A canal cruise offers a great introduction to Amsterdam’s Canal Ring and visitors have many options, including hop-on hop-off boat tours, sightseeing cruises, and evening food and wine tasting tours. Visitors looking to explore Singel on foot or bike won’t want to miss the world’s narrowest house at Singel 7 and Amsterdam’s oldest and widest bridge, the Torensluis.
The Signel Canal stretches in a semi-circular arch from the IJ Bay near Amsterdam Central Station to the Amstel River at Muntplein Square. The Signel is the first canal you’ll reach when walking south into the city center from Amsterdam Central Station. The Singel is often confused with the Singelgracht, which is the outermost canal in the city center.
Amsterdam’s canal network is an important mode of transportation so it is always open. Summer is the best time for cruising around the canals and enjoying the outdoor terraces at the canal cafes. The holiday season is also a great time to visit, when you can enjoy an evening cruise during the annual Festival of Lights.
The Bloemenmarkt is the only floating flower market in the world and a monument to the days when sailors would sail in from the Amstel River to sell flowers directly from their boats. Besides flowers, the shops also sell flower bulbs, gardening essentials, and affordable souvenirs. If you plan to take bulbs home with you, be sure they have a customs cleared stamp on the packet certifying the bulbs for import into your home country.
