January is probably the coldest and ideal month in Amsterdam when city delights with the magical covering of dust of snow. It is the low season and thus good time to visit the city’s most popular attractions as the queues everywhere are the shortest. At this time days are short and weather might be quite cold but the flights and rooms are at their cheapest rate. The weather in this month is unpredictable-fluctuating from mild to freezing temperature or rain to snow (only dusting). The temperature varies between 31°F- 40°F and the average precipitation is about 69 mm. It is better to include umbrella, waterproof or windproof coat, warm clothes, comfortable shoes and day bag along with the other items of packing. To make the season more exciting public ice rinks are set up in the city offering free skating opportunity provided one owns the skates. If not, skates can also be hired from the place. The most thrilling activity is shopping in this season. A number of shops are in the row offering January Sale and thus the expensive designer dresses can be bought at reasonable rates from the fashionable boutiques. Although there are less annual events in this month but Amsterdam invite the visitors to experience the winter fun by enjoying ice skating, seasonal cuisine while wandering along canals and bridges or hang out in a cafe or coffee shop. The cultural programs at Concertgebouw, Stopera and other places are at full swing to entertain the guests.

However, the shopping mall at Gelderlandplein in Buitenveldert as well as PC Hooftstraat and the Van Baerlestraat saw an increase in rent because the demand here is high and the space is short. The highly popular shopping district known as The 9 Streets (De 9 Straatjes) also fetches high rates from newcomers and renewal contracts alike. Here again, the culprit is high demand with shortage of space.

9 Streets is located in the old canal district of Amsterdam and has nine side-streets that connect the Herengracht, Keizersgracht and Prinsengracht between the Raadhuistraat and Leidsestraat.

Where retailers currently pay three hundred to six hundred Euro per square meter, new contracts sometimes list double those rates. What those amounts are too high for many of the small retailers, international brands such as Lee, Fred Perry, Le Coq Sportif, Paul Frank and Carhart have already opened flagship stores in the district.

Travel options are many ranging from the canals which criss-cross the city to scenic urban pathways for walking or biking. As about 40 per cent of Amsterdam traffic is on two wheels, biking makes you feel like a true local and helps you explore various gardens and places to visit which are hidden and would otherwise require guidance or tips to find.

Some gardens, tucked away in courtyards or behind stately apartments, are open to the public any time, while others open on a special day of the year. The Rijksmuseum, with its Rembrandts and Vermeers, costs 11 euro ($A18.86) entry, but its garden is open year-round for free.

The Begijnhof is a grassy courtyard surrounded by 14th century cottages. Nearby is a small chapel which often stages musical recitals. Near the Begijnhof is a covered passageway known as the Civics Guard Gallery, with 15 huge group portraits – from the same time as Rembrandt’s Night Watch – of leading citizens from the Dutch Golden Age.

The city also has some lesser known sections which are worth visitng anyway. One is the Nine Lanes, lined with tiny specialty establishments like the handmade soap shop, the spectacles museum and a store dedicated to toothbrushes. The Jordaan, once the working class district, has been revived with boutiques, tapas bars and ethnic restaurants.

The city’s 26 open-air markets offer knick-knacks, antiques, farmers’ produce, artworks, clothing and just about anything else you can think of. The largest and most popular with Dutch food shoppers is the Albert Cuyp Market, where everything is fresh and cheap.

On the southern side of the city is the 2500-acre Amsterdam forest, the city’s largest park with more than 50 kms of bike paths. It is onlt through bikes that one can get a taste of the town’s pastureland, windmills and more canals.

Tourists can rent a bike for about 10 euro ($A17.15) a day, with special weekly rates. Also available are tandems for two, cargo bikes for hauling groceries or toddlers, and bikes with child seats.

This hotel is situated at the confluence of the Keizersgracht and Reguliersgracht canals and allows you a pleasant view of the seven bridges besides offering you close proximity to the nightlife of Rembrandtplein and the Amstel.

Room five is the largest and quietest, with private balcony and garden views; other rooms look outward. The hotel has high-speed Internet access in all rooms.

Address: Reguliersgracht 31 Southern Canal Belt from Keizersgracht tram stop, on the 16, 24, 25 tram, the hotel is one block to the left or one block to the right from tram 4
The Dylan

Before this hotel came up, the place had a theatre and later a charity house. There are 41 rooms, each having fluffy towels, silk pillows piled high and spacious bathrooms. The decoration ranges from black-and-white kimono rooms with black Belgian marble, or La Carmona style, inspired by the spice traders of the East India Company.

Address: Keizersgracht 384 Western Canal Belt Walk west across three canals. After the 3rd canal (Keizersgracht), turn right. Hotel is on the left.
Hotel Orlando

This hotel is unique in its appearance- traditional on the outside and modern on the inside. Each of its five rooms has private facilities, satin curtains and custom-designed contemporary cabinetry for your TV and minibar. Special services can be arranged like the newspaper delivery, laundry, theatre bookings and other big-hotel concierge services. The Orlando, although a small one is air-conditioned, has Internet access, and nonsmoking rooms.

