Beitel travel advice

Many have heard of the famous novel The Bridges of Madison County, but travellers to Amsterdam will want to check out the bridges of the country.  They’re some of the most beautiful and architecturally interesting bridges in the world.  While you may not go to Amsterdam just to see them, if you can include visiting even one of these bridges in your trip, you should do so. You could even stay in one of the Vienna hotels along the river like The Bridge Hotel.

The first is the Magere Brug, the most famous drawbridge in the country.  It runs over the Amstel River and is located in the centre of the city.  This white bridge is made of wood, and while the current Magere Brug Bridge was built recently (1934), there has been a bridge at the same location since 1691.  One of the most interesting aspects of the Magere Brug is that, until 1994, the drawbridge was still opened by hand.  Since then, however, a mechanism has been used.  Today, only pedestrians and cyclists are allowed to use the bridge.  If you’re in town on V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day, May 7/8), you can attend a concert held near the bridge and may catch a glimpse of Dutch Queen Beatrix.

The Blauwbrug, or blue bridge, is another historic bridge in the city.  Like the Magere Brug, the Blauwbrug in use today is not the original bridge.  The original was built around 1600, while the current bridge was built in 1883.  This new Blauwbrug is a copy of the Alexandre the 3rd Bridge located in Paris.  However, even though it is not painted blue, the name stayed the same.  This bridge is open to vehicles and features a tramway.

While these two are the most famous bridges in Amsterdam, there are a number of smaller bridges.  The Python Bridge connects Sporenburg to Borneo Island.  This bridge was the winner of the 2002 International Footbridge Award.  Another often visited bridge the Jan Schaeferbrug, a 2001 bridge that was designed by architect T. Venhoeven.