Dutch Tour Company
Dutch Tour Company
4.5
Cultural ToursHistorical & Heritage ToursBike ToursWalking ToursPrivate Tours
About
Everlasting memories: private and unique tours with local and professional guides in and around Amsterdam. The team of guides is lead by Ian & Salome, who have years of experience and own a creative space in the middle of the historical city center. They're involved in many social & cultural projects in the old city center and have good contacts with many residents, entrepeneurs & non-profits in the area. Through their experience and their love for the city, they're able to create everlasting memories!
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles16 reviews
Excellent
14
Very good
0
Average
1
Poor
0
Terrible
1

Jay L
Vienna, VA50 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2019
I booked a photography tour of Amsterdam with Ian, and while I ended up with a memory card of (what I at least think are) memorable photos, I also came away with much, much more. The tour was also a chocolate and amazing candied single-source/fair trade coffee bean tasting (it was a Dutch herring tasting as well, which is an acquired taste but not as awful as I had imagined). It was meeting a neighbor shopkeeper’s new puppies on the street. It was watching the local sex workers, bundled up against the morning chill, opening the doors to their rooms, and Ian waving and greeting them in turn as we passed. It was a history and architecture (and architectural history) tour. It was a vivid and moving Jewish heritage tour. It was a tour of Die Wallen (the Red Light District) with the understanding, appreciation and perspective of a local – both its colorful and history and its transition into the future.

Ian is comfortable energy, like an enthusiastic friend who can’t WAIT to tell you a story. He is witty and funny (and serious when entirely appropriate) with an incredibly broad and deep knowledge of his native city. At the end of the tour, which was longer than booked but seemed far shorter, I hugged him like an old friend. And I’m not a hugger.

Want to know the three best “coffee” houses in the city? Want to try what is truly the finest apple pie in Amsterdam (despite what you read in the guides)? I’m not going to tell you. Book a tour with Ian to find out.
Written 31 December 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

holmesjr
Placentia, CA92 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2019 • Couples
I had a tour with this company. The Dutch Tour Company overcharged us. Ian the tour guide did not give me any change back and when I asked him about my change, he said that I should give him the change as a tip(30 euros). He seemed nice and friendly at first, but when he thought he was not gonna get a tip he got very angry. The tour is something anyone can do independently. It is nice to have a local show you around, but this company seems a bit different. I always tip, actually I prefer to over tip. I would not recommend this company and this is my first negative review on TripAdvisor after over 25 years of traveling. I would say do it independently. Have fun.
Written 10 May 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Ann
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2019 • Couples
My boyfriend and I visited the chocolate tasting. Salome managed to book a time for us even though we were quite limited in our time. During the tasting, we did not only get to taste delicious and surprising flavours of chocolate, but also got to learn about the history of cacao and spices in a fun way and the origins of the chocolate they sell in the shop. Definitely worth going!
Written 14 April 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much Anneloes. I am happy to hear you had a good time! Always welcome to pop by the shop. - Salomé
Written 15 April 2019
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

penkup
Parkland, FL25 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
My husband and I booked a private tour and spent most of the day walking with Ian through the city of Amsterdam. He was full of information and we quickly felt right at home. We have taken many tours over the years but this one stands out from all the others ... Ian’s energy and level of connection to the city both past and present, made for a journey that we will never forget.
Written 13 October 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

