Visiting Holland with children?

Where to stay, I recommend :

Jewel Canal View Apartment

* Type: Apartment

* Location: Near Dam Square

* Rates starting: € 109,00

* Best feature: Canal views

Two beautiful accommodations: a private studio and a loft apartment, each with canal view. Both have been completely renovated and the house, which is a monumental canal house, has been restored with many original details.

You will be staying at a perfect location: in the heart of the city, close to the Dam Square, with everything at walking distance! The apartments can be checked for availability & prices and booked online.

What to do , I recommend within a walking distance from apartment:

Dam Square - National Monument

Dam Square - Madame Tussaud

Dam Square - Royal Palace

Central Station Area/St Nicolaas Kerk

Further recommendations:

* Go to the Museumplein. It used to be a big street; they called it the highway of Amsterdam. They demolished the street and turned it into a huge grass lawn surrounded by the Concert Hall (Concertgebouw) on one side and the Rijksmuseum and the Vincent van Gogh museum on the other. It's very pretty. Just sit there and enjoy the view and the people.

* Speaking of the Concertgebouw: if you enjoy classical music, go to a concert if the price is doable. The concert hall itself is stunning. (If you go, make sure it's in the big hall, not the smaller one upstairs.)

* If you can't afford that: free afternoon concerts ("lunch concert") in the Concertgebouw on Wednesday afternoon.

* Go to the Magere Brug ("Skinny Bridge") over the Amstel river and see Carré theater on one side and the Stopera (Ballet/Opera/City Hall) on the other. It's a beautiful place to just stand for a few minutes to enjoy the view and to watch people walk/bike by. (It's good for kissing, also, if you get a chance.)

* Walk through "the 9 streets": Berenstraat, Runstraat, etc. They are the streets that connect the Prinsengracht, Keizersgracht, and Herengracht. They are cute and have some nice stores.

* Walk along the grachten (canals).

* Rent one of those "waterbikes" and peddle your way over some canals. I know of one place in front of the Rijksmuseum that rents them out.

* Go to the Noordermarkt on Saturday morning, then walk to the Lindenmarkt and eat apple pie in the cafe on the corner of the Westerstraat.

* Go to the Anne Frank house very early in the morning or 45 minutes before they close.

* Go to the Leidseplein and Rembrandtsplein. (A "plein" is a square.) Both of these are tourist traps, but a few minutes on both cannot hurt.

* If the weather permits, walk around and sit in the Vondelpark on a nice day and look at the pretty people.

* Visit the hip Westerpark with gardens, architecture, food, and drinks. (Restaurant "Amsterdam" is nice, very tasty, and not too expensive. It's on Watertorenplein 6, near the Westerpark.)

* Walk through the Jordaan neighborhood. Find the "Hofjes", tiny enclosed parks or gardens using a map of the hofjes in the Jordaan.

* Stroll down Albert Cuijp market.

* Go to the IJkantine (a cafe and restaurant) on the opposite side of the IJ. It has a nice view, also. Take the ferry over the IJ. The ferry is near the rear exit of the central station.

* Listen to modern classical music in Het Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ. Have a coffee in the Star Ferry café-restaurant and watch the sunset against the skyline of Amsterdam.

* Listen to Jazz at the Bimhuis.

* Take a look at the library behind Central Station.

* Go to the top floor of the Metz & Co in the Leidsestraat and drink an expensive coffee, enjoying the view.

* Go to the Spui and find the little wooden, insignificant looking door and go through it. (I think it's close to the American Book Center.) The door leads you to the Begijnhof. It's great.

* Go to the Prinsen, Realen, and/or Bicker island and take a stroll.

* Buy a tram card and take a ride with tram 2. Or ride any other tram, for that matter.

* Take a look at KNSM island in the IJ.

* Rent a bike, ride around, and spawn the devil. We don't like you tourists riding slowly on our bike paths, but we can't really stop you either. Plenty of bike rental places. Watch out for treacherous tram tracks.

