Architecture Route Amsterdam: 23 Highlights by Boat

Architecture with a View

First stop: the IJplein by Rem Koolhaas. Residents of this square enjoy a truly exceptional view over the water — Koolhaas rotated the residential blocks at an angle to the IJ and added wide strips of green space throughout. A signature detail: the distinctively 1980s pink-and-white stucco finish.

The Multifunctional A’DAM Tower

Next up is the A’DAM Tower, designed by Arthur Staal. Placed at a diagonal angle and crowned with a distinctive rooftop structure, this 100-meter-tall building has a bold, daring presence — and rightly so. The A’DAM (Amsterdam Dance and Music) Tower houses office space, a hotel, a café, a restaurant at 70 meters above ground, and a public observation deck.

Our Eye on the EYE

Next, you’ll arrive at a building that immediately catches your eye: the EYE Film Museum. The Viennese architectural duo Delugan-Meissl drew on film itself as their design inspiration — can you spot elements of form, light, and movement in the structure? Over a thousand tons of curved steel give the building an unmistakably futuristic character.

De Draeck and the IJ

This former shipbuilding hall from 1953 was the workshop where De Groene Draeck — the royal yacht of Queen Beatrix — was built (hence the building’s name). Today, it’s home to young companies who make the most of the spectacular views over the IJ through its impressively large windows.

From Contaminated to Transformed

The winners of a city-organized competition were awarded use of this heavily contaminated site for ten years: De Ceuvel. Houseboats with foundations were installed on the polluted land, which was then transformed into a green environment. Sustainability is a core principle at De Ceuvel, evident in its soil-purifying plants, self-generated electricity, and innovative waste management.

From Crane to Luxury Hotel

As an innovative world city, Amsterdam knows exactly what to do with discarded objects. Kraan 13 — a 50-meter-tall listed national monument — was transformed by Sponge Architects into a sensational hotel with just three rooms. A night’s stay? Expect to pay around €600.

The Glass Hotel

The Brooklyn Hotel is located in yet another former shipyard. Before the 100% aluminum facade system and the enormous windows were mounted onto a steel frame, one of the shed roofs was lifted 30 meters into position.

A Feat of Extraordinary Architecture

Designer Trude Hooykaas saved this dock from demolition during a cycling trip and later found a developer to create something truly remarkable. Literally: a lightweight steel structure has been placed directly on top of the original tracks, appearing to float above the old dock below.

From TV Station to Viewpoint

This platform — now home to a restaurant, workspaces, and a public viewpoint — started its life in the North Sea, where TV Noordzee broadcast from 1964. More than 40 years later, it was relocated to the IJ, where it was renovated and a new floor was added on top.

Students in Containers

This colorful cluster of stacked containers in various hues serves as temporary homes for 1,100 students: Qubic. The units are stacked two or three stories high and connected by a shared corridor. They will eventually make way for the new Houthavens residential district.

A 9-Story Slice of Cake

IJ-dock is the most recently developed peninsula in this area, dominated by cutting-edge modern architecture — including a building shaped like a 9-story wedge of cake. One of its apartments — a remarkable 286 m² spread across nine floors — sold for €885,000.

Architecture That Makes You Talk

Amsterdam’s Architecture Center (ARCAM) couldn’t be housed in anything ordinary. Architect René van Zuuk created a striking contrast between rigid glass and flexible aluminum, resulting in a building as thought-provoking as the content inside it.

A Courtyard in the Outskirts

Funenpark is an extraordinary residential district featuring 16 uniquely designed housing blocks. On this former industrial site, architect Frits van Dongen recreated the intimate, close-knit feel of the inner city. His overarching concept — “Hidden Delights” — unfolds throughout the urban garden, realized by a collective of different architects.

A Garden on the Water

Artist Robert-Jasper Grootveld created the Floating Gardens using polystyrene foam. By wrapping the foam in a synthetic cloth and tying it into a net, he created a base on which soil could be poured — and just like that, a garden in the middle of the water.

A Tree Inside a House

This street contains 60 plots, and no. 120 is particularly special. Architect Koen van Velsen built a living tree directly into the interior of the house — designed for mountain climber Bart Vos. The street was developed during a period when self-build housing was strongly encouraged, giving residents the freedom to design their own homes. How would you design yours?

What’s Slithering Past?

The Pythonbrug (Python Bridge) is a 90-meter architectural masterpiece designed by Adriaan Geuze of West 8. As you approach the bridge, a giant red snake seems to glide into view. The steel construction, combined with concrete, bears a passing resemblance to the Python roller coaster at the Efteling.

Forms of Deliberate Discomfort

This building exists purely as a visual landmark for the city. UNStudio’s asymmetric and deliberately uncomfortable forms reference the fact that the building is not meant to be lived in or worked in — it simply is. Constructed in 1997 from aluminum, steel beams, and concrete, it stands as a provocative object in the cityscape.

Tetris for Architects

The goal of Borneo-Sporenburg: fit as many homes as possible into one hectare without creating a bleak, monotonous neighborhood. The architects at West 8 opted for low-rise buildings, a cheerful mix of colors, and a different façade for every single house. And how did they manage to fit 110 homes per hectare? Simple — they slotted them together like pieces of Tetris.

A Roman Arena by the Water

KNSM Island was redeveloped into a residential neighborhood in the 1990s. Architects Jo Coenen, Bruno Albert, Hans Kohlhoff, and Christian Rapp each left their individual mark on the design. Classicism runs as a recurring theme throughout — most notably in the circular floor plan that recalls the layout of a Roman arena.

Urban Variety on the Waterfront

Sjoerd Soeters’s assignment on Java Island: design 1,300 homes using Amsterdam’s inner city as the starting point. A variety of materials, forms, and heights create an unmistakably urban feel. By dividing the island into five sections, a new canal ring emerged — canal houses 2.0.

Relief on the Bridge

Our final stop: the Jan Schaeferbrug by VenhoevenCS, stretching 285 meters. The bridge has a distinctive topography: pedestrians begin their crossing lower at the quayside than cyclists do. But all paths converge in the middle, where the bridge opens once every five years by crane — to let the tall ships of SAIL Amsterdam pass through.

We hope we’ve inspired you. Perhaps to turn an old discarded object into something memorable, or to create something entirely new. Either way, we’ve given you a glimpse of Amsterdam’s boundary-pushing modern architecture — the side of the city that keeps it young and alive alongside all its beautiful historic buildings.

That’s our overview of Amsterdam’s most exciting sailing routes. If you have a tip about other great routes in Amsterdam, we’d love to hear it!