Still Crazy About the Amsterdam Canal Ring After 400 Years

Flickr Creative Commons/danrocha

The other day, a tweet showed up on my Twitter feed. It was from an acquaintance of mine, a fellow American and expat in the Netherlands. The Tweet contained a quote - from whom, she didn't say. And it went a little something like this: "I thought only Amsterdam had canals."

While this is far from true (the Netherlands is crawling with them), the Amsterdam canals are the best known outside of the Netherlands, for sure.

After all, as one of Amsterdam's main tourist attractions, they've been on the UNESCO World Heritage list since August 1, 2010.

This year marks the 400th birthday of Amsterdam's canal ring, known as the Grachtengordel, or the Canal Belt that forms a semi-circle around the city's Old Center. The man-made canals were dug during the 17th century as a way to reclaim the land for development and facilitating the traffic of ships through the city center.

And from the 17th century all the way through till today, the Canal Ring has always been the most desired location to live and work in Amsterdam.

The Gouden Bocht (Golden Bend) is reckoned to be the most scenic canal in the ring, while the most recognizable is the canal cluster made up of the Prinsengracht, the Keisersgracht, the Herengracht, and the Singel.

Undoubtedly a great place for a party, the city's 165 canals feature flamboyant floats in August for the Amsterdam Gay Pride parade, blindingly orange boats filled with party-goers in April for Queen's Day, and melodic barges for the Grachtenfestival and the Prinsengrachtconcert.

But there doesn't have to be a special occasion to enjoy Amsterdam's canals. Canal tours are a popular way to see the city and come in all kinds of varieties.

If you happen to be in or around Amsterdam in 2013, there are a whole slew of things to do, things to see, and parties going on. And while you’re here, you can hit up Museum Het Grachtenhuis (The Canal House Museum) to learn more about the Canal Ring, its development and its history. Events like Open Tuinen Dagen (Open Garden Days) and Amsterdam Heritage Days give you the chance to take a peek inside the canal houses and monuments.

But if you’re not in Amsterdam, don’t worry. This is the Netherlands, after all. There are canals everywhere!