The National Maritime Museum

This was my second visit to this outstanding museum. I used the Audioguide this time. It was not very busy which makes it a superior experience compared to other Amsterdam museums. There's a good mix of art, ship models, navigation artifacts and plenty of interactive experiences. Plus a replica of an actual ship you can explore. The building itself is beautiful, especially the glass dome covering the massive courtyard. Cafe on site gets five stars as well.

Gigantic museum and in addition one big floating sailing ship replica. Onboard the big ship there is a VR experience. The experience is through the roof, really immersive. Worth a visit.

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Great museum experience. You can explore a rebuilt VOC trade ship and learn about whales. They have a distinguished assembly of navigatiinal instruments and yacht models. Great for kids, too.

Very nice and large museum with exhibitions covering most important events in Dutch history. Free luggage locker in the basement. Try the cinnamon apple cake in cafeteria.

Very Interesting and big enough.

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Great museum about Dutch sea history. Lots of beautiful models of old Dutch warships, and lots of original paintings from 1600s and 1700s of naval battles. Plenty of old maps and globes showing how challenging it was to accurately map out remote lands. Fascinating nautical instruments. The highlight is the replica merchant ship (called the "Amsterdam") in which you can go below decks. Museum is laid out in a very organized way.

A very impressive and creative museum. Worth visiting.

To me, this was perhaps the most fascinating place in Amsterdam. There is a great wealth of collections of medieval to contemporary artifacts, paintings, replica of ships and documents to recount the history of Amsterdam as a port, the Dutch Republic as a naval and colonial power and evolution of the naval technologies over several centuries. The ticket includes audio tour. Expect 2~3 hours to be spent here.

I went with my friend and her family. The museum has many interesting information and well organized. The ship outside was really fun to visit. There is also a kid's playing area which my friend's kids enjoyed a lot.

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Great balance of hands-on learning for families and thoughtful, educational elements for adults. They handled controversial topics really well, sharing a variety of opinions and inviting guests to decide for themselves

Loved the museum! There is so much information on hand about the Dutch history at sea, boat replicas of all sorts, maps to study, navigational instruments etc. The replica of the "Amsterdam" ship is stunning and we loved exploring it! We spent around two hours here, but actually more time is needed for a full visit.

An amazing museum. Located in a great location in Amsterdam and housed in an amazing historic building as well. Fantastic exhibits and well worth the visit for anyone and a must for families.

Don't you have entire day to enjoy this nice museum? Here is tip: Start with Ships outside, dont use all the audio points in North. Save time for East (most fun part) It's a comfortable museum where you will find washrooms everywhere and seats to rest in between departments

Wonderful museum for an afternoon visit. You get to be on a real ship, see the private boat of the king and also learn a lot about history and navigation. Really interesting and definitely worth it

I attended a candlelit Concert in this beautiful museum. Its stunning from walking along the river in the late evening sun and after the sun went down. The concert was amazing in no small part the the atmosphere and this stunning venue.

A very beautiful experience. A beautiful museum which is very well maintained. Interactions and activities are present for young and old. The boat tour is superb. We fell in love with the experience but also with that of the whales.

A really high class museum about a maritime history of the Netherlands in an old navy armory and reconstructed VOC ship. The in house exhibits seem very well funded and up to date. The ship is great fun for adults and kids a like.

I am interested in history, sailing and ships so this was a really interesting place to me. Nice exhibition in a nice building. There were just a few people, because of covid, so I could enjoy the exhibition in calm.

Very nice museum! I wish I had more time planned to be here. You can easily be here for a few hours if you take your time and really get to enjoy the different exhibits. They have cool lockers that are free for guests. You scan a bar code and you get assigned a locker...available in big and small sizes. Even the small is huge. You’re not allowed to bring backpacks so you need to use it. There are toilets everywhere. That was convenient! TIP. There are two ships you can walk through...but one of them is only open on the weekends. Since I came on a Friday, I did not get to visit they. Plan accordingly. However, the ship they I did get to visit was really cool. You can climb up and down to the different decks and see what it’s like. Inside the museum itself...I found a lot of interesting exhibits. Such as...how did people first navigate the seas? You get to see the different tools they used to determine longitude and latitude way before fancy computers exist now. It’s quite amazing how it continued to evolve. And of course there’s other stuff too but I really enjoyed that part :) I would plan 2 hours here. Oh! And if you’ve been to another museum in Amsterdam...then you’re familiar with the audio guides. They have that here too (included in the price of admission) and it’s available in many languages.

