Rijksmuseum

The Rijksmuseum: 800 Years of Dutch Art, Surprisingly Manageable

The Rijksmuseum has over 8,000 objects on permanent display across 80 galleries. That number is slightly terrifying. The practical approach is to not attempt all of it: spend two hours on the second floor’s Gallery of Honour and Rembrandt’s “The Night Watch,” then take another hour to pick three or four rooms that interest you specifically. The museum is well-designed enough that this selective approach feels satisfying rather than incomplete.

The Collection

The Gallery of Honour on the second floor is where the major Dutch Golden Age paintings hang: Rembrandt’s Night Watch (2.4 metres tall, one of the most technically complex paintings of the 17th century), Vermeer’s “The Milkmaid” (smaller than expected, more luminous than photographs suggest), and Frans Hals’s portraits. The Night Watch restoration has been ongoing since 2019 and visitors can watch the process through glass panels at the edge of the gallery, which is genuinely interesting.

The museum also holds a substantial collection of Delftware pottery, dollhouses (more impressive than it sounds; Dutch merchants in the 17th century paid the equivalent of three years’ salary for an accurate miniature house), and a significant library of Asian art including Japanese lacquerwork and Chinese porcelain.

Entry is €22.50 for adults, free for visitors under 18. Open daily 9am-5pm. The last hour is the quietest. Book tickets at the official website in advance; the same-day walk-up queue on summer weekends runs 45-90 minutes.

The Building

The main building, designed by Pierre Cuypers, reopened in 2013 after a decade-long renovation and is itself worth examining. The Asiatic Art gallery in the east wing is particularly well laid out; the transition from the canal-era Amsterdam light through the skylights to the ceramics cases below has been carefully calibrated.

The rear garden passage through the building is open to cyclists and pedestrians free of charge; Amsterdammers cut through it daily regardless of whether they’re visiting the museum. The garden has two small pavilions with sculptures.

Around the Museum

The Van Gogh Museum (€22 adult, book online weeks ahead) is a three-minute walk away and covers Van Gogh’s life chronologically through paintings, drawings, and letters with exceptional depth. The Stedelijk Museum of modern and contemporary art is adjacent; the exterior looks like a bathtub, which many Amsterdammers have opinions about.

Vondelpark starts immediately behind the museum row. It’s Amsterdam’s main park and is crowded on sunny weekends with a demographic that ranges from in-line skaters to classical concerts at the open-air pavilion.

Where to Eat

The Rijksmuseum restaurant inside serves Dutch food at reasonable prices (€15-25 for mains) with good views of the museum courtyard. For cheaper options: the Albert Heijn supermarket on the Leidseplein, 10 minutes’ walk, sells sandwiches for €4-6. De Foodhallen, a 15-minute walk in the Oud-West district, is a covered food market in a converted tram depot with about 20 stalls covering everything from ramen to Dutch bitterballen; budget €12-18 per person.

The stroopwafel, the Amsterdam-specific caramel waffle cookie, is best warm from a market stall (Albert Cuypmarkt, 15 minutes south by bike) for €1.50 rather than cold from tourist shops at €3.50.