A cycling route, not a walk. Take your bike on the free ferry behind Centraal and follow the old Waterland sea dyke east: the 18th-century houses of the Nieuwendammerdijk, a brown cafe in a building almost 500 years old, Schellingwoude's church on its mound and the 1872 Oranje locks, ending in Durgerdam, a protected dyke village of about 430 people on the IJmeer. All of these villages became part of Amsterdam in 1921, after the 1916 flood.
Best time: A dry afternoon; best done by bike (about 8-9 km one way from the ferry to Durgerdam). Allow time to ride back or return on the ferry.
The route, stop by stop
- 1Buiksloterweg ferry landing
The F3 ferry from behind Centraal is free for pedestrians, cyclists and mopeds, runs every few minutes by day and also through the night. Bikes ride free at any hour. Ride east through Noord to the start of the Nieuwendammerdijk. 5 min crossing.
- 2Cafe 't Sluisje
Nieuwendammerdijk 297, by the old Nieuwendam harbour: a brown cafe in a building that iamsterdam.com says is nearly 500 years old. Stop for Dutch apple pie on the terrace. 30 min.
- 3Nieuwendammerdijk
Ride slowly along the dyke street: 18th-century houses with pavement gardens, the oldest street in this part of Noord. Nieuwendam was one of the villages that grew up along the dyke. 15 min.
- 4Oranjesluizen
The Oranje locks at the east end of Schellingwoude, finished in 1872 with a steam pumping station; King Willem III laid the first stone on 29 April 1870. The Schellingwouderbrug of 1957 over the Buiten-IJ stands beside them; both are the village's landmarks. 10 min.
- 5Schellingwouder Kerk
Schellingwoude grew on the Waterland sea dyke built from about 1200. Its church stands on a mound (terp) behind the dyke; the present building dates from 1866. A church chest from 1659 carries a rhyme celebrating the village's fifty-year fight against six villages and two towns over the cost of the dyke. It is no longer used for services; today it is a wedding venue. 10 min outside.
- 6Durgerdam
Follow the Durgerdammerdijk along the IJmeer to the village, about 7 km east of the centre, with some 430 inhabitants. iamsterdam.com notes its protected status: one of the best glimpses of old Holland inside the city limits. 30 min.
More walks in Amsterdam
- Old centre: Centraal, the Wallen and Dam to the Begijnhof
- De Pijp food-grazing walk: market, broodje pom and bakeries
- Canal ring and Jordaan: Anne Frank to the Nine Streets
- Jewish Quarter and Plantage to the windmill brewery
- Across the IJ: free ferries to Eye, Noord and NDSM
- Jordaan brown-cafe crawl
- Amsterdam School in Plan Zuid: from the Coöperatiehof to De Dageraad and the first skyscraper
- Oost: Oosterpark, the Dappermarkt and the Javastraat to Flevopark
- Western Islands and the Spaarndammerbuurt: herring wharves to Het Schip