Hallo
HAH-loh
Hello
Greeting anyone, at any time of day
Travel guide
Learn the Netherlands before you go
Canals, windmills, tulip fields and bicycles, in a small, flat country that has spent centuries holding back the sea.
CapitalAmsterdam
CurrencyEuro (€), since 1999 (notes and coins since 2002); before that, the Dutch guilder. The Caribbean islands use the US dollar
Official languageDutch. West Frisian is also official in the province of Friesland, and English and Papiamentu on the Caribbean islands
Drives on theRight
Calling code+31 (+599 on the Caribbean islands)
10 phrases to learn
In Dutch. Capital letters show the stressed part. Tap the heart to practise a phrase later.
Goedemorgen
KHOO-duh-MOR-khuh
Good morning
Greeting someone in the morning
Goedemiddag
KHOO-duh-MID-dahkh
Good afternoon
Greeting someone in the afternoon
Goedenavond
KHOO-duh-NAH-vont
Good evening
Greeting someone in the evening
Hoe gaat het?
hoo KHAHT hut
How are you?
Asking after someone
Dank u wel
DAHNK uu vel
Thank you very much (polite)
Thanking a stranger or an older person
Dank je wel
DAHNK yuh vel
Thank you very much (friendly)
Thanking a friend or someone your own age
Alstublieft
AHL-stuu-BLEEFT
Please, or here you are
Asking for something, or handing something over
Pardon
par-DON
Excuse me
Getting past someone or getting their attention
Sorry
SOR-ee
I'm sorry
Apologising
At the table
- Before eating, people wish each other 'eet smakelijk' (ayt SMAH-kuh-luk), 'enjoy your meal'.
- When raising a glass, say 'proost' (PROHST), 'cheers'.
- Coffee time is a real tradition: guests are offered coffee or tea with a biscuit or a slice of cake, and the old saying goes that you take just one biscuit from the tin.
- Service is included in restaurant prices by law. Tipping is not required, but rounding up or leaving 5 to 10 percent for good service is common.
Local tips
Watch out for bicycles
Cycle paths are everywhere, often paved in red asphalt or marked with a round blue sign with a white bike. Do not walk on them, and look both ways for bikes, not only cars, before you cross.
Tap in and tap out
Since 2023 you can pay on all trains, trams, buses and metros by tapping a contactless bank card or phone on the card reader at the start and end of each journey (as of 2026). Always remember to tap out again when you leave.
Carry a card, and a little cash
Cards are accepted almost everywhere and some shops take cards only. A few shops do not accept credit cards, and city buses and trams take no cash, so carry a debit card as well as a credit card, plus a little cash for markets.
Book the Anne Frank House early
Tickets are sold only online, never at the door. Every Tuesday at 10 am Dutch time, tickets are released for visits six weeks later, and they sell out fast (as of 2026).
Tipping is optional
Service charges are included in the prices by law. Rounding up the bill, or leaving 5 to 10 percent for good service in a restaurant, is a kind gesture but not required.
See the tulips in spring
The bulb fields and the Keukenhof gardens are at their best in spring. Keukenhof opens to the public only for about eight weeks each spring, so check the dates before you plan a trip.
Emergency number
The official emergency number is 112. It is free and works from any phone.
Dishes to try
- Stroopwafel: Two thin, crisp waffles pressed together with a warm, sticky filling of syrup, brown sugar, butter and cinnamon. They are sold hot and fresh at markets and in packets in every supermarket.
- Raw herring (Hollandse Nieuwe) (Hollandse Nieuwe haring): Young herring, lightly salted and ripened, eaten raw from a fish stall, often with chopped raw onion and pickles or in a soft bread roll. The new season's herring, 'Hollandse Nieuwe', arrives in early summer. By law, herring for eating raw is frozen first to kill parasites. Like other raw fish, it is best avoided by pregnant women, and older people or anyone with a weakened immune system may prefer to skip it too.
- Bitterballen: Small crunchy balls of thick beef ragout, rolled in breadcrumbs and deep-fried, served piping hot with mustard for dipping. They are part of the classic plate of snacks served with drinks in a Dutch café.
- Poffertjes: Tiny, fluffy pancakes made with yeast and cooked in a special pan with many shallow hollows, then served with a knob of butter and a snowfall of powdered sugar.
- Pea soup (Erwtensoep or snert): A very thick winter soup of green split peas with pork, celeriac, leeks, carrots, onions and often potato, finished with slices of smoked sausage. It is almost a stew, served with dark rye bread and bacon.
- Kale stamppot (Boerenkoolstamppot): Potatoes mashed together with curly kale, butter and warm milk, served with a smoked sausage and gravy or mustard. Stamppot, 'mash pot', is the classic cold-weather dinner, also made with sauerkraut, endive or carrots and onions.
- Hutspot: Potatoes, carrots and onions boiled and mashed together, traditionally with slow-cooked beef. It is sweet, orange and comforting.
- Gouda cheese (Goudse kaas): A yellow cow's milk cheese, from young, soft and mild to old, hard and full of flavour. It is eaten on bread at breakfast and lunch, and in cubes with a drink.
Cities to see
- Amsterdam (capital): The canal ring and its bridges, The Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum, The Anne Frank House.
- Rotterdam: Europe's largest port, The Erasmus Bridge, Modern architecture.
- The Hague: The Binnenhof, the historic home of parliament, The Mauritshuis and 'Girl with a Pearl Earring', International courts.
- Utrecht: The Dom Tower, Canals with wharves at water level, The Union of Utrecht of 1579.
- Groningen: A big student population, Nickname 'capital of the north', Its Hanseatic history.
- Maastricht: The Maastricht Treaty of 1992, The Vrijthof square, Its Roman beginnings.