Amsterdam City Breaks: 5 Day Itinerary
Five days covers all five city breaks worth doing from Amsterdam, one per day. Days 1 through 4 repeat the 4-day version unchanged: Rotterdam, Utrecht, The Hague and Delft, then Giethoorn. Day 5 adds Maastricht, done here as one very long day rather than the overnight it deserves; if your dates have any flexibility at all, the 6-day version turns this into a proper two-day stay instead.
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.
- Giethoorn day trip by bus and electric boat for Day 4.
| 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 4 | Giethoorn | ~2-2.5 hrs each way |
| Day 5 | Maastricht | ~2h23-2h40 direct, one long day |
Day 1: Rotterdam
The Intercity Direct takes about 40 minutes. Cover the Markthal, the Cube Houses and Kijk-Kubus show-house, and the Erasmusbrug, adding the Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen art storage building if you have an extra hour.
Day 2: Utrecht
About 25 to 27 minutes by Intercity, cheaper off-peak. Climb the guided-only Dom Tower , then walk the Oudegracht at both levels and eat lunch at a werfkelder restaurant at water height.
Day 3: The Hague and Delft
Around 50 minutes direct to The Hague for the Mauritshuis , then 8 to 10 minutes further to Delft for the canals and the Royal Delft factory . Budget roughly EUR 70-90 per person.
Day 4: Giethoorn
No train reaches the village itself: NS to Zwolle or Steenwijk, then bus 70 or the seasonal bus 270 (April-October). Total travel is 2 to 2.5 hours each way, about EUR 58 return. Rent a small electric boat on arrival and confirm your return bus before you set out.
Day 5: Maastricht, the long way
The direct Intercity to Maastricht takes roughly 2 hours 23 minutes to 2 hours 40 minutes each way, around EUR 30-37 one-way at full fare. Doing this as a single day means close to 5 hours of the day spent on the train for maybe 4 to 5 hours in the city itself, so be honest about whether that trade is worth it before you commit. If you go, prioritize the Basilica of Saint Servatius and Vrijthof square first, since both sit within a few minutes’ walk of the station, then the Sint Pietersberg marl caves if there’s still time before the last comfortable train back. Visitmaastricht.com has current hours for all three.
Is a Maastricht day trip actually worth 5 hours on the train?
Only if Maastricht specifically is the draw, not just a fifth city to check off. The city itself feels genuinely different from the rest of this itinerary, more Burgundian than Dutch Golden Age, but the round-trip transit time roughly equals the time you’ll spend there. Anyone with even one extra day free should book the overnight version instead of the single-day one.
What should I cut if Day 5 runs too long?
Cut Vrijthof square’s cafes and the Bonnefanten Museum before cutting the Basilica of Saint Servatius or the Sint Pietersberg caves; the first two are pleasant but replaceable, while the second two are what actually distinguishes Maastricht from everywhere else on this trip.
Can I skip Maastricht and add a second day somewhere else instead?
Yes, and it’s a reasonable trade. Doubling up on Rotterdam or Utrecht with a slower second visit, or adding a rest day back in Amsterdam, uses the same fifth day with far less transit fatigue than the Maastricht round trip; Maastricht rewards patience more than any other stop on this list.
Book the earliest reasonable outbound train to Maastricht and check the last realistic return before you leave your hotel that morning; missing it turns a very long day into an unplanned overnight.