Amsterdam city centre is well-known as a cyclists’ paradise and a driver’s nightmare, and in terms of the numbers of journeys made by bike, it is perhaps second only to the fellow Dutch city of Groningen. Amsterdam is also world-famous as a party city, with its infamous red light district and coffee shops. We presume that you already know this, so there is no point in us simply regurgitating the obvious, and that is that for a short stay in the centre of Amsterdam, there is absolutely no point whatsoever in even considering hiring a car.

So, when we look at Amsterdam car hire, we’re looking at a slightly longer trip, and using Amsterdam as a base or a start point for exploring not just the local area, but the significant hinterland beyond.

Why hire a car in Amsterdam?

• Get out: This isn’t just about the city centre of Amsterdam — Schiphol airport is a gateway for a vast hinterland beyond Amsterdam itself, as there are so many flight routes operating here that aren’t available at many of the other nearby airports.
• Good roads: Whilst it is true that many more journeys in the Netherlands are made by bike than they are in the UK or the USA, the quality of the roads is still very high. Because public transport is also of a very high standard, there is less congestion, and therefore more space on the roads for those people who do want to drive.
• Cost of trains: We (in the UK or the USA) might look to the Netherlands as having a high standard of public transport, but the locals still complain, especially about the prices for Dutch trains (see Dutch train booking gripes below). Bring over a family, and a hire car easily works out as much better value than going by train.
• Architecture: Architecture buffs will find that the Netherlands is full of all kinds of interesting historic and modern buildings. These are often in the suburbs — even bland industrial units in the Netherlands can often be meticulously put together. The best way to conduct a self-guided architectural tour is to have the flexibility of the car. Of particular note are the unique self built houses in the new city of Almere, the cube houses in Rotterdam, the Dudok trail in Hilversum and the three bridges designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava in Haarlemmermeer, near Schiphol Airport. However, all these places are in urban locations, so they are relatively near a station – and Hilversum in particular is a nightmare to drive around for the uninitiated.
• Engineering Polders: The Netherlands has an impressive system of holding back the sea, a feat regarded by many engineers as one of the most impressive pieces of civil engineering in the 20th century. You will find a car useful to drive across Ijsselmeer using the N302 or the A7 Afsluitdijk — although even though this is a motorway crossing, a slow (and cycling) lane is still available – if you can tolerate the wind!
• Rivers & Islands: To explore the many mouths of the Rhine or the relatively deserted islands of the Waddenzee, a car is essential.
• Dutch landscapes: A hire car is best to appreciate the stereotypical Dutch springtime landscape of tulips, canals and windmills – but a bike will do aswell.
• Cyclists’ paradise? Amsterdam has a poor reputation for cycle crime (thousands each year end up in the canals), and unlike London, there is no community bikes programme.

Why not?

• Obvious isn’t it? Cities in Netherlands are tightly packed — easy to get between, and even easier to get around. Public transport is excellent, who needs to even consider a rental car?
• Nationwide Travelcard: To use the public transport network, users can purchase an OV-Chipkaart, which is similar to the Oystercard system on London Transport, except that it works nationwide. The cards cost €7.50 for pay as you go, although disposable cards are also available for single ticket journeys, or day travel passes.
• High Speed Trains: The FYRA high speed train takes you direct from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport to Rotterdam in just 27 minutes, before continuing to provide rapid connections to Antwerp and Brussels. Heading in the other direction, regular fast German ICE train services provide links to Duisburg, Dusseldorf, Cologne and beyond.
• Bike it: Cycle hire facilities are widely available at Amsterdam Centraal and most major NS railway stations, no pre-booking required – see OV-Fiets (Dutch only). For more information about the cycling culture in Amsterdam (it really is a passion, not just a mode of transport), visit Amsterdamize.
• Canals: Amsterdam is a city of canals, surely the best way of getting around is to take a boat trip?
• Cost: Amsterdam car hire is expensive – with a guide price of £154 per week – almost four times as much as car hire in Malaga – and Dutch fuel isn’t cheap either.

Verdict: For longer stays with more flexibility for travelling between Dutch cities and enjoying the Dutch landscape, a hire car is certainly useful, but by no means essential.

VERDICT: YES

A typical Amsterdam canal scene - but there are plenty more places with similar images, and even though public transport is excellent, it is still easier to drive around.

Dutch trains – a warning!

I would like to post positive things about the Dutch train system, but I’m afraid the booking process is awkward, laden with hidden extras:

Amsterdam to Rotterdam by train (via Amsterdam Schiphol Airport)

I looked at booking a simple journey from Amsterdam to Rotterdam – the kind of trip any visitor to the Netherlands might make. It came up with a price of €13.40 one way, saying this has to be made with an OV-Chipkaart, but giving no information about how to get one. This looks like a good idea, but it is unclear from the website whether or not visitors would have to pay the €7.50 charge to get a card when on a short stay in the Netherlands, or whether or not the card fee has to be paid for a single journey disposable card.

It looked like the website (by this stage, only in Dutch) was sending people to book an e-ticket for the slower journey on Netherlands Rail, but this only had the option to pay by bank transfer through a Dutch bank – not much use for a visitor!

So, it looked like the only option for online booking was to go on the faster FYRA service – which took 40 minutes instead of an 1hr 10 – a reasonable saving for a supplement of €2.70, but users should be able to book themselves on either. Even for this train, customers can only pay by Visa or Mastercard, and these attract a surcharge of €2.50. So this gives a total of €34.70 – approximately £30.25 for the return journey. I can only hope that a ticket for the slower train can be bought in cash at the station without any supplements. This would work out as €13.40 x 2 = €26.80, about £23.35.

Dutch trains cost more than their UK Equivalents

So how does our so-called ‘rip-off’ Britain compare?

Amsterdam to Rotterdam by car is a journey of around 81km (50 miles), so an equivalent British journey might be London to Milton Keynes – slightly further by road at 87km. Now the stretch of track between Amsterdam Schiphol Airport and Rotterdam is a newly laid high-speed line, yet the journey time from Euston to Milton Keynes in a Virgin Pendolino can take as little as 30 minutes, compared to 40 minutes by FYRA.

Unlike most of continental Europe, the UK operates a demand-led pricing structure, so fares are higher during the peak-time commuter rush. Yet, the highest return fare to Milton Keynes is £29.50, still less than FYRA. The cheapest fare between London and Milton Keynes is just £14 return, and this can be used on either Virgin or London Midland (from 38 minutes) trains, although the offpeak validity period for London Midland is longer.

So, the sad fact is that even though the system itself is excellent, Dutch railways are expensive even by comparison with the UK. Meanwhile, the Dutch rail online booking process is worse than the much-maligned Ryanair when it comes to extra charges, yet unlike British train companies, or the no-frills airlines the consumer groups so love to hate, there is no option for a discount when the trains are quiet.

I wonder what Which? magazine and the EU consumer bodies would say about that?

File under: Amsterdam car hire advice - yes or no?, Amsterdam airport car rental.