liebeheidi
12 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2018 • Business
I am working for a tour company and during my career I have seen more than 50 different city guides around Europe. I can assure you: Ian and Salome are rocking this profession! I had the pleasure of bringing my American groups to Ian more than once now, and every time they rate Dutch Tour Company very high. He is busy but Always enthusiastic, he is fast but on top of his game, he seems to know every gobble stone of his city, and his love for life and work shines through. Salomé is another wonderful guide, and together they make my groups visiting Amsterdam extremely satisfied! Ian and Salomé are based in the heart of Red Light District, and are working closely with the community. Not only their knowledge of the city and history is impressive, but the connections, intelligence and respect they have to share concerning this curious area of Europe makes their tours one of a kind.
Written 29 June 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kortasia
Tucson, AZ33 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2017 • Friends
After arriving in the city of Amsterdam my tour group of 35 was given a walking tour around the city. Our tour guides were a married couple and let me say they were amazing. I was with the wife and she was so informative and gave so many fun facts. She was able to tell some jokes along the way and answering all of our groups questions.
We also booked the boat ride and it was beautiful. The captain Ben was really nice and pointed out all the fun places to go while we were on the water. If you are considering booking a walking tour I would highly recommend booking with Dutch Tour Company.
Written 17 October 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Paul1960_4
Benfleet, UK654 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2017 • Friends
A group of us booked this as a guided pub crawl, in the hope that we would see some of Amsterdam's better hostelries, and have a beer in each one. Included in the price was 2 beers and 2 shots. It cost us 35 euros each. The beers were small Heinekens, consumed in 2 bars, the second a poor substitute for a more famous one, and the shots were drunk within the somewhat sterile confines of the shop selling the stuff (a green Coca-based "liquid Viagra" according to the guide). The tour was fairly informative, but it pretty much totally lacked the "pub crawl" element. And then came the tour's "highlight," which was a role-play exercise in a one-time "working" room, if you get my drift. We're all pretty broad-minded, but it was pretty cringe-inducing stuff. If you want a pub crawl, I'd say don't bother. If you want something a bit more red-light weighted, hen this is the one for you. Ian, our guide, was a lovely bloke, and I feel a tad guilty writing this, but it was totally not what we were after.
Written 27 March 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dear Paul, We are really sorry to hear this, but even more a bit shocked since you were all very excited and thankful during and after the tour and confirmed this many times. Several members of your group even asked Ian's businesscard for future bookings. As can be seen on our website and in all of the tour descriptions this is a RED LIGHT pub walk. So indeed, the tour includes a big 'red light' factor. We take pride that our pub walk is a mix of humour, history and some great local pubs and tasting rooms that have a story connected to it, like described on our website. The Red Light Photo Shoot you are talking about has always been described as a comedy RED LIGHT Photo Shoot in a former window brothel. You -and everyone else- can read this clearly on our website. So I honestly don't understand your somewhat negative review on it having a 'red light' factor. Especially, since you and all your friends had been laughing loud throughout the whole photo shoot. The 'sterile shop' you talk about is a world famous tasting room, that won several gold medalls and is the official state drink of Bolivia. As Ian showed inside even the queen of the Netherlands drinks it, and it used to be the favorite drink of the pope. You are the first in five years to complain about this, since most groups understand the added value of a place like this instead of a cheap shot in a tourist bar. The 'second poor substitute' was because you thought the gay-friendly bar of resistance heroes was too crowded. In our eyes this is not a poor substitute, it is a local beer brewery which is world famous, and was even featured on CNN recently. Inside you complemented Ian on the (locally brewed) beer and the bar arranged a big table for all of you to sit together. They even offered to open the kitchen a bit longer, so you could get some snacks, since your group did not have dinner yet. When it was 11.15 and your group was complaining that they wanted to have dinner, I said we better go to a restaurant quick, because most kitchens are already closed or about to. So I didn't drop you off in the special bar we agreed upon, but I had explained you how to get there. About the beer size: I never gave you a small beer, but a medium-sized, which is standard in our hometown. As I explained it to the group, we call it a 'vaasje'. During the tour someone lost his phone. Ian tried to help in every way he was able, stood outside on the look out for your friend. At the end your friend found it in the hotel. The 35 Euros is based on a private tour with a private guide for 2 hours, the 4 drinks (yes, alcohol is expensive in Amsterdam), and the photo shoot. Yes, there are cheaper pub crawls in Amsterdam, but they offer non-private tours, walk with about 50+ people, and offer cheap shots in tourist bars, with a long waiting time to even enter the bar. The everage age of the participants is about 20 years old. At the moment, these form of pub crawls are under scrutiny of the city council of Amsterdam, because of their large negative impact on the area. Also, during these tours, you don't get any background info or meet any local people. What also makes our pub walk unique, is that we offer a comedy mini Red Light Photo Shoot, in a former window brothel. If this was totally not what you expected, we feel really bad about this. Especially because during the tour, photo shoot and cafe visits you never gave us any reason to assume you didn't like it. You were all very interested in our stories, during the photo shoot were laughing out loud and even asked for business cards for future bookings. For next time I would kindly like to ask you to read the tour description(s) better and -more importantly- tell us during the tour. It doesn't seem fair to us that you seem a bit disappointed with a Red Light pub walk, because it contains red light elements. So we totally did not expect this review from you. We've been organizing this tour for years, never had less than a five star review for this. We hope this only reflects your personal opinion, since your friends were clearly having a good time. Anyway, wish you all the best. Kind regards, Salomé & Ian
Written 29 March 2017
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Ladmant
Washington, DC2 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2016 • Family
Great tour by Ian. Combined our interests with stories connected to the sites that wove in history, current affairs. pop culture, politics, religion, shopping and food.

I enjoy walking through the streets and exploring new places on my own,discovering the experience of the locals. Ian's tour offered a completely different look and understanding of some of the things and places I had seen many times over the years.

No frills. Great stories!
Written 31 August 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

R S
San Francisco, CA2 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2016 • Friends
My friend and I visited Amsterdam for the first time this past week - we toured with Ian and had a great experience. He was funny but informative - we learned about the history of the city and saw things we never would have discovered on our own. Their tour company has done so much for the community, helping the Red Light District - makes it even better to know that we supported a local business that contributes to their surroundings. It was such a great experience!
Written 3 June 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much for your review, it was great to show you around our beautiful city!
Written 6 June 2016
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Linsey M
Lawrence, KS4 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2015 • Friends
I am a professor and took 13 University students to Amsterdam on June 7th, 2015 for a study abroad program. I wanted to find an educational walking tour of the Red Light district for our students---and the Dutch Tour Company was perfect! Communication with them was excellent, and my students loved our guide/owner of the Tour Company, Ian. In our tour Ian talked to the students a little bit about the history of the city, architecture, history of the Red Light district, and public policies concerning the Coffee Shops and marijuana laws and regulations. He was so knowledgeable about Amsterdam, its history, culture, and public policies; but beyond that what my students really liked about him was that he was smart, he mixed seriousness and humor--depending on the topic. Ian is endearing and my students liked that is a real fixture of his community in the Netherlands-- his friends stopped to hug and greet him as they ran into him during out tour--it was clear that he loved his home city of Amsterdam. I am positive that Ian can, and does tours, for any age group, and tailored to the interests of your group. The Dutch Tour company was a highlight of our 10 days in Europe. I will bring students to Europe again and work with the Dutch Tour company!
Written 26 June 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

DUTCH TOUR COMPANY (Amsterdam) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go