Amsterdam City Breaks: 3 Day Itinerary
Three days adds the one trip that genuinely needs a full day of its own: The Hague and Delft, paired, since a train separates them by only 8 to 10 minutes. The spine stays the same as the 2-day version : Rotterdam first, Utrecht second. Longer trips build on these same three days; see the 5-day and 7-day versions for Giethoorn and Maastricht added on top.
Book these before you go
- A Rotterdam architecture tour for Day 1.
- Dom Tower entry and guided tour for Day 2, guided-access only.
- Mauritshuis entrance ticket for Day 3, to skip the line for Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring.
- A place to stay in Amsterdam , your base for all three nights.
| Day | Focus | Travel time from Amsterdam |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Rotterdam | ~40 min Intercity Direct |
| Day 2 | Utrecht | ~25-27 min Intercity |
| Day 3 | The Hague and Delft | ~50 min direct, +8-10 min to Delft |
Day 1: Rotterdam
The Intercity Direct reaches Rotterdam Centraal in about 40 minutes for roughly EUR 20-24 with the high-speed supplement. Spend the morning at the Markthal (free entry, lunch from its 96 stalls) and the Cube Houses (Piet Blom’s tilted yellow cubes, free from outside, the Kijk-Kubus show-house paid), then walk to the Erasmusbrug before the train back. Rotterdam is also the gateway to Kinderdijk’s windmills, covered separately in our Amsterdam Day Trips guide if you’d rather add that instead of Day 3.
Day 2: Utrecht
About 25 to 27 minutes by Intercity, cheaper off-peak (roughly EUR 10-11 after 9am weekdays or any time weekends, versus a full EUR 19 fare). Climb the guided-only Dom Tower first, then walk the Oudegracht at both levels, street and sunken wharf, stopping at a werfkelder restaurant built into the old canal cellars for lunch at water height, a feature unique to Utrecht among Dutch cities.
Day 3: The Hague and Delft
The Hague runs direct from Centraal in around 50 minutes. Go straight to the Mauritshuis for Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring and Rembrandt’s Anatomy Lesson of Dr Nicolaes Tulp, then walk past the Binnenhof, the working seat of Dutch government (parts close without notice for state business, so don’t plan on going inside). A further 8 to 10 minutes by train puts you in Delft for the afternoon: walk the canals Vermeer painted and never left, then tour the Royal Delft factory , the last of the city’s original 17th-century porcelain makers still firing blue-and-white ware on site. Budget roughly EUR 70-90 per person for the whole day once rail, the Mauritshuis, and lunch are added up.
Can I visit The Hague without Delft, or Delft without The Hague?
You can, but it wastes the day’s main advantage: the two sit only 8 to 10 minutes apart by train, so splitting them across separate days doubles the travel time for no real gain. Pair them unless the Mauritshuis or Delft’s porcelain factory is genuinely the only thing on your list, in which case a half-day covers either alone.
Is the Binnenhof worth visiting if parts are closed?
Yes, for the exterior and the Ridderzaal (Hall of Knights) courtyard alone; it’s still the working seat of Dutch government and one of the oldest parliament buildings in the world still in use. Just don’t build the day around an interior tour, since state business can close sections without notice, and check current access before you go.
Do I need to book Rotterdam or the Hague and Delft in advance?
Only the Mauritshuis, which sells out on weekends and in peak season; book the timed slot before you leave Amsterdam. Rotterdam’s sights and Delft’s canals and porcelain factory are all walk-up, pay-on-arrival, with no reservation required.
Buy a return ticket for each day rather than a multi-day rail pass; three separate day trips on three different routes cost less as individual tickets than as a pass built for daily commuting.