We are Tracy and Marc. He’s from Amsterdam, I’m from London. Though we live in the UK we spend a great deal of time visiting family and friends in The Netherlands with our sons – mini Dutchies Oscar and Zac.
Almost as soon as we met, friends and family from the UK started asking for tips and recommendations for forthcoming trips to Amsterdam. Realising how limited most guides to the city are, we started a hotspots list that seemed to go viral, passing from person to person way beyond our own network. As our discoveries grew, we realised we needed something more comprehensive and a better way to share the information… and from that, AmsterdamWonderland was born – with a mission to challenge every cliché about Marc’s amazing homeland.
As we say on our blog:
Tell most people you’re off to Amsterdam and you can expect stories of stag nights, lost weekends and knowing winks. For many visitors, the seedy tourist lowlights are all they ever see – a world away from the city we know and love. There may have been a time in your life when exploring the seamy side was fun, but if you’re reading our blog we’re hoping it’s because you want to get to know the real Amsterdam and we’ll do our best to steer you towards all that’s magical about it.
We’re here to prove that Amsterdam is in fact one of Europe’s most thrilling capitals for kids. A destination for street-foodies and michelin-foodies. A place where high culture rubs up against pop culture on canal corners, cycle paths and beyond. A year-round destination for discovery, self-discovery or rediscovery.
Our blog is not comprehensive and its in no particular order. Its simply a list of places we love. There are many restaurants and cafes we have been to that haven’t made the list. There are many others we are yet to try. This is mostly a guide to great food (where possible places that Amsterdammers know and love); awesome things to do and suggestions for how to occupy kids.
We aren’t ‘influencers’ who go to a city once and get freebies to recommend all the places that other influencers have been. Equally we aren’t quite locals so we haven’t slipped into the routine of only eating in our neighbourhood, or mostly staying home. As (extremely) regular visitors we feel we have a good sense of what people might want from a special visit to The Netherlands and in fact, our greatest pleasure is when our Amsterdam friends ask us for hints and tips which isn’t surprising as we eat out in Amsterdam restaurants more often than most!
We don’t make money from the blog, this is a passion project with no ads or affiliate links getting in the way of the content. We do it simply to share the best of what Amsterdam has to offer and nothing is more rewarding than receiving feedback from people who let us know that they have experienced Amsterdam in a way that would never have been possible if they hadn’t come across the blog.
Amsterdam is small – walk, cycle or take a tram to anywhere in the centre (and indeed further afield). Let us know if we have missed anything wonderful – and enjoy this wondrous city, nothing makes us happier than sharing its magic.