Great museum to visit while you’re in Amsterdam. So many to learn. The boat was magnificent. We spent more than 2 hours inside the museum. There is cafe inside the museum and merchandise shop as well. Overall good

If you love history, this Dutch History and Maritime museum will be quite entertaining and knowledgeable! We loved it! We were stunned at the history between the Chinese and the Dutch and the lasting impact that Chinese art had on the Dutch! Fabulous place!

Definitely one of the most fascinating museums in Amsterdam. Visited the museum by pure lack, just when I saw the stunning VOC ship in the dock. The entrance fee is around 8€, including the student discount. The ticket has a barcode for the lockers while they offer you a free audio tour in English. Although the audio tour is available and in order languages. The staff is quite helpful providing good instructions. The backpacks are not allowed to the interior of the museum so you have to leave them in the lockers room in the basement, it's free service. The building was previously belonged to the Dutch royal navy. The rooftop is created by glass. The museum is divided into three sections: the north, the easy and the west side. Each section has different exhibitions and many activities. Don't miss the whale exhibition as long as the navy instruments exhibition. Outside of the museum in the dockyard there are 3 old ships. The VOC ship ( see my previous reviews), an old Icebreaker and the konning boat which absurdity magnificent. Not to mention that on the left side of the museum there is a small submarine. Also from the upper floors of the museum have a good of the Nemo museum.

Wonderful maritime museum. Everything creatively displayed and the replica full size ship is superb for children and adults alike. Watch your head! The Sea of Tranquility display is very surreal but so thought-provoking. Highly recommended. Could have spent all day there.

A really nice museum if you like history (and ships). The place is really big so if you want to see everything without running from room to room you should come here in the morning. The building itself is a reason to visit, I was very impressed how the modern architecture melted with this historic military building. The ship docked outside is a great experience but I also really enjoyed the exhibition of old maps

Maritime Museum is one of the best museums I have ever visited in my life ! That big ship is overwhelming and I really enjoyed the interior space in the ship. It is not crowded at all and you can imagine how it was at the time at every space. I visited alone but it is still good for group people or family visit. I wish I can visit again

Het Scheepvaartmuseum is a great museum to bring kids if you are visiting Amsterdam. The exhibits, particularly the VOC ship, are very child-friendly. I enjoyed looking at all of the maritime navigation tools and the artwork. The museum has a nice cafe and gift shop with unique items. I hope to come back one day and bring my children.

Nice museum with well organized displays and information. Ship models are extremely detailed. Nicely broken into 3 separate sections, each with multiple floors. Allows you to take a break in between the sections by relaxing in the Cafe with something to eat or drink. No large bags allowed, but their locker system is the best and easiest to use that I've encountered. Plus it is free with the admission price. Highly recommended if you are at all interested in the early days of shipping. Also has a nice art display.

It's an amazing building that has been recently and tastefully restored. We were upset we didn't allow enough time to go around everything as it is surprisingly large. Love the interactive atlases that let you send yourself images of old maps. It's so nice seeing records like that available to everyone rather than locked away in storage. The replica boat is fantastic and really makes you think about life on old ships.

Very impressive experience during the visit to this wonderful museum which is introducing you in the great Dutch maritime history. The building is large and nicely restored with an impressive collection of maquettes, specific objects paintings and areas designed for kids entertainment. If you have this wonderful site on your list be prepared to allow you more than 3 hours to spend inside and if you are joined by kids than 5 hours will pass like minutes. The ship Amsterdam exposed outside is fabulous and represents exactly the life on the sea couple of centuries ago, you will need up to an hour to visit. The royal barge is an impressive piece of art which will fascinate any of the visitors out to see it. Overall was a great experience visiting this museum and I would highly recommend it as a must if you are in the city and time allows you.