* Friday afternoon concert ("lunch concert") in the Westerkerk (Wester church).

* Take a boat tour with St. Nicholas boats at the Boom Chicago theater on the Leidseplein, for a picknick (that you bring yourself) on the grachten.

* Take tram 26 to IJburg beach and eat a pizza at De Bloem.

* Hang out at the Westergas area: lie in the grass, look at people, then eat a sandwich at De Bakkerswinkel (see below), and watch an artsy movie at the Ketelhuis.

* If your stomach can handle it, buy and eat french fries with mayonnaise on the street. There's a good place in the Reguliersbreestraat, across from Tuschinski, 50 meters away from the Rembrandtsplein.

I`m not an expert on lodgings - so i will defer this to the other people here.

But as for visits / activities for kids, you could consider visiting the "Zuiderzee Museum" which is in Enkhuizen (easy to reach by train). This is an open air museum, with some 'hands on' experiences - that are fun for children and adults. It gives you a nice view of life in a fishing town around 1550 / 1650 ish.

Madurodam is indeed "Holland but smaller" - but not in Amsterdam, it`s in The Hague. Very nice visit, and makes you feel really big :)

Amsterdam has a city zoo, Artis, indeed. Personally, i prefer the Rotterdam City Zoo - Blijdorp - as that is larger, and works towards better living areas for the animals they have. Artis is nice though.

You have heard correctly, Amsterdam has a Madame Tussauds, at Dam Square. I have not been there myself (always busy when i was there).

Also to be recommended is a canal trip by boat. I`m sure the kids will enjoy that as well. There is also a dinner cruise - have your evening meal on a boat.

I`m sure my fellow answerers can assist with lodging ideas.

Why not take the kids to Amsterdam for one/two day(s) and rent bikes?

You could take them on a canal boat tour (you can also 'rent' water bikes)

You could visit a museum (e.g. http://www.scheepvaartmuseum.nl/english - the maritime museum, it's a huge ship (replica) from the golden age) or madame tussaud (it's a bit expensive compared to the time you can spend inside, but I liked it).

You could visit a typical Dutch mill? (http://www.molenvansloten.nl/ ).

You could go to the Amsterdam Forest and have lunch/dinner in a typical Dutch pancake restaurant

(http://www.boerderijmeerzicht.nl/ )

For other days, I would recommend going to Edam (bus from Amsterdam Central) to visit the cheese market http://www.edammerkaasmarkt.nl/ and stroll around the typical Dutch village.

You could also visit a castle (e.g. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muiderslot ) which is in Muiden (Bus 136 from Amsterdam Central).

You could also go a day to Den Haag (30 min by train from Amsterdam) to see the government (http://www.binnenhofbezoek.nl/engels.html and for photo: http://www.teimun.org/teimun/binnenhof.jpg )

and combine this with in fact Madurodam (I liked this as a kid, but opinions differ) and when you're there you might as well hop back on the tram to the beach (which is then just 5 min.). Here there are lots of beach restaurant/bars where you can have a bite or a drink.

If you want something different and Dutch, you can also head up to the north of the country (by train or rental car) and go 'wadlopen'. This is walking between the islands off the coast when the sea is retrackted. (http://www.wadlopen.net/?page=home-2 )

I'm sure you will have fun with the kids. Do be aware that in the more touristy areas of Amsterdam, there are a more coffee shops and sex shops than elsewhere in the city/country (so you don't get shocked). Jordaan is a nice area, around Vondel Park as well.

yes there is a madame tussaud's, i have been there many many yeas ago, and the zoo is real nice, it's called artis. madurodam is in the hague, not a very far trip.

also you should take a boat ride, in the glass covered boats, they are real nice.

there is also a museum that has to do with ships and boats and stuff, it's called the scheepvaart museum, and they have a replica of this old ship that is really cool. and there is the nemo, it's a science museum. these two are very close to eachother and close to the train station.

good luck and enjoy!