engaging. Well done!

1 people found this helpful
K
Kreintje
February 1, 2026
Experience

You walk, in a group, from room to room. So looking at things at your own pace is not one of them. In the spaces, the history of Amsterdam, and in particular the creation of the canal belt, is depicted. Meanwhile, listen to the explanation on the audio device. It's all very fancy and hip, but also rather superficial. I thought it was more of an experience than a museum. The temporary exhibition "Amsterdam, almost demolished" on the bell - floor was small, but in itself nice. I think the price of 18.50 for a ticket is really too high. But fortunately, the museum annual pass is valid.

2 people found this helpful
D
dguest2016
November 24, 2025
Show and tell

Described as a 'multimedia' tour, this is 45 minutes or so of presentations in a variety of inventive styles that explain the history of Amsterdam's canals and the growth of the city. At reception you are given an audio unit in the appropriate language and when a sufficient number of people has assembled you are ushered into the first of a series of connected, darkened rooms. My favourite was the council-chamber reconstruction of the city fathers' 17th century deliberations. You could also stand in the canal, as it were, and watch the buildings going up around you. The final room gave glimpses into the interiors, at historic intervals, of the building that houses the museum and into others along the main canal banks. The audio's lip-service to some contemporary concerns was mildly irritating for being incomplete. Amsterdam's role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade was mentioned only briefly and I can recall no reference to the Dutch East India Company at all. On the other hand elements laid out hundreds of years ago - canalside trees, and the gardens of the houses of the wealthy - were cited in support of the city's green credentials. At €17.50 it's not spectacularly good value, but it's different and some aspects are very well done.

You might also like...