Skip to content
  • Home
  • About us
  • Our tours
  • Blog
  • Home
  • About us
  • Our tours
  • Blog
  • Home
  • About us
  • Our tours
  • Blog
  • Home
  • About us
  • Our tours
  • Blog

Canal Ring Architecture walk

Amsterdam Architecture tour

Canal Ring Architecture walk

Amsterdam Architecture tour

Europe’s most spectacular urban landscape

Canal Ring Architecture walk

Book tour
Book tour
  • Startingpoint
    Startingpoint

    We start and finish at the Herenmarkt, on the Brouwersgracht, Behind the ‘West Indisch Huis’, a 10 minute walk from Amsterdam Central Station​

  • Duration | Distance
    Duration | Distance

    2,5 hours | -/+ 3 km (1.4 ml)

  • Highlights
    Highlights

    - Westerkerk
    - A visit inside a canal house
    - The 'House with the Heads'
    - Narrowest canal house
    - Nieuwe Lutherse kerk
    - oldest bridge
    - crooked architecture

  • Price
    Price

    See Booking page

Schedule your
private Amsterdam Architecture tour

More Information
Tour Reviews
  • Startingpoint
    Startingpoint

    We start and finish at the Herenmarkt, on the Brouwersgracht, Behind the ‘West Indisch Huis’, a 10 minute walk from Amsterdam Central Station

  • Duration | Distance
    Duration | Distance

    2,5 hours | -/+ 3 km (1.4 ml)

  • Highlights
    Highlights

    - Westerkerk
    - A visit inside a canal house
    - The 'House with the Heads'
    - Narrowest canal house
    - Nieuwe Lutherse kerk
    - oldest bridge
    - crooked architecture

  • Price
    Price

    See Booking page

Book your
Amsterdam Architecture tour

More Information
Tour Reviews

Amsterdam’s Canal Ring: An Architectural Masterpiece

Uncover the secrets behind Amsterdam’s iconic canal ring on our in-depth architecture tour. This UNESCO World Heritage site is a testament to Dutch ingenuity and architectural brilliance.

The Amsterdam canals are an unique urban landscape. Miles of waterways stretch out underneath hundreds of bridges, forming a ring around the medieval city center. It’s easy to get lost here. Some visitors to Amsterdam complain that all the canals look exactly the same. We – naturally – disagree and are happy to help you get your bearings of the Amsterdam canal ring.

Renaissance Meets Lowlands

Discover how Italian Renaissance ideals were adapted to the unique challenges of the Dutch landscape. Learn about the innovative engineering solutions that transformed a swamp into a breathtaking urban canal system.

Architectural Evolution Through the Ages

From the early brick style to the ornate Baroque facades, witness the evolution of Amsterdam’s architecture. Our expert guides will illuminate the distinctive characteristics of each era and their impact on the city’s cityscape.

Canal House Insights

Step inside a beautifully preserved canal house and experience the opulent lifestyle of Amsterdam’s elite. Discover the intricate details of interior design, from ornate plasterwork to stunning landscapes on wall paper.

Engineering Marvels and Urban Planning

Explore the engineering feats that underpinned the creation of the canal ring. Learn about the challenges faced by architects and engineers in building on a watery foundation. Understand the urban planning principles that shaped this iconic district.

A Photographer’s Paradise

Capture the essence of Amsterdam’s architectural beauty with your camera. Our tour highlights the most photogenic spots along the canal ring, offering you the perfect opportunity to create stunning images.

Book your Canal Ring Architecture Tour today and immerse yourself in the architectural splendor of Amsterdam.

Tour reviews

  • star rating  I booked a private tour of the Rijksmuseum with Old Amsterdam Tours for a corporate event. Egor was our amazing guide who was engaging, knowable and genuinely excited to share... read more his in-depth knowledge of the art and artists of the museum. I’ve never enjoyed any...More

    tripadvisor logo
    avatar thumb TheTulip165
    November 9, 2017
  • star rating  Tijs is a fantastic, energetic and fun guide. Our group consisted of 30 international guests. They loved the walk through Amsterdam guided by Tijs. Defenitelly can recomment Historical Amsterdam Tours!

    tripadvisor logo
    jansmonkie
    May 15, 2019
  • star rating  We made this tour as we prefered to get a more real-live impression of Rembrandt than just looking at his paintings in the Rijksmuseum. And Tijs fullfilled this expectation absolutely.... read more Even if the city looks pretty different today and not all buildings are existing anymore his storytelling makes the 17th century getting back to life before your eyes. He shares a lot of knowledge and you recognize that he is really into his topic and loves to share that.
    So if you want to get to know Amsterdam from a different view, this is your tour.

    tripadvisor logo
    muellerrike
    May 23, 2022
  • star rating  This was an amazing walking tour of Rembrandt’s steps, where he lived, about his work, the good and bad, etc. It was extremely informative and our guide was Tijs who... read more did an outstanding job. He was funny, and professional, and it was obvious he is passionate about history. Definitely worth doing! …

    tripadvisor logo
    A Tripadvisor Member
    August 1, 2020
  • star rating  Excellent bespoke tour of highlights of the Rijksmuseum. Edgar Foley was a great and knowledgable guide! He put the history of Dutch Art in the Golden Age and... read more earlier in context.

    tripadvisor logo
    ColinP975
    May 31, 2023

Blog posts

Top 5 Photography Ideas For Amsterdam

In this blog Historical Amsterdam Tours has curated some of the most iconic spots, as well as several snappy ideas to capture this vibrant old city.

Read More »

Related tours

Old Harbour Tour

Set sail for adventure!

Rembrandt Walk

Including Visit Rembrandt House Museum

Financial History Tour

Including visit bank vaults

Rijksmuseum Tour

Including museum tickets

WWII Tour

The story of an occupied city
OUR PARTNERS
All rights reserved: Historical Amsterdam Tours © 2025
Terms and Conditions
Chamber of Commerce: 62972510 | VAT number: NL001935557B96
Book a tour Book a tour
Manage Consent
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
  • Manage options
  • Manage services
  • Manage {vendor_count} vendors
  • Read more about these purposes
View preferences
  • {title}
  • {title}
  • {title}