Netherlands trip planning - Nov. 2021
Following the impact of the global pandemic, planning international travel has been a struggle to say the least. While the world is starting to open up again, there is still a long road ahead that involves COVID-19.
We have been discussing a trip to the Netherlands for quite some time now. For those of you who don’t know, Adam is a major urban planning and cycling enthusiast; therefore, the Netherlands is his favorite place on the planet. He has been three times - he went to Amsterdam for his bachelor party in May 2017 (yeah, pretty wild), we went back together in April 2018 for three days, and the last trip he did in September 2019 was a week-long solo adventure, where he biked through Amsterdam, Utrecht, ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Tilburg, Dordrecht, Rotterdam, and The Hague. Ever since that trip, he’s been on a mission to get both of us back there to explore and admire the unique magic of Dutch cities.
As you can probably gather by now, the first trip abroad we’re planning is to the Netherlands - Amsterdam to be exact (with a possible day trip to Utrecht). Originally we were on track to visit in September 2021 for a week, but two weeks prior to our flight it was announced that the Netherlands was tightening the restrictions. Unfortunately, those restrictions included a 10-day quarantine, which there was no way of getting around. So we decided to resort to Plan B - a surprise adventure via Amtrak train (Empire Builder) from Chicago to Seattle (more details to come at a later blog post) - and postponed our Netherlands trip to November 2021 with the hope that the situation would get better.
Fast-forward to now. We are a week away from our flight to the Netherlands for Thanksgiving and it has been announced that they are going into a three-week partial lockdown. Talk about timing, right? Well, we are still going. We have been doing a gargantuan amount of research and keeping track of all of the mandates and protocols to ensure we are being as careful as possible and abiding by their rules. Below you’ll find our Netherlands planning, including our current understanding of their COVID-19 protocols.
Ariel and Adam’s Netherlands Trip - Thanksgiving 2021
Dates: November 24 - 29 (4 full days to explore, 2 days for travel)
Location: Amsterdam, Holland - the capital of the Netherlands
Current COVID-19 Requirements:
No test requirement to travel from the USA to the Netherlands for fully vaccinated individuals. There is a mandatory COVID test to return to the USA.
In order to enjoy museums, restaurants, cafes, shops, and attractions you need to display an EU digital COVID certificate (DCC) proving vaccinations status upon entry. Even though we are fully vaccinated, American citizens are unable to easily obtain an EU DCC to use in the Netherlands. Instead, we will need to get COVID tested daily using Testen Voor Toegang (Test for Entry), the Dutch COVID testing system that is supposedly very quick, easy, and free.
NEW! Partial Lockdown
As of November 12, the Netherlands imposed a three-week partial lockdown. You can read more about it here, but the long story short is that all attractions, restaurants, grocery stores, and non-essential businesses will need to close by 8 pm.
When we initially heard about the partial lockdown, we thought all hope was lost for this trip. But as we looked closer we realized that the lockdown really shouldn’t impact our trip as we were planning to do most of our sightseeing during the day. The government has also tightened social distancing and masking rules, something we’re accustomed to living in Chicago. We’re hopeful that their new mitigations will make it easier for us to travel responsibly. The partial lockdown means we will spend some more time in our hotel room in the evenings and either take out dinner or order room service. We might also do some late-night exploring when the city is quiet (weather permitting).
We are concerned that if we don’t go now there is a chance that we may not be able to go back for the foreseeable future. It sounds dramatic, but the Dutch government is actively debating eliminating the Test for Entry program, a change that would make displaying digital COVID certificates the only way to gain entry into restaurants and attractions. If this law were to pass, we will likely have to wait until the United States issues a digital COVID certificate that is accepted in the EU, or until the Dutch accept a paper US vaccination card. There is no telling when this would be.
Based on all of the unknowns and constant changes, our trip planning is more fluid than usual. Typically we have a pretty structured itinerary focused on areas of interest and a mapped-out route of how we would get around. In this case, the way we’re going to enjoy our trip is by having a list of things to do to reference and see how we feel each day based on the situation in the Netherlands. See below for a list of activities, events, and places we’re hoping to tackle:
E-bike rental
Already booked via StarBikes Rentals since they have a flexible cancellation policy and is close to our hotel
Country and Christmas Fair (Nov 23-28)
Day trip to Castle De Haar in Utrecht via train and bike
It’s a ticketed event filled with all of the wonderful Christmas things (mulled wine, local foods, and more), so we’ll plan this close to the time we’re there
Ice*Amsterdam at Museumplein (Nov 13 - Jan 30)
Ice skating in front of Rijksmuseum (Christmas market is not open until Dec)
Albert Cuyp Market - iconic street market filled with local eats
Bloemenmarkt - the famous floating flower market
Waterlooplein - the city's biggest market open every day but Sunday
The world’s biggest street art and graffiti museum in an 8,000 square meter warehouse at NDSM wharf and showcasing some 150 artworks, all made on-site.
Amsterdam Museum - the name speaks for itself
Possible day trip to Zaanse Schans (think historic windmills) and Volendam (small town with a beautiful old harbor, fresh seafood, and colorful timber houses)
In addition to the list above, we’re looking forward to doing some general exploration of Amsterdam and the surrounding areas. We will revisit this list and update it following our trip (fingers crossed!). Let us know if you’ve ever been to the Netherlands and where are your must-see activities and places!
