Passing through the romantic city of Amsterdam? Don’t miss visiting the Rijksmuseum, the famous Dutch art museum!
New after a renovation that lasted 10 years, it is time for you to visit the famous Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam! For its inauguration in April 2013, the museum returned to the front of the stage in the presence of Queen Beatrix and thousands of spectators in the building designed by the architect Pierre Cuypers .
The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam (literally State Museum) is certainly the best art museum in the Netherlands and rightly popular among visitors, who were more than 2 million in 2014. His most famous painting, La Ronde de Nuit ( De Nachtwacht ) Rembrandt , is also his main attraction. In addition to this masterpiece, you can also enjoy other paintings of the Dutch Golden Age, including the works of Vermeer, Steen and Hals, inside the museum.
Want to visit the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and discover all its secrets? We have prepared this small guide with all the information you might need.
History of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam
Photo credit: Flickr – Eric de Redelijkheid
The origin of the Rijksmuseum dates back to 1800, while it was only a national gallery in The Hague. It is Louis Bonaparte , the brother of Napoleon I and King of Holland, who ordered to move the collection into the Royal Palace. A few years later, following the advent of the king Guillaume I d’Orange-Nassau , the museum belongs again to the State and is then transferred to the Trippenhuis which will then be called Rijksmuseum.
In 1863, the desire to build a new building gave rise to a competition, then to a second in 1876, which Pierre Cuypers won. The interior decoration was also the object of competition, won by Bart Van Hove and François Vermeylen for sculptures, Georg Sturm for ceramic paintings and paintings, and W.F. Dixon for stained glass.
From the opening of the museum nine years later, visiting the Rijksmuseum already allowed to see masterpieces that can still be seen today.
What to see at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam?
Photo credit: Unsplash – Michael D Beckwith
The most interesting things to see during a visit to the Rijksmuseum are the works of the Golden Age of Dutch art dating from 1620 to 1680, in particular the collection of paintings of Rembrandt , Vermeer, Hals Steen and Hooch. But the collection is not only limited to paintings.
Most of the paintings were placed in the context of other arts and crafts, such as sculpture and decorative arts ( Delft’s cuisine, furniture, porcelain, doll houses...). However, it is important to know that the most famous works are exhibited in the Gallery of Honour . There, the masterpieces link: Night round from Rembrandt, Laitière de Vermeer, Portrait of Isaac Abrahamsz’s wedding of Frans Hals, Jewish Fiance from Rembrandt, Swan threatened by Jan Asselijn...
In total, there are 12 paintings by Rembrandt, 4 paintings by Vermeer and many less famous painters such as Johannes Verspronck, Torrentius, Jan Lievens, Willem Heda and Nicolaes Maes.
How to visit the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam?
Photo credit: Unsplash – Christian Fregnan
The museum is spread over four floors, numbered from zero to three. However, the digital order of the rooms does not reflect the chronological progression of the collection.
If you want to see the works in the order in which they were made, you must start on the ground floor (the main entrance is also at this level) with the Middle Ages (salles 0.1-0.6), then go to the second floor for the 17th century (salles 2.0-2.28), then descend from one floor and cross the building diagonally and continue your visit to the first floor through the 18th and 19th centuries).
Finally, if you want to see the collections (very limited) of the 20th century, you will have to climb to the top floor. So it’s quite complicated.
The new Asian Pavilion, which is a distinct structure of the main museum, offers an important collection from China, Indonesia, Japan, India, Thailand and Vietnam, and is accessible through a corner of the entrance hall.
How to get to the Rijksmuseum?
The art museum is located on the Museumplein 10 minutes walk from Leidseplein.
You can go by different means of transport :
- Coming from Centraal Station Central Station: trams 2 or 5 (Rijksmuseum stop)
- Coming from Zuid South Station: tram 5 (Rijksmuseum)
- Coming from Sloterdijk Station: tram 12 (stop Concertgebouw)
- Coming from Amstel Station: subway to Weesperplein, then tram 7 or 10 (Spiegelgracht stop)
- Coming from the Marnixstraat regional bus station: bus 26, 65, 66, 170 or 172
- Coming from Schiphol: bus 197, stop Rijksmuseum
When your visit to the Rijksmuseum is over, you can visit other museums in the Museumplein, such as the Museum Van Gogh Museum .
Hourly rates of the Rijksmuseum
Photo credit: Unsplash – Ståle Grut
RATES
To know all discounts and prices, visit the official website Museum.
- Adults: 20€ on site / 19€ online
- Less than 18 years old: FREE
- European Youth Map: 10€ on site / 9,50€ online
You can buy your ticket online on official museum site .
It is also possible to perform one guided tour in French Rijksmuseum, always avoiding long queues. You can book it online or on site, for about 5€ per person.
HORARI
The Rijksmuseum is open 365 days a year from 9am to 5pm . The gardens of the Rijksmuseum, the shop Rijks and the café are also open to visitors without a ticket from 9am to 6pm.
Good to know: During the weekend of Pentecost (Sunday 9 and Monday 10 June), the museum will be open from 9am to 9pm!
BON A LEARN
If you come to visit the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, here are some points you need to know:
- Spring and summer are seasons where the museum is extremely busy. The most “peaceful” moments, especially in the gallery of honor, are probably the weekdays, at the first hours of opening in the morning (from 9h), or during the last two hours of the day (3-5 p.m.). Winter is obviously a quieter season too
- Guided tours of the museum exist, but a trick is to download the application of the Rijksmuseum free of charge to enjoy a multimedia visit on iOS or Android (this option costs €5 for visitors to the museum without smartphone)
- Dude Free WiFi is available throughout the museum
- The Rijksmuseum is accessible to persons with reduced mobility (except reduced mobility scooters). Guests can return to the museum for free. More information on the accessibility of the site by clicking here
- ♪ pushchairs are allowed
- You can leave your belongings free of charge vestiaries
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