Address: Prinsengracht 1099 Old South
Ambassade Hotel

The place has a sparkling lounge, ideal for business meetings or afternoon tea. All the 59 rooms in the hotel are different though all of them feature broadband connections, 24hr room service, and a description of the history of the individual building. Most rooms have views of the Herengracht or Singel canals.

Address: Herengracht 341 Western Canal Belt From the Spui tram stop, walk west across the Singel canal. At Herengracht canal, turn right.
Hotel Prinsenhof

Prinsenhof’s 11 rooms are spotless, often spacious and well-appointed with comfortable beds and a smattering of antique furnishings. Pricier rooms have high ceilings and exposed beams. However, there are no TVs in rooms, no lifts, no nonsmoking rooms and no Internet access.

Address: Prinsengracht 810 Southern Canal Belt Across from Prisengracht tram stop.

There are various other places of accomodation in Amsterdam but those mentined above are our choice falling in the category of being cheap but decent.

This fair, probably the most complete of horticultural trade shows, will run from October 13th to 16th. The fair is unique in the sense that it has about hundreds of innovations by more than 900 participants from around fifty countries providing an up-to-the-minute view of the horticulture of the future.

For those unable to attend in person but still curious as to how the event unfolds, Hortifair’s twitter channel has been updated regularly in the run-up to Tuesday’s opening and has recently started posting pictures and videos about the show and how things are developing.

The exact location of the fair is Amsterdam RAI Congrescentrum, Europaplein 22, 1078 GZ Amsterdam and the passes are priced at €40 / €80 4 day pass and trade visitors are allowed for free.

The museum was opened by Colorblends which is one of the largest Holland tulip bulb mail-order operations in the United States. Tim Schipper, Colorblends’ owner, says, “We opened the museum because tourists to Holland expect to see tulips, but they’re in season only a few weeks out of the year.” Tim added that Amsterdam was chosen as a site for the museum, even though the tulip-growing fraternity avoids that city, because “Amsterdam is where all the tourists wind up.”

Funding for the museum is shared by Colorblends and Fluwel, a European bulb supplier. The museum traces the history of the flower back to 1050 when they were first cultivated in Baghdad. The Tulip Museum opened in 2004, the same year that Colorblends moved from Stamford to Bridgeport. Admission is 2 euros, or about $3.

Apart from this Tulip Museum, there are many other lesser-known museums in Amsterdam which cater to such diverse interests as torture, marijuana, diamonds, the sex trade, journalism, bags and purses, player pianos, and coffee and tea.

City council housing boss Hans Gerson charged Wonen saying, ‘Cheap accommodation is scarce in this city and housing agencies have to abide by strict rules. Direct Wonen has been warned several times. Now we are taking action.’

House rents in the Netherlands are calculated according to a point system, with flats and houses awarded points for size, location, age, basic facilities and extras. All those valued at less than 121 points fall into the social housing sector and have a maximum rent of €548.

Based on interviews with 500 top business leaders, the survey provides an overview of the perceptions that corporate occupiers have about cities across Europe and their relative attractiveness.

When ranked in terms of easy access to markets, customers or clients, Amsterdam fell from 5th to 9th place. The city moved from 10th to 7th place when it comes to quality of telecommunications, and retained 5th place for the availability of qualified staff. However, the city fell from position 18 to position 25 when ranked according to the cost of personnel. In terms of transport links with other cities and internationally Amsterdam remained in 4th place. Amsterdam moved from ranking 17 to 14 for availability of office space, but in the ranking of value for money of office space Amsterdam fell from the 12th to the 18th spot. The city fell from position 8 to position 12 when ranked by perceived quality of life for employees.

Dirk Sosef, of Cushman & Wakefield’s Amsterdam branch, said, “Amsterdam must make clear about the things that distinguish the city: the international accessibility of Schiphol airport, the highly educated personnel, and the variety of languages spoken.” Sosef also added that the city should pay attention to the accessibility in and around Amsterdam.

Though entire Netherlands celebrates this day, the greatest celebration is at Amsterdam (the Jordaan and Nieuwmarkt areas being among the most popular spots) where up to one million visitors join the 750.000 locals in the world’s largest street party. The festivities start around midnight and last throughout the night. Just a simple walk around the city will give you a feel of party time.

On April 30, 6:00 AM marks the start of the ‘free market’ – a street market where half the population sells their bric-a-brac, used clothes, and crafts for next to nothing. And what is the stuff sold- broken toys, last year’s Queen’s Day purchases, used bras, musical instruments, electronics, software and everything else under the sun. There are professional street performers everywhere- pick-up bands, aspiring opera singers, teenage rappers and street discos. Huge outdoor concerts are organized at various locations, such as Dam square and Museumplein. The throngs lining the streets and canals wear orange, the national color, as the Queen hails from the House of Orange. Take ‘throngs’ literally – particularly in the city’s center where you’ll be shoulder to shoulder with other revelers.

A word of advice- For most of the day, there is no public transport in the center of town. If you are coming to Amsterdam from out of town, take the train. Also, keep your bookings much in advance for all the hotels are overbooked in this part of the year.